The House of Hazelwood - Extraordinary Whisky
9 Bottles Totalling 405 Years of Whisky Tasted
“For almost one hundred years, generations of the Gordon family have carefully laid down stocks of whisky for special occasions and personal consumption. This rare collection has become known as House of Hazelwood….For the first time, this once-private collection is being offered to those outside the immediate family in small batches hand-selected for release” - Taken from The House of Hazelwood website.
I was going to start this feature by saying “Once in a while” but it needs to start with “Once in a generation”
House of Hazelwood launched earlier this year as an independent bottler. Its USP is not that it buys in barrels of whisky to bottle, but that the Gordon family has owned them for decades. This is quite extraordinary - these prized barrels, purchased long before most of us were born, must be considered family jewels, handed down through the generations. Treasured family heirlooms are being shared with the world. Of course, there are other bottlers doing this, but they have been releasing whisky for decades. This is akin to someone finding a collection of old masterpieces and showing them to the world for the first time. You will not find youthful whisky being released here, the youngest they have released so far is 33 years old.
I have taken moments to reflect on this, which encapsulates what I love about whisky. With exceptional wood management, whisky has the ability to age, not indefinitely, but to a peak. When that peak occurs is unknown at the outset. Would the distillers in 1963 (the 58-year-old and oldest of the House of Hazelwood’s current releases) have envisaged the spirits they made, not being bottled until 2022 with only 74 bottles, due to the Angels Share being sold globally?
To me, this range of whisky brings excitement and intrigue. My mind races as to what the family has stored throughout Scotland. The Gordon family are the owners of Glenfiddich and The Balvenie, but these treasures are from their own private family collection. I can only thank them for sharing them with the world. They do carry a premium price tag, but in reality offer exceptional value for money given their age, rarity and curiosity value. Unique is genuinely a word that can be used to describe these whiskies.
I plan on covering future releases from the House of Hazelwood and writing more in-depth about them. In the meantime, and as an introduction to the brand, I asked Jonathan Gibson, the Marketing Director of House of Hazelwood a few initial questions-:
The House of Hazelwood collection is remarkable - how hard has it been to curate and develop a release schedule?
We are in the fortunate position of being able to build on the foresight, creative thinking and endeavours of generations of the Gordons that came before us. Over the course of much of the last century, the family laid down stocks of whisky for long-term ageing, at times out of intellectual curiosity (exploring the impact of certain casks on certain styles of malt, grain and blends) but also with personal consumption and gifting in mind. Much of this happened throughout periods when greatly aged Scotch whisky was neither fashionable nor in demand, showing remarkable prescience and perhaps an instinct for what would come in the years ahead.
The stocks grew over time and improved with age and today we are able to open the doors to what is without question an unrivalled inventory of greatly aged, rare and collectable Scotch whisky. These are truly remarkable liquids; the consequence of remarkable thinking, brave decision-making and the luxury of time that private family ownership brings. As you suggest, the main challenge we have today is finding our way through the stocks and curating a collection intended to be at once diverse yet with an identity of its own.
Our ambition in doing so is that the whiskies we present today reflect the family and individuals that laid the original stocks down all those years ago – their mindset, their character, and their ambitions. These should all shine through in the releases we bring to market.
What is the oldest whisky you have and when do you think it will be released?
You will understand that we need to keep some cards close to our chest, but I can tell you that we have some exceptionally old stocks in the inventory. We are also fortunate that many of these whiskies are at a strength and of a character that means that they will continue to improve for a number of years.
In terms of exactly when our oldest release will be made available, that’s hard to answer today. We have a few very simple rules that we use when selecting whiskies for release under the House of Hazelwood name. One of these is that the whisky is ready when it is ready. I honestly couldn’t tell you when that will be for our oldest stocks – they are very closely monitored and only when we believe they are at their peak will they be bottled.
You mention that you have barrels all over Scotland - can you tell us from which distilleries?
The way these stocks were bought or traded in by the Gordon family typically prohibits us from revealing the distilleries that the liquids first came from. Such ‘gentlemen’s agreements were traditional practice within the Scotch whisky industry and prevented one distiller from trading on the strength of another distillery’s reputation. We respect these agreements to this day and are, therefore, regrettably, typically unable to reveal distillery names for our releases.
While distillery source can of course be important it is also worth noting that in many instances for the whiskies we are bringing to market (typically greatly aged Blended Malt, Blended Grain or Blended Scotch) the majority of the liquid character is attributable to the decisions made after distillation (cask selection, blending, marrying period and, where applicable, finishing). For us, this is often where the real story lies – it can be an overlooked part of the narrative.
