Diageo has released a 38-year-old single malt Scotch whisky from The Singleton of Glen Ord distillery, priced at £2,100 (US$2,760).
Only 1,689 bottles of The Singleton 38-Year-Old will be available globally.
The cask strength whisky was drawn from eight casks and under went a 26-year secondary maturation, the longest in the brand’s history.
After 12 years of ageing, the whisky was poured into a selection of experimental casks of ex-Bourbon, Pedro Ximénez oloroso-seasoned casks and new American oak casks.
With an ABV of 49.6%, The Singleton 38-Year-Old is said to have aromas of red apple, mango and candied citrus fruit, leading to flavours of cinnamon-spiced baked apple, caramel fudge, a trace of salt and a touch of Szechuan pepper.
Maureen Robinson, master of malts, said: “The Singleton 38-year-old was crafted during an era that was very exciting at The Singleton – a time of flavour experimentation an innovation across our whisky-making.
“Selecting new American oak casks was very new for us at the time at the distillery and we decided on a lengthy secondary maturation to continue to unlock the decadent layers of flavour in this single malt.
“I remember tasting cask samples just three years into the secondary maturation and I was struck how even at such an early stage, we could identify the richness of flavour the new casks had presented.
“To mature those casks for more than two decades further was an exploration of how it is possible to unearth exceptional flavour within whisky, and it feels a real privilege to now share this truly delicious single malt with the world.”
Last year, The Singleton released its oldest bottling – a 53-year-old single cask expression.