Brora shuttered back in 1983, but thanks to a three-year restoration project by Diageo, the once silent distillery is ready to distill again. To start things off, Brora will release the Triptych whisky collection, featuring a trio of single malts ranging in age from 38 to 48 years old, priced at £30,000 ($41,450 USD) for the collection.
Master blender Dr Craig Wilson selected the vintage single malts for Brora Triptych, which include:
The Elusive Legacy (42.8% ABV), a 48-year-old single malt and the oldest public release from the distillery. Matured in casks from 1972, the whisky features aromas of wood spice and peach tarte Tatin, with a “powerful rich maltiness.”
Age of Peat (48.6% ABV) is a 43-year-old heavily peated Scotch drawn from casks of 1977. Tasting notes include aromas of vanilla, green apples and hints of beeswax, leading to a long, sweet finish of peaty smoke.
Timeless Original (47.5% ABV) completes the trio. It’s a 38-year-old expression from limited stocks of 1982. It is said to showcase the ‘distinct waxiness’ that Brora is known for. Tasting notes include sherbet-like lemon peel and a touch of green grass.
Each limited edition set of the Brora Triptych collection will be made up of three 500ml bottles, and will include a personal invitation from Brora master distiller Stewart Bowman to visit and experience Brora in person.
“My father was an ‘old hand’ at the distillery, and I grew up in the village with the top of the distillery’s bell tower visible from our kitchen window,” said Bowman. “In the years after Brora’s closure, I remember my father showing me the old cask ledgers and the records of those final casks distilled in 1983 and asking if Brora would return one day. It fills me with great pride that 38 years after the doors of Brora closed, more casks will now be filled, and we will be able to welcome people once again to this special place.
“It is our commitment that we will do justice to the Brora of old and hope to welcome visitors to our restored home as soon as that is possible. In the Brora Triptych, we aimed to celebrate the great whisky styles of the past for which Brora is known.”
Brora Triptych will be available beginning in mid-May from the distillery upon the site’s completion, to celebrate Brora’s return. It will also be sold online via the brand’s official website, and through specialist retailers.