Sorry, you need to enable JavaScript to visit this website.

Next Auction starts Friday 29 March. Bottle Deadline: 18 March.

Glenlivet 1940 Gordon and MacPhail

Lot: 5079189

Glenlivet 1940 Gordon and MacPhail

Winning Bid: £1,427
(Reserve has been met) This lot currently has: 14 bids

Currency Estimate

Important: Currency exchange rates are constantly changing; this feature is to be used as a guide price only. All final transactions occur in British Pounds (£).
Lot:
Distillery: 
Glenlivet
Vintage: 
1940
Region: 
Speyside
Bottler: 
Official
Bottled Strength: 
40%
Bottle Size: 
75cl
Distillery Status: 
Operational
product Details

Glenlivet 1940 Gordon and MacPhail

Well-known as the oldest licensed distillery in Scotland, for many years ‘Glenlivet’ was a byword for quality, with many single malts using the Glenlivet suffix in an attempt to reap the benefits of associating themselves with the Banffshire distillery. Indeed, owners Pernod-Ricard now put a heavy focus on the brand being ‘The Glenlivet’, encouraging their consumers not to accept any imitations. Glenlivet is in a long-running battle with Glenfiddich for the title of best-selling single malt, with both now selling over a million cases a year. George Smith secured a license to legally distil at Glenlivet in 1824, and it remained family-run until 1978 when Seagram bought a controlling stake in what had by then become The Glenlivet Distilleries Ltd, and counting assets such as Glen Grant, Benriach and Longmorn among its portfolio. When Seagram collapsed in 2001, Pernod-Ricard acquired its sizeable Chivas Brothers Scotch whisky division, with Glenlivet the crown jewel in an empire rivalled only by Diageo.

Gordon & MacPhail were granted a license to officially bottle Glenlivet single malt in the 1970s and 1980s. This long-standing relationship with the distillery has since furnished the Elgin-based independent firm with a steady supply of high-quality casks, and subsequently, high-quality releases.

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. Those from The Glenlivet Distilleries Ltd stable however, also including Longmorn and Glen Grant, were the exception. These distilleries already had established branding that was licensed out to a number of companies in the mid-to-later 20th century in order to bottle their single malt, although Gordon & MacPhail are perhaps the most prolific of these. Although the official Glenlivet branding has long since departed this aesthetic, the George & J.G. Smith's label is a classic, and Gordon & MacPhail continue to use it today as part of what has been known since 2018 as its Distillery Labels series.

This is a fantastic war-time vintage, from a period when very few Scottish distilleries were still in operation.

Important Notice

We would recommend viewing/close inspection prior to placing any bids. If this is not an option and you have questions beyond the offered description and images, please contact us for a more in-depth condition report. Otherwise lots will be sold as seen in the images.

Please note: Due to the various ages of bottles and their seals, condition of liquid is at the buyer's discretion and no claim can be lodged against failure/leakage in transit.