Port Ellen Unveils Two 44 Year-Old Whiskies to Honor the Distillery's March Opening

Ahead of the opening of the new Port Ellen Distillery in March, Diageo has announced Port Ellen Gemini, a set of two Islay single malts, including the oldest-ever expression released by the distillery. With 274 sets available worldwide, Gemini marks the debut of a new square bottle for Port Ellen. Master blender Craig Wilson used three European oak butts to create the bottlings, which are named Original Cask and Remnant Cask.

Both these whiskies were distilled in 1978. The white-label Port Ellen Gemini Original Cask is bottled at 54.9% ABV, while the black-label Port Ellen Gemini Remnant Cask is bottled at 53.6% ABV. A remnant cask refers to a barrel filled with the ends of different filling runs. This remnant cask was rescued from Port Ellen just before its closure by a group of (unnamed) local distillers and sheltered for 40 years. When it was recovered, the remaining liquid was reseasoned for release.

The whiskies will be released in mid-March, to coincide with Port Ellen’s reopening. Registration of interest can be submitted with Diageo’s Private Client team. U.S. customers will pay the equivalent of £45,000 (currently $56,385) at the prevailing exchange rates.

Diageo announced its intention to re-build and re-open Port Ellen more than six years ago. These bottlings will form the centerpiece of the distillery visitor experience for the re-opening, in a similar fashion to when Diageo released Brora Triptych to mark the re-opening of Brora Distillery in 2021.

Diageo released a Port Ellen distilled in 1978 last year in the fourth collection in its Prima & Ultima series. In contrast to Gemini, that 96-point scotch was matured in American oak hogsheads. Port Ellen Gemini costs around the same as last year’s Prima & Ultima set.