Bowmore 1996 Spirits Shop' Selection / Whisky Live 2018

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.

Distilled in 1996, this was selected by and bottled for Spirits Shop' Selection in Taiwan for the Whisky Live festival in Taipei in 2018. One of only 192 bottles drawn from a refill bourbon hogshead #14249 in 2017.

The Spirits Shop’ Selection was founded in Taiwan in 2014 by Dong Fang Ming. His goal was to create an “East-West cultural exchange,” importing the finest Scotch whiskies and rum, and bottling them with elegant Asian influenced label designs. The company worked in collaboration with Sansibar Whisky in Germany for their earliest releases, before striking out as their own standalone brand.