Auchentoshan 12 Year Old Queen Elizabeth 2 Crystal Decanter with Certificate 1 litre
This beautiful Glencairn Crystal glass ships decanter is a scarce piece of British Maritime history, produced to be sold exclusively on the Queen Elizabeth 2 in the early 1980’s.
The decanter is in pristine condition, with the seal intact, & contains one litre of Auchentoshan 12 years old single malt whisky. The decanter has engravings of the Queen Elizabeth 2, with twin anchors, & comes with the original silk-lined-blue-velvet presentation box &complete with stopper &the original limited edition Certificate of Authenticity (#3170).
This beautiful keepsake will take pride of place in either your collection of important Cunard Memorabilia or equally in your collection of rare Scotch Whiskys, &is a guaranteed investment, provided you don’t succumb to the temptation to sample a dram or two of this 50+ year old single malt!
Taken from the official certificate included in the presentation box:
THE QE2 DECANTER
Cunard Line take pleasure in presenting this limited edition mouth blown, hand cut, crystal decanter from the Glencairn Crystal Studio. It is filled with very fine 12 years old single malt whisky from the world renowned Auchentoshan Distillery located on the banks of the River Clyde, close to where the Queen Elizabeth 2 was built.
The signature of Mr Raymond Davidson, of Glencairn Crystal Studio, assures the authenticity of your decanter.
Tasting Notes
Nose : Vanilla, Coconut, Raisins
Palate : Almonds, Dried Fruits, Creamy Coconut, Hints of Ginger
Finish : Medium Finish, Soft and Sweet
The Story
In the 1980s, Auchentoshan offered a beautiful crystal decanter for sale exclusively on the Queen Elizabeth II – QE2 for short – the luxurious cruise ship that now is anchored somewhere in Dubai waiting to be converted into a floating hotel. It is important to realize that, at that time, Auchentoshan’s standard bottling was a 10 years old malt that matured solely on bourbon casks, while the contents of this decanter is in fact a 12 Year Old mix of bourbon & sherry matured malt. The comparison with today’s 12 does not compute either, as this is bottled at 40% while the QE2 decanter’s content was bottled at 43%.
About Auchentoshan
Auchentoshan’s claim to fame is that it is the only distillery in Scotland which exclusively uses triple distillation.
The wash still operates as per normal, while the spirit coming from the intermediate still is split into two, with only the high-strength ‘heads’ being carried forward for the final distillation. The low-strength ‘tails’ are mixed with the next distillation from the wash still.
The ‘heads’ are then mixed with the ‘feints’ from the previous spirit still distillation and a cut with an average strength of 81% is taken. A short fermentation gives Auchentoshan a cereal note which acts as a grounding flavour during maturation as well as balancing the high-toned citric notes. Its high strength means that it can easily be overpowered by oak. Consequently, the older the expression, the more ‘relaxed’ the wood influence is.
Legal whisky-making started here on the banks of the Clyde in 1817 when the Duntocher distillery was built by John Bulloch. Like many early start-ups it had a chequered early history and Bulloch went bankrupt soon after. It wasn’t to put his family off however. His grandson co-founded one of the 19th century’s most famous blending and broking firms, Bulloch Lade.
It was bought in 1834 by John Hart and Alexander Filshie who changed its name to Auchintoshan [sic]. The Filshie’s sold up in 1875 to a local grain merchant and again like so many stills, ‘Auchie’ spent almost a century being passed from one owner to another. During the Clyde Blitz of 1941 a warehouse was hit, sending a stream of blazing whisky into the river. A bomb crater has been turned into the distillery pond.
It was one of a number of distilleries purchased by brewers in the 1960s – in Auchie’s case Glasgow-based Tennant’s were owners from 1960 to 1969 when they offloaded it to a publican, Eadie Cairns. The upgraded distillery was then sold to Stanley P Morrison in 1984. It is now part of Beam Suntory. A new visitor facility was built in 2004.
Unusually, all of its production is used for single malt.
43% ABV
100cl
