A rare bottling of Glenesk, the closed Highland distillery, this 1985 vintage was bottled in 2000 by Gordon & MacPhail under their Speymalt guise for the the Spirit of Scotland series.

Known as Glenesk from 1980-85, and prior to that as Hillside since 1964, this distillery produced both malt and grain at different stages in its history. It is not often seen officially bottled, but has contributed to several Rare Malts Selection releases. Distilling ceased there entirely in 1985, and the site operates exclusively as a maltings now.

Used as the base malt to VAT 69, the distillery closed in 1985 and was also seen bottled under the Hillside name. The Glenesk was built on what was once a flax-spinning mill. In 1897, the Dundee wine merchant James Isles and Septimus Parsonage and Co converted the buildings, founding the distillery under the name Highland Esk. The name changed several times during its lifetime, the first time was in 1899, when J F Caille Heddle purchased the distillery and renamed it North Esk. Following a devastating fire in 1910, much of the distillery had to be rebuilt. The distillery closed during the Second World War, reopening in 1938 under the name Montrose, named for the village in which it stands, at the bands of the River Esk, having been acquired by Associated Scottish Distillers. During this time the distillery had been used to produce grain whisky. In 1964, the distillery was renamed Hillside. By this time much of the whisky had been used in the famous William Sanderson blend VAT 69. It was not until 1980 that the distillery became known as Glenesk, closing just five years later, cancelling the license 1992. The UK’s largest malt producer, Greencore Maltings Group, acquired Glenesk in 1997. Today bottlings are rare and appear under the variety of names the distillery has been entitled over the years.