1978 Vintage Whisky

A 1978 vintage Glenfarclass released as part of the 7th release of family casks. Matured in a refill sherry hogshead and bottled in 2011.

A 1978 vintage whisky from Glenglassaugh. This whisky has been finished in a cask previously used for Madeira style wine. A beautifully sweet, fruity 33 year old.

Bottled at its whopping full strength of 62.2%, this little-seen Mortlach 1978 was released in May 1998 as part of the highly desirable Rare Malts series from UDV (now Diageo).

This whisky has been named 'Dun Eideann' after the Gaelic name for Edinburgh. Distilled at Dallas Dhu in 1978 and matured for 20 years. This single cask release was bottled by Signatory and each bottle has been numbered by hand.

Another outstanding sherried Glenrothes vintage bottling, this time from 1978. Bottled in 2008, this was rated at 90.5 points in the Whisky Bible by Jim Murray, who found gooseberries, tobacco, honey, sultanas and vanilla pods amongst its many charms.

The first of the limited edition vintage releases of distillery-bottled Ardbeg 1978, this is from 1997.

The Rare Malts are a now-discontinued series of cask-strength releases designed by Diageo to showcase some of the hidden treasures in their portfolio. This particular dram is all the more precious for having come from a distillery closed in 1985.

A very rare bottling of Brora from the SMWS - distilled in February 1978 and bottled under the name 'Intimacy with Angels' in October 2004 at 26 years of age.

Distilled in 1978, this Brora 32 year old is the oldest yet released by Diageo, and was introduced as part of the Special Releases for 2011. A marvellously complex nose with an intricate, medium-peated palate.

The eighth release of Diageo's Port Ellens is the fourth from 1978 and arrives in slightly tweaked packaging with a new box design, although the label remains largely the same.

Supposedly the product of a mistake when the bottling strength was reduced to 42.4% instead of 43%, this very rare Ardbeg was bottled separately from the rest of the 1999 release and sold without a box.

The 6th release of Diageo's legendary year Special Release Port Ellens. Distilled in 1978 and bottled at 27 years of age this is an increasingly rare dram as investors and drinkers fight over the remaining bottles.

The second sensational OB Port Ellen 1978, bottled around the turn of the millennium as part of the Rare Malts series. This phenomenal dram was rated at 93 points by Serge Valentin of Whiskyfun, and its popularity and acclaim led to the revivial of interest in this classic closed distillery and thus to the birth of the annual Special Releases series.

The first Port Ellen Annual Release goes for much more these days, but for many people (including at least one TWE staff member) the second release, bottled at 59.35% in 2002, remains at the top of the pile for official PE. A magnificent whisky.

The fourth in a series of annual releases of cask-strength Port Ellen from the late 1970's. As the distillery closed over twenty years ago, these bottles are very highly sought-after.

One of the stellar PE Rare Malts releases that catapulted this obscure distillery to fame in the late 1990s. A legendary bottling.

An incredible 1978 Ardbeg with a fearsome reputation, bottled in 1990 by Sestante. Serge Valentin of Whiskyfun was underwhelmed and 'only' gave it 91 points - an impressive and very hard to find whisky.