Port Ellen 1979 / 13 Year Old / Douglas Murdoch Islay Whisky

Nils Bergman — Beautiful but hard to justify the price

7/10

Let me be honest — at £950 you're paying for the Port Ellen name and the fact the distillery is gone. The whisky itself is very good, lovely ashy peat with some vanilla sweetness, but 40% ABV feels a bit thin for what you're shelling out. I'd recommend splitting a bottle with friends so you can experience it without the financial sting.

Daisy Miller — Beautiful but hard to justify the price

7/10

Let me be honest — at £950 you're paying for the Port Ellen name and the fact the distillery is gone. The whisky itself is very good, lovely ashy peat with some vanilla sweetness, but 40% ABV feels a bit thin for what you're shelling out. I'd recommend splitting a bottle with friends so you can experience it without the financial sting.

Jackson Wu — Beautiful but hard to justify the price

7/10

Let me be honest — at £950 you're paying for the Port Ellen name and the fact the distillery is gone. The whisky itself is very good, lovely ashy peat with some vanilla sweetness, but 40% ABV feels a bit thin for what you're shelling out. I'd recommend splitting a bottle with friends so you can experience it without the financial sting.

Astrid Nilsen — Shared this with my dad and we both loved it

8/10

Bought this as a special occasion bottle for my father's 70th. Neither of us are peat heads usually but the 13 years of maturation has tamed the smoke beautifully. There's this lovely honeyed sweetness underneath with a long salty finish. At £950 it's a once-in-a-lifetime purchase for me but no regrets at all.

Dmitri Volkov — Shared this with my dad and we both loved it

8/10

Bought this as a special occasion bottle for my father's 70th. Neither of us are peat heads usually but the 13 years of maturation has tamed the smoke beautifully. There's this lovely honeyed sweetness underneath with a long salty finish. At £950 it's a once-in-a-lifetime purchase for me but no regrets at all.

Jorge Castillo — Shared this with my dad and we both loved it

8/10

Bought this as a special occasion bottle for my father's 70th. Neither of us are peat heads usually but the 13 years of maturation has tamed the smoke beautifully. There's this lovely honeyed sweetness underneath with a long salty finish. At £950 it's a once-in-a-lifetime purchase for me but no regrets at all.

Luna Chavez — Beautiful but hard to justify the price

7/10

Let me be honest — at £950 you're paying for the Port Ellen name and the fact the distillery is gone. The whisky itself is very good, lovely ashy peat with some vanilla sweetness, but 40% ABV feels a bit thin for what you're shelling out. I'd recommend splitting a bottle with friends so you can experience it without the financial sting.

Erik Strom — Beautiful but hard to justify the price

7/10

Let me be honest — at £950 you're paying for the Port Ellen name and the fact the distillery is gone. The whisky itself is very good, lovely ashy peat with some vanilla sweetness, but 40% ABV feels a bit thin for what you're shelling out. I'd recommend splitting a bottle with friends so you can experience it without the financial sting.

Felix Moreau — Good not great, but it's Port Ellen

7/10

Bottled at 40% which I think holds it back a little compared to cask strength Port Ellens I've tasted. The smoke and sea salt are present but feel slightly muted. Still a solid dram and obviously the closed distillery mystique adds to the occasion — just manage your expectations if you're used to punchier Islay whiskies.

Adaobi Eze — Good not great, but it's Port Ellen

7/10

Bottled at 40% which I think holds it back a little compared to cask strength Port Ellens I've tasted. The smoke and sea salt are present but feel slightly muted. Still a solid dram and obviously the closed distillery mystique adds to the occasion — just manage your expectations if you're used to punchier Islay whiskies.

Haruki Sato — Good not great, but it's Port Ellen

7/10

Bottled at 40% which I think holds it back a little compared to cask strength Port Ellens I've tasted. The smoke and sea salt are present but feel slightly muted. Still a solid dram and obviously the closed distillery mystique adds to the occasion — just manage your expectations if you're used to punchier Islay whiskies.

Nia Okafor — Shared this with my dad and we both loved it

8/10

Bought this as a special occasion bottle for my father's 70th. Neither of us are peat heads usually but the 13 years of maturation has tamed the smoke beautifully. There's this lovely honeyed sweetness underneath with a long salty finish. At £950 it's a once-in-a-lifetime purchase for me but no regrets at all.

Sophie Brennan — Shared this with my dad and we both loved it

8/10

Bought this as a special occasion bottle for my father's 70th. Neither of us are peat heads usually but the 13 years of maturation has tamed the smoke beautifully. There's this lovely honeyed sweetness underneath with a long salty finish. At £950 it's a once-in-a-lifetime purchase for me but no regrets at all.

Thomas Weber — Good not great, but it's Port Ellen

7/10

Bottled at 40% which I think holds it back a little compared to cask strength Port Ellens I've tasted. The smoke and sea salt are present but feel slightly muted. Still a solid dram and obviously the closed distillery mystique adds to the occasion — just manage your expectations if you're used to punchier Islay whiskies.

Camila Ortiz — Good not great, but it's Port Ellen

7/10

Bottled at 40% which I think holds it back a little compared to cask strength Port Ellens I've tasted. The smoke and sea salt are present but feel slightly muted. Still a solid dram and obviously the closed distillery mystique adds to the occasion — just manage your expectations if you're used to punchier Islay whiskies.

Yuki Nakamura — A piece of whisky history in a glass

9/10

My mate opened this at his birthday and we all went quiet after the first sip. Gentle iodine and smoke on the nose, then this beautiful waxy fruit character underneath the peat. The Douglas Murdoch bottling is a cracker — 13 years was clearly the sweet spot for this cask.

Lena Petrova — A piece of whisky history in a glass

9/10

My mate opened this at his birthday and we all went quiet after the first sip. Gentle iodine and smoke on the nose, then this beautiful waxy fruit character underneath the peat. The Douglas Murdoch bottling is a cracker — 13 years was clearly the sweet spot for this cask.

Ravi Krishnan — A piece of whisky history in a glass

9/10

My mate opened this at his birthday and we all went quiet after the first sip. Gentle iodine and smoke on the nose, then this beautiful waxy fruit character underneath the peat. The Douglas Murdoch bottling is a cracker — 13 years was clearly the sweet spot for this cask.

Freya Lindqvist — Classic Islay, elegant age

8/10

Nose is all coastal peat, dried seaweed, and a hint of lemon rind. On the palate it's surprisingly smooth for an Islay — the 13 years have softened the smoke into something really refined. I expected more punch at 40% but honestly the balance is lovely.

Tomas Rivera — Classic Islay, elegant age

8/10

Nose is all coastal peat, dried seaweed, and a hint of lemon rind. On the palate it's surprisingly smooth for an Islay — the 13 years have softened the smoke into something really refined. I expected more punch at 40% but honestly the balance is lovely.