Glenlivet
Gordon & MacPhail
43.7%
85 Years
Released in 2025, Gordon & MacPhail 85 Years Old from Glenlivet Distillery is the oldest single malt scotch — and seemingly whisky of any kind — ever bottled. This incredibly rare and valuable expression was distilled by Glenlivet and laid down by George Urquhart and his father, John, on Feb. 3, 1940, for Gordon & MacPhail. It was bottled on May 2, 2025, making it about 85 years and three months old. Only 125 decanters are available worldwide, each with a suggested retail price of £125,000 ($168,500).
The decanters were designed by renowned American architect Jeanne Gang, the record-holder for tallest building designed by a woman. Gang's design is fittingly titled "Artistry in Oak." Crafted from handblown glass and cast bronze, it evokes the image of a tree growing around a piece of amber. As part of this record-breaking release, Gordon & MacPhail is supporting American Forests, the oldest national non-profit conservation organization in the U.S. In partnership with Christie's, Gordon & MacPhail will auction off the first decanter in a lot that also includes a personal whisky tasting guided by Gordon & MacPhail Director of Prestige Stephen Rankin or Sales Director Richard Urquhart, both fourth-generation members of the Urquhart family; a framed, signed sketch of an oak tree by Gang; and the framed end of cask 336, which aged whisky. Proceeds of the lot, minus costs, will be donated to American Forests.
Raided Score is a conversion from an external site's score, to our in house uniform scoring system. Please see the FAQ for more.
Beautiful, rich, complex nose. A blast of smoked wood leads the way, transitioning into cardamom, brown sugar, leather, honey and melting butter. Despite this being the longest-aged whisky in the world, the nose isn't pure oak; there's more fruity notes at play than I would have expected, ranging from pear to apricot to melon to orange blossom.
Orange sherbet is the first note to hit on the palate, joined by lemon peel, rosemary, leather, vanilla wafers and more of that satisfying melting butter note from the nose.
The finish is extremely long and winding, leading with dark chocolate, tannin and oak, then a bit of lemon, followed by tobacco, smoked wood and a bit of vanilla. Eventually, it lands on a final profile of charred mango, orange peel and a bit of meatiness.
There's oak and tannin here for sure, but I certainly would not peg this as 85 years old or anywhere near that. I've had whiskies aged around 40 years old that were heavier on the oak and less balanced than this. An impressive expression, Gordon & MacPhail's 85-year-old Glenlivet is big, bold, sweet, smoky, rich and complex. Beautiful liquid to fill a beautiful decanter.
95
Disclosure: The producer provided this sample to review free of charge, and without expectation of review or rating.
