Port Ellen Prism could sell for £300,000
Diageo has donated 46-year-old Port Ellen Prism to the Distillers One of One 2025 auction, which is expected to sell for between £150,000 and £300,000 (US$203,000-$406,000).
Bottled in celebration of the distillery’s 200th anniversary, Port Ellen Prism is a one-of-a-kind, 46-year-old single malt from the Islay-based distillery.
The single malt was distilled in 1978 and aged in refill hogsheads before being married in a refill American oak puncheon for more than 10 years.
According to Aimée Morrison, master blender of Port Ellen, the whisky presents notes of “amber-gold layers of currants, berries, and chocolate with smoke from the core, combined with hints of spices, cinder toffee, and a lingering sea breeze”.
The bottling marks the distillery’s oldest expression to date and was created specifically for the charity auction, which will take place on 10 October at Hopetoun House, Scotland, in partnership with Sotheby’s.
Funds raised from the auction are used for charitable purposes, specifically directed towards the Youth Action Fund, which supports disadvantaged young people in Scotland.
Julie Bramham, managing director of Diageo Luxury, said: “I’m thrilled that we are able to support The Distiller’s Charity again this year, through the donation of Port Ellen Prism for the Distillers One of One Auction.
“This is a unique and smoky single malt liquid, marking the whisky’s 200th anniversary. The Distiller’s Charity does vital work in supporting and transforming the lives of young people and communities across Scotland.”
The winner of the lot, which is expected to sell for £150,000-£300,000 (US$203,000-$406,000), will also be invited to Islay with three guests for an exclusive experience at the Port Ellen distillery, which will include a unique ‘Atlas of Smoke’ tour.
Bidding for Port Ellen Prism will open Monday 15 September 2025 and will close on Friday 10 October at the event at Hopetoun House near Edinburgh.
Presentation
Port Ellen Prism is presented in a singular 1.5-litre glass decanter, created by Radley’s scientific glassmakers, and encased in a glass sculpture by artist Wilfried Grootens.
Morrison said: “In our work at the distillery, there are minute and often almost invisible shifts made through scientific precision or creative intuition, which are very much felt in the final product.
“Slight changes in pressure, temperature and time can have a notable influence on flavour, in the same way that imperceptible adjustments make a huge difference to the final glass pieces created by Grootens.”
The artwork is said to symbolise the smoky character of the distillery’s whisky. The sculpture features numerous individual sheets of glass painted by the artist, creating a three-dimensional image, which changes when moved. This illusion of floating multidimensional forms represents the essence of the smoke at the heart of Port Ellen whisky.
Grootens commented: “Creating this piece representing the character of Port Ellen’s 46-year-old whisky in my signature style was a privilege. With delicate brush strokes, I paint or draw on single panes that, layered, trimmed and polished, seemingly float in the glass, creating three-dimensional shapes, visualising the smoke within and exploring its depth of flavour.”
Port Ellen Prism is said to signify a new chapter in the distillery’s journey of experimentation, part of a project they call The Atlas of Smoke, alongside landmark releases like Port Ellen Gemini, which utilised data visualisation to decode the chemistry of flavour.
The 46-year-old single malt is the first of two commemorative bicentenary releases this year, with the announcement of the second release coming soon.
Port Ellen Distillery was established in 1825 and closed in 1983. The distillery was revived by Diageo in March 2024, after 40 years of silence.
On this week’s episode of The Spirits Business Podcast, Beanie Espey, managing director of the Distillers One of One, discussed what it’s like curating one of the world’s rarest Scotch whisky auctions.
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