LOT ID: 0824-775
End Date : Oct 16 2024 08:00 PM
Rosebank 34 Year Old. Bottled early 1970s by George Strachan. 26 2/3 Fl Ozs. 88 Proof. No box.
A legendary Rosebank 34-year-old bottled by George Strachan Ltd in Aberdeenshire. This famous whisky is the most celebrated of a handful of epic Rosebanks from this bottler, and was originally bottled in two versions at 70 UK proof (40%) and at 88 UK proof (50.3%). This higher strength 88 proof version of the 34-year-old was labelled, incorrectly, as a Highland malt and dates from the early part of the 1970s, so it must contain whisky distilled at the Lowlands’ greatest distillery in the late 1930s or very early ‘40s. A luxuriously fat, grassy whisky, with an unusual Highland-style minerality, lots of fruit and even a hint of smoke. This war-era Rosebank is an unforgettable dram.
FILLING LEVEL
Upper Shoulder
The writing was on the wall for Rosebank in 1988 when owners United Distillers preferred the less accomplished but much more tourist-friendly Glenkinchie for their new Classic Malts series. Rosebank closed in 1993, after UD balked at a £2m upgrade to the distillery’s effluent treatment facility, and soon became a cult lost distillery - the Lowland equivalent of Brora or Port Ellen. Miraculously, Diageo have now restored both Brora and Port Ellen, while Rosebank was rebuilt under new owners Ian MacLeod Distillers and began distilling again in June 2023.
Today, new bottlings of old Rosebank are dwindling, and prices have increased dramatically over the last decade. Essential official bottlings of Rosebank include the glorious 1979 and 1981 Rare Malt Editions, and the splendid Special Releases from 2007, 2011 and 2014. Indie Rosebanks from the early 1990s vintages are generally excellent and usually more affordable at auction.
BID | DATE | TIME | |
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£1,000.00 | 11th October 2024 | 19:39 | |