The Balvenie 56 Year Old 1964
This is a unique single-bottle release of The Balvenie 1964, one of the rarest and oldest Balvenies ever to be made available outside the Grant family.
“This single-bottle release from Cask 10379 is a stunning example of The Balvenie, with an incredibly complex nose and taste. The cask was distilled on 18 November 1964 and has slept, quietly maturing in Warehouse 24, for 56 years, to be revealed now at The Distillers One of One.” – David C. Stewart MBE, Malt Master of The Balvenie.
This incomparable cask was selected by The Balvenie Malt Master, David C. Stewart MBE, only the fourth Malt Master in the history of the distillery, for its sublime balance of flavor and depth of character.
On the nose, aromas of sherbet tannins, shades of tobacco and candied ginger follow subtle aromatic mint leaves. An initial cooling spearmint note on the palate recedes to reveal layers of vanilla and a creamy hint of brioche dough. A stunning example of a long-aged Balvenie, extremely complex on the nose and palate with a lingering finish. And the unmistakable honeyed flavour created by the shape of the pot stills, with their ‘Balvenie Ball’ at the base of the swan’s neck [a feature replicated in the bottle], runs through each and every crafted drop.
For this unique bottling, masters of the craft of glass making at Dartington Crystal created the exquisite decanter, mouth-blown and hand-finished to allow the dark amber of The Balvenie to shine through. The hand of Peter Horridge, world-renowned graphic artist unsurpassed in the creation of letterforms and with a distinctive fluidity of line, graces the one-of-a-kind, deckle-edged paper label. The year 1964, distillation and bottling dates are written in copperplate script, the classic and perhaps most exacting of all the calligraphic forms.
The Balvenie looked to fine contemporary furniture designer and maker Sam Chinnery to create a bespoke piece to house the decanter. Known for the highest levels of traditional skills at his Morayshire workshop and with a deep appreciation of the strength, warmth and beauty of wood, Sam handcrafted a cylindrical, book-opening case in black walnut to complement the rich hues of the whisky with brass accents to echo the engraved brass decanter stopper.