Are there any single barrels that are really exciting to you?
All of them are exciting for very different reasons but if I had to pick a few highlights I would say from our summer collection The First Drop was simply a remarkable piece of Scotch whisky history – we bottled literally the very first drops of whisky to run off the stills at Girvan, almost sixty years ago. That release sold out in full over the course of just a few weeks, reflecting its rarity.
From our autumn release, I would have to say that our 1963 vintage release A Singular Blend is unlike anything that I’ve ever seen come to market before. A rare composition, this is a blend of malt and grain whiskies distilled in the same Highland distillery in the same year of production in the middle of last century. It is unheard of to see a release of such provenance at this age and the whisky carries a truly outstanding character that makes it at once a joy to drink and a treasure to collect. The release perfectly encapsulated what we aspire to add to the market and reflects the ambitions and character of the family that first acquired and laid down the stocks.
Has the love of whisky been passed down through the generations?
Absolutely. House of Hazelwood is a business that draws on rare and aged whisky stocks that have been accumulated by the Gordon family over the last century. The name House of Hazelwood comes directly from Hazelwood House, the family home of the Gordons near Dufftown in Speyside. We’ve drawn on that name for the business because of the strong link between several generations of the family, the home itself and the whiskies that we are lucky enough to be able to draw from today. It is the character of those family members, the decisions they made, the stocks they laid down, the experiments that they trialled that have ultimately given us an inventory of such extraordinary breadth and depth. And at the heart of everything, through the generations was Hazelwood House.
Have you always been buying whisky, or did it stop some years ago, leaving you with only very rare and old stock?
The business continues to lay down new stocks today in the same way that the Gordon family have for generations. As a result, we are fortunate to have access to an inventory that is already large and diverse to which we will continue to add over the years ahead. This is very much a long-term business, and we fully expect to be here into the next century. But the emphasis of the business will always be at the top end of the market – so if you look at what we’re bringing to market you’ll understand that it’s very unlikely we will touch any new stocks we’re laying down today for thirty, forty, fifty years. The main thing is that they will be there when we seek to draw on them.
What happens to the older barrels once emptied?
We operate at a very manual ‘cottage industry’ scale and the simple answer is that it varies from one barrel to the next. Typically, the casks will be re-used for other projects but there will be some that have reached the end of their usable life. We use a range of cask types across the inventory to achieve varying degrees of wood impact (sometimes we seek casks that will have a strong impact on the maturing spirit but equally there are times where a well-used, less active cask is desirable) but they must all respect and enhance the liquid they hold.
Your current releases include an absolutely incredible 58-year-old that is a combination of grain and malt. Were these aged in the same barrel or combined at a later date?
Unprecedented at this age A Singular Blend is composed not only of whiskies from the same region but from the same Highland Distillery – with both grain and malt components stemming from the same year of production. The grain and malt components were blended and given a long-term maturation in American oak, allowing them to take on the rich layers of complexity that complement and enhance both aspects of the distillery character. With just 74 bottles available worldwide, this is a truly rare blend.
What are your visions for the brand?
We want to do justice to the stocks that we have access to. These are incredible whiskies that deserve the attention of collectors and enthusiasts around the world. Our role, our vision for the brand is to do just that – to open the doors for the right consumers to discover them. The whiskies will always be at the heart of what we do – bringing people into the stories behind them, the liquid character. That is the joy of our business and the thing that we want to take out into the world.
Who are your potential customers?
The collection appeals to collectors and enthusiasts with some customers looking to consume the whiskies in the near future and some purchasing more with a view to collecting them for consumption further into the future. Our customers are located all over the world – a real geographical spread – but Asia, Europe and North America are focal points for us.
What influenced the family to finally release their whisky and do they keep a bottle of every release for their own enjoyment?
Quite simply, the inventory had reached a point where a meaningful proportion of the stock was at its peak. Holding these stocks in cask any longer would not have improved them and with the volumes we are talking about (typically 70 - 400 bottles per release) it would not be practical to bottle purely for personal consumption or gifting. That said, the family do maintain a close personal interest in these stocks, and we hold back a small number of bottles of every release for posterity!
The House of Hazelwood has proven that grain and blended whisky can reach unprecedented heights with meticulous cellar management and knowledge. I can only imagine the team's expressions sampling these from the barrel initially. I conjure up thoughts of complete silence upon the realisation of what they have. Given the barrels they own are located in warehouses around Scotland, the anticipation of what they might find at the next distillery visit would have been enormous.
