Gordon & MacPhail has announced a landmark moment in whisky history: the release of the world’s oldest single malt Scotch whisky. Glenlivet 85 Year Old.
A staggering eight-and-a-half decades in the making, it was back on 3 February 1940 when John and George Urquhart laid down a single American oak cask with Glenlivet spirit. The architects of Gordon & MacPhail’s independent bottling vision knew they would never taste what would become Cask 336, but trusted in time, tradition, and a level of will power I will never possess to finish the job.
Fast-forward 85 years, and that vision has come to fruition. On 5 February 2025, Gordon & MacPhail finally bottled this unprecedented whisky. At 43.7% ABV, only 125 decanters of Glenlivet 85 Year Old exist, making it one of the rarest and most remarkable whiskies ever released.
The world’s oldest single malt whisky: Glenlivet 85 Year Old drawn from Cask 336.
Artistry in Oak: The Jeanne Gang Collaboration
To honour this historic moment, Gordon & MacPhail partnered with American architect Jeanne Gang to design a bespoke decanter.
Gang brought her architectural insight to the world of whisky, inspired by the parallels between aged wood and enduring design, to create a decanter themed ‘Artistry in Oak’.
It will be unveiled in October 2025, with Decanter No.1 heading to Christie’s New York for auction in November. Proceeds (minus costs) will support American Forests, the oldest conservation non-profit in the U.S., ensuring oak trees and the future of whisky continue to flourish.
The Gordon & MacPhail shop in Elgin, in 1895
The oldest whisky ever?
This release is a record-breaker. The current title for the oldest whisky ever is claimed by Macallan Time:Space, a 1940 vintage aged for 84 years. It will surely try and steal back the crown soon (assuming the distillery can…).
Glenlivet 85 Year Old is more than just a headline, however. It’s a living document of maturation, restraint, and belief in the long game. This is Gordon & MacPhail through and through.
For 130 years, it has matched cask to spirit with near-obsessive precision, and nowhere is that more evident than in this Glenlivet.
The cask itself, an American oak container tended for generations, has yielded a whisky that’s not only intact but thriving. The fact that it was still 43.7% ABV at the time of bottling is a testament to the consideration and understanding Gordon & MacPhail have for whisky maturation.
A whisky born in wartime, matured through a century, and released in a bottle designed to last just as long. For those who want a taste of history, it doesn’t get older than this.
