Scotland, Lowlands. Distillery closed. Owner: Ian Macleaod Distillers

Closed in 1993 by owners United Distillers (Diageo), Rosebank is today the Lowlands' most sought-after malt. In a rare phenomenon experienced by only a handful of distilleries such as Macallan, Ardbeg and Laphroaig, official versions and independent bottlings are just as equally prized. In 2019, for example, three years after its release, the Rosebank True Love edition from the Roses range (Specialty Drinks) far surpassed the popularity of the official version Rosebank 20 Year Old Zenith Import (1980s), which was until then the leading expression. In September 2017, the brand and stock were bought by Ian Macleod Distillers, who, in January 2019, were given permission to renovate and reopen the distillery - a feat due for completion in 2021.

A Rosebank distilled in 1984 and bottled in 1996 by Gordon & MacPhail for the Connoisseurs Choice range. Gordon & MacPhail is one of Scotland’’s oldest independent bottlers. It was founded in Elgin in 1895 by James Gordon and John Alexander MacPhail. As was often the case at the time, the business started out as a delicatessen and wine merchant. In 1915, John Alexander MacPhail retired and a new partner joined the business, John Urquhart. He was joined by his son George in 1933, a few years after James Gordon died in a car crash. Gordon & MacPhail works with many of Speyside’’s leading distilleries, from whom it has accumulated considerable stocks. It is also licensed to bottle whiskies for many of them, including Glen Grant, Linkwood, Mortlach, Macallan and Glenlivet. The business really took off in the 1970s, acquiring distributors in a huge range of countries and selling casks to several Italian bottlers in selections that would become legends in their own right. Gordon & MacPhail is still run by the Urquhart family today, from the same building, and is one of the most iconic bottlers in the industry, with incredible stocks of sometimes very old and rare whiskies. The company is in complete control of the entire maturation process. The Connoisseurs Choice range is one of Gordon & MacPhail’’s spearhead collections. Created for the Italian collector and importer Edoardo Giaccone in the early 1970s, it became part of the permanent range in 1979 and has remained so ever since, despite changing greatly, from red and black labels to map labels and today’’s design, as well as the gradient label. Older editions were bottled at 40% and coloured artificially. Today, the whiskies in the range display their natural colouring and are often cask strength.