St Magdalene 1982 SMWS 16 Year Old 49.10

St Magdalene, also known as Linlithgow (after its home town) was a large distillery who's output was almost entirely for the purposes of blending. It was built in the 18th century, but was acquired by DCL (now Diageo) in 1912, who operated it until its closure in 1983. Like many others, it was deemed surplus to requirements as the blended Scotch market hit a downturn, leaving DCL over-supplied. As a result of this, its single malt is particularly rare. It was only officially bottled three times by Diageo, but a number of increasingly sought after releases have been bottled by independent companies over the years. The collectability of which is likely only to increase, as unlike other members of the 1983 club, St Magdalene was demolished and is not in line for a resurrection.

Scotch Malt Whisky Society cask 49.10 was distilled in October 1982 and bottled in September 1999.

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) was founded in 1983 by a group of friends lead by tax accountant Phillip ‘Pip’ Hills as a private members club. The concept behind the society was to source casks from all over Scotland which would then be bottled and made available exclusively to its members. Perhaps the most famous feature of these bottles are the unique codes. Each distillery is represented by a different number and the following digits indicate that particular release. That same year, the SMWS set up its first location in Leith’s Vault buildings in Edinburgh where it still stands today.