Whisky News — 20 February 2026
Murray
🥃 DRAM MASTER DAILY — Thursday, 20 February 2026
GORDON & MACPHAIL RELEASES GENERATIONS MORTLACH 75 YEAR OLD Gordon & MacPhail has released a 75 Year Old Mortlach from the Generations series — the oldest whisky the independent bottler has ever released. The spirit was distilled in 1949 and matured in a first-fill sherry butt. Limited to 285 bottles. Retail price confirmed at £37,000 per bottle. Murray's Take: Seventy-five years in wood. The fact that this still tastes like whisky and not furniture polish is remarkable. The price puts it beyond almost everyone, but it exists.
SCOTCH WHISKY TOURISM HITS RECORD HIGH IN 2025 VisitScotland has reported a record year for whisky tourism, with an estimated 2.1 million distillery visits in 2025, up 18% on 2024. International visitors now represent the majority of distillery visitors for the first time. Speyside's Spirit of Speyside festival saw its highest attendance since its founding. Murray's Take: Whisky tourism done well — an education alongside an experience — is genuinely good for the industry. It creates advocates, not just customers.
INDEPENDENT BOTTLER STUDY RAISES CONCERNS OVER CASK QUALITY A study by the Scotch Whisky Research Institute has identified inconsistencies in the quality of sherry-seasoned casks supplied to independent bottlers, with some casks showing insufficient seasoning time. The report recommends improved transparency from cooperages over seasoning periods and sherry source. Murray's Take: This has been an open secret for years. The seasoning period matters and the fact that some cooperages are cutting corners is not a surprise to anyone buying casks.
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