Port Ellen 1979 24 Year Old 3rd Annual Release Bottled 2003
Port Ellen 1979 24 Year Old 3rd Annual Release Bottled 2003
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This 24 Year Old Port Ellen Annual Release was distilled in 1979 and bottled in 2003 at 57.3% ABV.
Port Ellen, in its time as an operational distillery, only had one official bottling release: the 12 Year Old Queen’s Visit bottling from 1980. Shortly after, in 1983, Port Ellen was mothballed and in 1987 its building repurposed as it closed permanently. This tumultuous history and early closure has ensured that Port Ellen whisky has developed a cult-like status amongst whisky lovers and is highly collectible.
That can be no more said than for the Port Ellen Annual Releases. These are a series of bottlings from remaining Port Ellen stock that were launched from 2001 to 2017. Each of the consecutive releases carry an age statement and are bottled at varying cask strengths.
The 17 Annual Releases from Port Ellen stocks were extremely limited, with the yield decreasing each year and stock was depleted. The largest yield was 12,000 bottles of the 2nd release in 2002, which is still not a huge number of bottles available, and the smallest was a release of just 2,940 bottles of the 16th release. As such, the demand for these bottles is incredibly high as they create one of the best verticals available.
Most of the whisky used for the Annual Releases comes from the late 1970s, 1978 and 1979, with the exception of the 15th release which heralds from 1983 stock, the year that Port Ellen was mothballed. This is likely some of the last whisky to be distilled by the operational distillery.
In 2017, parent company Diageo announced a £35 million investment plan to bring both Port Ellen and its fellow closed distillery Brora back online. With renewed interest in Port Ellen, old and rare bottlings such as the Annual Release bottles are in incredibly high demand as the profile of the distillery is set to skyrocket once more.
