A 1994 vintage Glentauchers, bottled by Gordon & MacPhail with the traditionally styled distillery label.

In partnership with each respective distillery, all whiskies in ‘Distillery Labels’ range are uniquely labelled. In years gone by many of these unique designs were used ‘officially’ to bottle the whisky under license from the distillery. Today these trusted relationships with distillers enables Gordon & MacPhail to bottle whiskies at various ages, strengths and vintages – all with their unique distillery label.

The Glentauchers Distillery Company started as a joint venture between James Buchanan, the creator of the “Black & White” and “Buchanan” blends, and WP Lowrie. The distillery was designed by local architect, John Alcock. In 1925 James Buchanan & Company became part of the Distillers Company Limited (DCL). Glentauchers worked continuously, with exception of the war years, until mothballed in 1985. In 1989 it was sold to Allied Distillers who restarted production. Glentauchers is a key component in Allied Domceq’s Blended Scotch Whisky brands.

Glentauchers is an important single malt for blended Scotch, most recently a named component of Ballantine's. As such, it is rarely seen in single malt form. Over the years, some bottlings were officially licensed to Gordon & MacPhail, and 2017 saw a distillery bottling launched under the Ballantine's banner along with a Glenburgie and Miltonduff. Prior to that, enthusiasts were limited to seeking out independent bottlings like this one.

Gordon & MacPhail are one of the largest and most recognisable whisky companies in the world. Although they began distilling at the newly refurbished Benromach distillery in 1998, for most of their history they were an independent bottler. Their labels are recognised by whisky lovers the world over, and their licensed bottlings from distillery's like Macallan and Talisker in the 1970s and 1980s, when the companies were not bottling themselves, are a huge part of the success of those distillers today.

When Gordon & MacPhail were producing official bottlings under license in the 1970s, each distillery was labelled using a specific branding determined by their parent companies, such as DCL, Hiram Walker or Highland Distillers. By the 1980s, single malts were increasing in popularity and Gordon & MacPhail began to create a “house label” for every distillery, each with its own unique style, as is presented here. Although no longer the licensees, Gordon & MacPhail still produce bottles like this for many distilleries today, renamed in 2018 as their Distillery Labels range.