Bowmore 1991 Samaroli / Maurizio Menichetti

Islay’s oldest working distillery, Bowmore was established in 1779 and is now regarded as one of the most popular malts not only on Islay, but in the whole of Scotland. The distillery was acquired by Stanley P. Morrison in 1963, ushering in an era of iconic single malts, including the legendary Black Bowmore, credited by many as the genesis of whisky collecting, bottled in 1993. The distillery was bought under the control Suntory the year after (they had been stakeholders since 1989), and it remains one of the most collectible brands in Scotch whisky today. Bowmore is one of the few remaining Scottish distilleries to use its own floor maltings, providing them with 40% of their requirements. The unique microclimate in their iconic No.1 vaults shares very little with the angels, meaning casks are readily available for independent labels like this, many of which are spectacular.

A very youthful bottling of Bowmore from Samaroli, distilled in 1991 and bottled in 1996. Silvano Samaroli was a big proponent of experimenting with young and un-aged single malt. The latter he referred to as New Filling Malts, which was his response to his country's love of grappa, the popularity of which had always confused him. He believed these under 3 year old single malts were a superior alternative. This 5 year old was selected specially by Maurizio Menichetti, and reflects the Italian love affair for young single malt, championed there in the 1960s by one of Silvano's peers, Armando Giovinetti in the 1960s (again as a response to the palate preferences of his grappa loving countrymen). The label features the same artwork used for the sought after Fragments of Scotland series, each of which were prints of Agostino Perrini paintings, many of which were in Salvano's personal collection.

Samaroli are perhaps Italy's most revered independent bottler of Scotch whisky. With an impeccable taste in single cask whiskies, and an eye for aesthetics (if not English spelling at times!), founder Silvano Samaroli is regarded by many as a visionary. Since his passing in 2017, the company has been run by his friend Antonio Bleve, who continues his tradition of high quality releases. Many of Silvano’s early bottlings occupy deserved spots on the pantheon of all-time whisky greats.