Cuvée presentation
Springbank distillery’s 11-year-old single malt bottled in 2023. Cadenhead was founded by George Duncan in Aberdeen in 1842. William Cadenhead joined the company taking over the reins on the death of George Duncan, renaming the company William Cadenhead Ltd. Robert Duthie, William’s nephew, developed the firm in the early 20th century and it remained a family business until 1969. William Cadenhead Ltd was then sold to J. & A. Mitchell and Co, owners of the Springbank distillery. This led to Hedley G. Wright, a direct descendant of Archibald and John Mitchell, becoming chairman of William Cadenhead Ltd. Historically, Cadenhead tended to distribute its own brands such as Putachieside, The Hielanman, Seven Stars and Green Label rums. Under the leadership of Hedley G. Wright, the company began to take an increasing interest in single malts. This led to the mythical ‘dumpy bottles’ collection being created in 1977. This particular collection of single malt was bottled with a light filtration, without artificial colouring, and with a fairly high bottling strength for its time (80 proof, 45.7%). The label included a host of details, such as the month and year of distillation and bottling, and whether or not sherry casks were used. Another change came in 1977, when the company moved to a new address in Aberdeen, before finally relocating to Campbeltown. Cadenhead also sold casks to such iconic bottlers as Samaroli and Corti Brothers in the 1980s via a subsidiary called Duthie’s. And in 1991 and 1992, two new ranges were created, the 46% "Original Collection" and the natural strength "Authentic Collection". A number of additional special editions to mark Cadenhead’s landmark 150th and 175th anniversaries, as well as new collections (Small Batch, World Whiskies, etc.) have been launched to date.
The distillery Springbank
Scotland, Campbeltown. Distillery operational. Owner: J&A Mitchell & Co Ltd
It is no coincidence that four of the fifteen most prized distilleries in Scotland are family-owned or independent. Throughout the 20th century, this status led them to seize on any commercial opportunity open to them and to develop the marketing ingenuity key to the development and sustainability of their businesses. The Springbank distillery is one of the finest examples of the villainy of the Scotch whisky industry in the 20th century.This is seen in two exceptional bottlings, one distributed in the early 70s, a 50 year old distilled on 29 December 1919 (stated on its certificate), and the other released in the early 90s, a re-bottling from the distiller, limited to 24 editions worldwide, also displaying the vintage 1919. It is also seen in a move made at the very start of the 2000s, when, under pressure from a stock hit hard by years of production crisis (1980s), the Mitchell family decided to drastically change the profile of their single malt, taking the opportunity to change the bottle at the same time.
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