Rare Malts Selection

The Rare Malts Selection brand was the brainchild of United Distillers' (UD) Malts Marketing Director, Mike Collings, whose legacy also includes the conception of the Classic Malts of Scotland (a single malt stable comprised of Cragganmore, Dalwhinnie, Glenkinchie, Lagavulin, Oban and Talisker) and the Johnnie Walker Green Label and Blue Label blends. Collings made initial plans for the brand in 1993, initially intending to market it in global duty free markets. The ethos was simple: to make use of the enormous stocks of well-aged single malts in the UD warehouses and offer these to consumers with their natural colour and strength. Collings had noted the success of this policy when employed by the increasing number of independent bottlers at the time, and believed the consumer would relish the opportunity to sample many of the same distilleries from the company with the best and most numerous stocks to select from.

Collings worked with master blender Maureen Robertson who selected the casks for the range, while artist Gerry Barney and copywriter Ian Crammond worked on the design and presentation. The first bottlings were then ready for launch in 1995 and the initial release schedule saw both a Spring and Autumn outturn, the latter tending to be (although not exclusively) 75cl bottles for export markets such as South Africa, Taiwan and the USA. When Guinness merged with Grand Metropolitan to form Diageo in 1997, distribution of the brand was greatly increased and it could eventually be found domestically and abroad in many specialist retailers. The final seasonal releases were produced in 1998, with a single annual release preferred from 1999 until 2005 when the label was eventually discontinued.

The legacy of the Rare Malts Selection is substantial, offering in many instances the first and last opportunities for whisky lovers to sample official bottlings from distilleries that at the time has ceased production (most of which remain closed to this day). Among these include the first ever distillery bottling to bear the name Brora, and the first and last official releases of Millburn. Such was its success, several other companies attempted to copy the format, including Highland Distillers' brief Family Silver collection, and the Highland Selection label from Inver House. None ever achieved the same level of success as the Rare Malts Selection, however, which should be considered today as a seminal moment in the development of the single malt category and its popularity today.