Top 10 whisky bottle designs

In a competitive market, whisky brands are thinking of increasingly inventive ways to make their products stand-out through beautiful, interesting and wacky bottle designs.

This tattooed bottle of J&B Scotch is one of out top 10 whisky bottle designs

While the stunningly extravagant designs of some bottles add to their sky-high price tag, the quirky styles of others have made sought-after cult classics among connoisseurs.

Some, such as the Johnnie Walker Diamond Jubilee Edition, mark a historic occasion, while others pay tribute to industry legends.

In this list, we take a look at some of the amazing bottle designs produced by The Macallan, Suntory, Highland Park, J&B and Chivas Regal, among others.

From a Japanese whisky which commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Rolling Stones, to a skin-like tattooed whisky bottle, this is out selection of the top 10 whisky bottle designs.

J&B tattoo design

Earlier this year, Diageo’s J&B blended Scotch whisky brand teamed-up with a tattoo studio in Paris to launch a rare selection of handcrafted limited edition bottles made to look like tattooed skin.

The bottles are made to look like skin through a complete latex covering and are contained in a customised wooden box which also has a tattoo design.

The design was inspired by the origins of mainstream tattooing practices in the late 19th century – the same period when J&B whisky first launched.

Suntory Rolling Stones Anniversary Edition

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of legendary rock band the Rolling Stones, Japanese drinks group Suntory released 150 limited edition whisky bottles shaped like the band’s iconic lips and tongue logo.

Priced US$6,300, each bottle also featured a crystal stopper and black leather display case, while the whisky itself was a special blend with a “complex aroma”.

Ghostbuster star Dan Aykroyd’s Crystal Head vodka also commemorated the anniversary with its own limited edition gift set.

Nikka Gold & Gold

This blended whisky created by Japanese producer Nikka comes with its own metal Samurai helmet and armour.

Initially launched as a duty free exclusive for US$250, the edition is now a regular fixture across whisky auctions.

Another Japanese whisky brand Suntory released its own interesting scarf-wrapped bottle design earlier this year in collaboration with Japanese-Australian designer Akira Isogawa.

Inish Turk Beg Maiden Voyage

This buoy-shaped bottle demonstrates the creation of the rare whiskey it contains. This first bottling of Inish Turk Beg, created by Irish whiskey distillery Cooley, has been shipped to the isle of  Inish Turk Beg off the coast of Ireland to mature.

Each titling mooring buoy bottle is a hand-blown and partly made with sand from the island’s own beaches.

The bottling original cost about £125, but has now been discontinued.

That Boutique-y Whisky Company

The That Boutique-y Whisky Company contains its whisky – sourced from a number of renowned Scotch distilleries in batches – in bottles depicting interesting stories.

Each bottle bears a graphic design label which features prominent figures from the whisky industry upon them as well as industry legends for consumers to decipher.

Highland Park 50 Year Old

Internationally-renowned Scottish designer Maeve Gillies designed the bottle for Highland Park’s 50-year-old expression, finding her inspiration in the wild and rugged elemental forces of the island.
Each bottle is hand-crafted, wrapped in ornate sterling silver, with the number ‘50’ intertwined in the nautical-inspired design.
A piece of Orcadian pink sandstone, sourced from the quarry that built the 15th century St Magnus’ Cathedral in Kirkwall, is inscribed with the Highland Park logo and set in the front of the bottle. On the back there is a dark glass disc which becomes translucent once the bottle is empty, and through this a tiny replica of the rosette window in the Cathedral is visible.
The bottle is presented in a hand-carved Scottish oak box, set with a sterling silver and glass porthole through which you can glimpse Highland Park logo on the bottle within.

The Macallan M

In October last year Edrington unveiled the “pinnacle” of its 1824 Macallan Scotch whisky range in the form of The Macallan M, bottled in a luxury decanter created by French crystal-maker Lalique.

Just 1,750 of The Macallan M crystal decanters, each engraved with its own individual number, were made available globally.

With six sharp angular faces, the decanter was designed to reflect the six-sided ethos of the brand. Silvio Denz, president and CEO of Lalique, said: “The decanter styling is utterly unique in the world of decanters, and our masters of crystal have relished applying their most complex skills to this project to bring it to life.”

A six litre decanter of The Macallan M went on to break the Guinness World Record for the most expensive whisky sold at auction.

McGibbon’s Golf Range

Just this week, Scotch whisky producer Douglas Laing unveiled two golf club and bag-shaped Scotch whisky decanters ahead of the Ryder Cup.

The McGibbon’s Golf Range is a re-launch of the editions that earned the whisky bottler the Queen’s Award for Export Achievement in 1990.

Both expressions are small batch, 43% abv bottlings in 500ml golf-themed ceramic decanters that have been given a modern makeover.

Johnnie Walker Diamond Jubilee

John Walker and Sons celebrated the 60th anniversary of The Queen’s accession to the throne in style; bottling a blend of 60 year-old Scotch whiskies in 60 of these elaborate, diamond-shaped Baccarat decanters.

The unique blend of grain and malt whiskies were finished in a cask made of English oak from The Queen’s Sandringham Estate. Two small casks of the blend were aged at the Royal Lochnagar Distillery, on the edge of the Balmoral Estate.

Adorned with Britannia silver, the decanters have six legs to represent the decades of The Queen’s reign. The silver collar is set with a half-carat diamond, the Royal Arms – the John Walker & Sons monogram – and an individually numbered seal, shaped by acclaimed Scottish silversmiths, Hamilton & Inches.

Chivas Regal Vivienne Westwood

Chivas Brothers channels the quirky style of renowned fashion designer Vivienne Westwood with a limited edition design for its Chivas Regal 18 Year Old.

The designer teamed-up with Chivas to create the design in time for London fashion week in 2011. It features the Union Flag which was first created in 1801 – the birth year of Chivas Regal – and a taffeta rosette with an enamel badge.

Due to huge demand, Chivas Brothers created 50 more bottles of the edition for exclusive sale in Hong Kong in January 2012.