Strathclyde 16 Year Old SMWS Single Cask G10.39 Trio Melon Medley (2005) 70cl
1 of just 184 bottles of hard to come by Strathclyde Whisky.
Originally built as a neutral grain spirit distillery for producing gin, Strathclyde has grown to become Glasgow's most successful grain distillery.
About Strathclyde
Glasgow’s distilleries, until the opening of its new single malt plant, were kept as far out of the public’s ken as possible, which wasn’t an easy feat when one of them, Port Dundas, was a massive, steaming building on top of a hill. Its other – and now only – grain distillery has been more successful.
Strathclyde distillery is located in the Gorbals on the south side of the River Clyde opposite Glasgow Green and it’s nice to think that an operation so dependent on steam should be located so close to the park where James Watt was struck with inspiration for his vapour-driven engine.
The distillery – on the site of an old cotton mill – was initially built by London distiller Seager Evans in 1927 mainly to supply neutral grain spirit for its gins. In 1936, Seager Evans moved into Scotch with the purchase of the Long John brand.
In 1957, like many grain distilleries, Strathclyde secreted a malt plant – here called Kinclaith – inside its walls. This ran from 1957 to 1975 when it was removed to make way for a two-phase expansion of the grain/neutral spirit side of the operation. At the same time, the firm’s blending and warehousing site next door was also demolished
Long John Distilleries (as Seager Evans’ whisky division was named) went through a number of hands, eventually ending up within Allied Distillers, by which time Strathclyde would also have been supplying some of the grain to the Ballantine’s and Teacher’s blends. It is now part of the Chivas Brothers stable and still, amazingly, goes unnoticed by the strollers along the banks of the Clyde.
About SMWS
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) was founded in 1983 by a group of friends lead by tax accountant Phillip ‘Pip’ Hills as a private members club. The concept behind the society was to source casks from all over Scotland which would then be bottled and made available exclusively to its members. Perhaps the most famous feature of these bottles are the unique codes. Each distillery is represented by a different number and the following digits indicate that particular release. That same year, the SMWS set up its first location in Leith’s Vault buildings in Edinburgh where it still stands today.
59.2% ABV
70cl
