Scotland: Single malt whisky through the producing distilleries: history, making and tasting
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Signatory

About the independent bottler

 The company was founded in 1988. It is a family owned and managed company, being one of only three true independent bottlers. They always like to draw a distinction between the independent companies who bottle their own products, and the independent companies whose products are bottled under contract. The other fully independent bottlers are: Gordon & MacPhail and Wm. Cadenhead.
The name of Signatory derived from the fact that their initial intention was to find someone famous to sign the labels for bottles produced from one single cask. The first cask we purchased was a cask of 1968 Glenlivet, which was sold long before we could find a famous person.
Until April 1992, when they moved to their current premises in Newhaven (Edinburgh), they operated from a bonded warehouse in Leith. Leith was once a well known port for importing wine from France. As this industry declined, many of the whisky companies began to occupy the old warehouses for cask storage purposes. In recent years, this has also declined, with the larger companies moving to the west of Edinburgh, where transport links are better.
In April 1992, as the company began to grow, they moved to much larger premises. Here, they were granted a licence to bottle their own products on site. They set-up a small line bottling system, primarily geared towards the bottling of single casks. Although the actual bottling of whisky is semi-automated, the emphasis is very much a hands-on operation, with hand labeling and packing of products. To add to the exclusivity of their bottlings, they often declare the cask number, date of distillation,and date of bottling on our labels. In addition,each bottle is individually hand numbered.
It is their aim, as an independent bottler to offer a range of whiskies, some of which are not bottled by the proprietor of a particular distillery, and some at different ages/strengths to those offered as distillery bottlings. The majority of their bottlings are the product of single casks, with the malt whisky enthusiast being given the opportunity to sample the subtle differences which occur with each different cask.
Signatory owns the smallest distillery from Scotland, Edradour since 22 july 2002

