Glenrothes releases £4,000 Extraordinary Cask

The Glenrothes has launched the second expression in its Extraordinary Cask Collection – a 1969 vintage that carries a £4,000 price tag.

The Glenrothes 1969 Extraordinary Cask is the second in the Berry Bros. collection

Brand owner Berry Bros. & Rudd Spirits has bottled the contents of cask #11485, an American oak hogshead, one of 20 acquired from whisky merchant Duncan Taylor.

The 42.9% abv single malt Glenrothes has notes of kirsch, pear drops and chocolate orange on the nose, and develops into citrus, liquorice and barley sugar on the palate.

Berry Bros. is releasing just 133 bottles of the 1969 cask, each of which has been hand-blown in lead crystal in the traditional Glenrothes design.

Each bottle, which has been designed by agency Brandhouse, features a brass, engraved plate on the front noting the year of distillation and bottle number. The bottles are also presented in a hand-crafted leather case complete with oak plinth and book co-written by seven whisky writers.

Ronnie Cox, brand heritage director for Berry Bros., said: “We released the extraordinary cask from 1970 in September 2012, when it was at its peak; there were a mere 179 bottles which have all sold out.

“The time is right to release the latest of these; a delightfully characterful Glenrothes distilled in the summer of ’69 which, I am delighted to proclaim, is now ready to be committed to glass.”

The Glenrothes 1969 Extraordinary Cask #11485 will be available from Berry Bros. & Rudd and its representatives in key markets around the world.

The group will follow up the release in 2015 with the launch of a 1968 cask #13507.