I plan to write a further and more detailed article on the House of Hazelwood later this year but want to visit the family home near Speyside first to really gain an insight and feel for the company. In the meantime, my tasting notes:-
Tasting Notes
The Spirit of Scotland, 46-Year-Old Blended Scotch – The Legacy Collection - £1200
This is surprisingly light in colour with the nose immediately indicating this is a mature whisky - it smells of maturity with a slight hint of old leather chairs and smoke. On the nose I get a nuttiness consisting of toasted hazelnuts and almonds, reminding me of a fine frangipane. The grain element of this comes through on the palate which I enjoy. It displayed hints of apple crumble and custard but with orange peel added to lift the flavour. The mouthfeel was lovely and dare I say smooth.
The Tops, 33-Year-Old Blended Malt Scotch – The Legacy Collection - £1450
A rich amontillado colour, my first thoughts were of a pecan pie on the nose. It took me to an American Diner, albeit a very upmarket one! The pecan pie gives way to dark stewed stone fruit such as damsons and plums. It is a lot drier on the palate than I had anticipated with a wonderful spiciness running through packing a nice punch. It is a whisky that would be the perfect accompaniment to a cigar and fine conversation.
The Long Marriage, 56-Year-Old Blended Scotch – The Charles Gordon Collection - £4000
Deep brown in colour and positively sherry-like, this 56-year-old shows a very luxurious nose. In fact, it could almost be passed off as mature Oloroso sherry with hints of liquorice, such is the sherry influence. When whisky is this old, wood can very much be the dominating character, with any fruit notes, dispersed many years previously. Here they exist in harmony. The palate is powerful with vanilla, baking spices, dark chocolate, ginger and cloves all present, creating a whisky of great complexity.
The Cask Trails, 1968 Single Grain Scotch – The Charles Gordon Collection - £3800
An incredible colour reminiscent of a deeply polished dark mahogany table. The nose is decadent and has an explosion of flavour. If you bring to the forefront of your mind how you would imagine a Christmas pudding, dosed with cognac and laid down for five years, would taste like, you have an indication of how this smells. Just wonderful and maybe in my top 5 ever. The Palate is a triumph being dry, complex and very intriguing given it was aged in Spanish oak. Could I tell that this was grain whisky and not a single malt? I am not entirely sure and will have to come back to taste it blind. It has everything you would expect from dried fruits to toffee, via an espresso.
The Lowlander, 36-Year-Old Blended Scotch – The Legacy Collection - £950
The lightness of colour suggests that this has been aged in older bourbon barrels. Lemon curd immediately came to mind on my first nose of this whisky. This gave way to hints of vanilla with a slight underlying elderflower note. The palate is refined with vanilla, citrus and tobacco.
The Lost Estate, 43-Year Old Blended Grain Scotch – The Legacy Collection - £1200
A lighter colour with a pronounced grain nose with meaty undertones that have been glazed with citrus. Rather subdued on the palate initially, but then opens up after 10 minutes to show flavours of hay, baking spices (in particular cinnamon) and citrus.
A Breath Of Fresh Air, 37-Year-Old Blended Grain Scotch – The Legacy Collection - £1450
The grain shows through on the nose alongside beautiful hints of a lemon meringue pie. The palate appears stronger than its 46.4% abv which is a lovely surprise. I found the flavours of one of the nation's favourite puddings to continue through to the palate but accompanied by fresh vanilla. The finish is surprisingly dry but pleasant.
The Unknown, 44-Year-Old Blended Scotch – The Charles Gordon Collection - £3000
Distilled in 1978 and blended in 1989, this then had an extensive secondary maturation for a further 33 years in a single refill butt. The nose was reminiscent of tropical fruits and even pear drops. The palate was relatively delicate and nuanced, but with a delightful spice and gorgeous butterscotch flavours.
Blended At Birth, 1965 Blended Scotch – The Charles Gordon Collection - £4500
A piece of history, this whisky comprises grain and malt whisky being blended together at birth. This is a practice sadly now outlawed by the Scotch Whisky Association. A shame, but it does make this bottle exceptionally rare, not only with there being 192 bottles in existence but in its style. It has a beautiful nose of boiled sweets, vanilla, raisins and reduced juices from roast beef. The palate is dry with a freshness (maybe coming from some mint tones) to it. It has a variety of flavours coming through on the palate that benefits from extraordinary length. This is a complex whisky that deserves contemplation and nurturing. An outstanding bottle.