Scotland, Speyside. Distillery operational. Owner: Diageo

Speyside, the golden triangle of the Scotch whisky industry, is home to a huge concentration of distilleries. From the internationally renowned to those known only to a few, Linkwood included. The distillery's oldest bottlings come from Italian importers such as Samaroli and Darma Import. One of the most sought-after is the Linkwood 12 Year Old 1957, 56.9%, Samaroli Import. After this, bottlings from its owners United Distillers & Vintners (Diageo) were rarer and appeared primarily in the Rare Malts Selection, Flora & Fauna and Manager's Dram ranges. It was not until the early 2000s that a 1981 trilogy finished in port, rum and red wine casks was released, propelling Linkwood into the spotlight. One again, it was independent bottlers, including Gordon & MacPhail and Cadenhead, that drove this single malt and brought it to the public's attention, from ex-sherry casks to very old vintages such as the 1939.

A Linkwood 5 year old bottled in the 1970s and imported to Italy by Samaroli. Rightly considered one of the most important bottlers of his era, Silvano Samaroli was above all a spirits lover and pioneer. He began his career in the late 1960s, initially as an importer in Italy, where he distributed the Linkwood single malt and numerous blends. His bottling activities only began in the following decade with a cask strength bottling of Bruichladdich 10 Year Old 1965. At a time when single malts where far less popular than blends, Samaroli embarked on a meticulous selection and bottling project in close contact with distilleries and, more importantly, Scottish independent bottlers. A champion of single casks bottled at cask strength, he was also fascinated by ageing in bottle. A visionary in many respects, many of his bottlings, such as Bowmore Bouquet 1996 and the 1948 West Indies Rum, are today some of the most legendary spirits ever bottled. More than just a player in the bottling industry, Silvano Samaroli was one of its founding icons.