The whisky

List of the bottles

 
Ardbeg 28 yo Pale oloroso 1967-1995 cask #575 1 94/100
Bladnoch 1990-2004 1 87/100
Bowmore Very Cloudy 2000-2008 1 78/100
Brora Un-chillfiltered collection 1981-2003 1 88/100
Bunnahabhain Vintage 1997 - peated - cask 5275 2 79/100
Bunnahabhain Cask Strength Collection 1978 1 84/100
Bunnahabhain Heavily peated 1997 tasting sample 1 79/100
Clynelish Un-chillfiltered collection 1991 1 83/100
Dallas-Dhu Cask Strength Collection 1975-2006 1 80/100
Edradour Ballechin - Burgundy 2 73/100
Glenrothes 1997, Very cloudy 2 78/100
Highland-Park Straight from the Cask 1985 4 85/100
Highland-Park City of Zwolle, selected by Hans Offringa 0/100
Highland-Park Orange label for LMDW (second edition) 1 85/100
Isle-of-Jura Very Cloudy 1 72/100
Laphroaig Straigth from the cask 15 years 3 85/100
Laphroaig Un-chillfiltered collection 1988 hogshead 2 88/100
Laphroaig Straigth from the cask 1988 1 88/100
Laphroaig Cask Strength Collection 1990 3 78/100
Laphroaig Straigth from the cask 6 years 1 84/100
Linkwood 12 years, 1998-2001 1 87/100
Littlemill Signatory 1990 2 87/100
Pittyvaich 1976, Hogshead 1 82/100
Rosebank 1991-2006 1 80/100
Tamdhu Cask Strength Collection 1994 2 85/100
Tobermory 1993-2004 1 79/100
Cask Collection Benrinnes 1989 1 79/100
Cask sample Bowmore Cask Sample 1992 1 84/100
Cask sample Rosebank Cask Sample 1991 2 86/100
Cask sample Springbank 6 years, Cask Sample 1 83/100
Cask strength Collection Allt-a-Bhainne 27 years 1 88/100
Cask strength Collection Ardmore Cask Strength Collection 1990 0 0/100
Cask strength Collection Ben-Nevis Cask Strength Collection 1992 1 79/100
Cask strength Collection Benriach 1976 1 90/100
Cask strength Collection Brora Cask Strength Collection 1981 2 84/100
Cask strength Collection Bunnahabhain Cask strength collection 1987 0 0/100
Cask strength Collection Cambus Cask Collection 1991 1 83/100
Cask strength Collection Caperdonich Cask Strength Collection 1992 1 80/100
Cask strength Collection Cragganmore 1989-2004 1 79/100
Cask strength Collection Dallas-Dhu Cask Strength Collection 1975 0/100
Cask strength Collection Glen-Keith Cask Strength Collection 1992 1 85/100
Cask strength Collection Glencadam Cask Strength Collection 1989 12 82/100
Cask strength Collection Glenkinchie Cask strength collection 1987 0 0/100
Cask strength Collection Glenlochy Cask Strength Collection 1980 0/100
Cask strength Collection Glenugie Cask Strength Collection, 1977 - 30 years 1 79/100
Cask strength Collection Glenugie Cask Strength Collection, 1977 - 27 years 1 84/100
Cask strength Collection Highland-Park Cask Strength Collection 1992, 11 yo 2 86/100
Cask strength Collection Highland-Park Cask Strength Collection 1990, 16 yo 1 88/100
Cask strength Collection Imperial 27 years, 1982 1 92/100
Cask strength Collection Inchgower Cask Strength Collection 1980 0 0/100
Cask strength Collection Laphroaig Cask Strength 1991 1 88/100
Cask strength Collection Laphroaig 11 years SV for La Maison du Whisky 1 89/100
Cask strength Collection Lochside Cask Strength Collection 40 years 1 88/100
Cask strength Collection Longmorn Cask Strength Collection 1989 1 81/100
Cask strength Collection Miltonduff Mosstowie 1979 0/100
Cask strength Collection Port-Ellen Cask Strength Collection 1982 - 2007 2 92/100
Cask strength Collection Speyburn Cask Strength Collection 1980 0 0/100
Cask strength Collection, Collector's Edition Port-Ellen 25 years, for La Maison du Whisky 1 93/100
Collector's edition Port-Ellen 26 years, for La Maison du Whisky, 2nd release 9 89/100
Decanter Collection Edradour Decanter Collection 3 85/100
Decanter Collection Linkwood Decanter Collection 1987 4 81/100
Decanter Collection Port-Ellen Decanter Collection Edition 2 1978 4 84/100
Decanter Collection Port-Ellen Decanter Collection Edition 1 1978 5 87/100
La Maison du Whisky - The Ten Tamdhu The Ten 08 1 76/100
Prestonfield Clynelish Clynelish Prestonfield 2nd ed. for LMDW 3 93/100
Signatory Vintage Ardmore Signatory Vintage 1977 2 84/100
Signatory Vintage Bladnoch Signatory Vintage 1988 3 81/100
Signatory Vintage Blair-Athol Signatory Vintage 1987 3 81/100
Signatory Vintage Brora Signatory Vintage 1981 3 84/100
Signatory Vintage Dallas-Dhu Signatory Vintage 1982 2 77/100
Signatory Vintage Glen-Albyn Signatory Vintage 1978 3 81/100
Signatory Vintage Glen-Scotia Signatory Vintage 1991 2 79/100
Signatory Vintage Inchgower Signatory Vintage 1986 3 73/100
Signatory Vintage Littlemill Signatory Vintage 1990 2 81/100
Signatory Vintage Mannochmore Signatory Vintage 1991 3 79/100
Signatory Vintage Port-Ellen 1979 1 88/100
Signatory Vintage Strathmill Signatory Vintage1986 4 78/100
Signatory Vintage Tormore 14 years, new barrel sherry cask 1 74/100
Single Grain Collection North-British 1997 1 74/100
Single Grain Collection North-British North British 1994 1 85/100
Stills of Scotland Springbank 1989, Stills of Scotland 3 74/100
Straight from the Cask Bladnoch Straight from the Cask 1990 2 77/100
Straight from the Cask Caol-Ila Straight from the Cask 1994 2 88/100
Straight from the Cask Clynelish Straight from the cask, 14 years 1 81/100
Straight from the Cask Clynelish Straight from the Cask, 12 years 1 88/100
Straight from the Cask Edradour Straight from the Cask 4 87/100
Straight from the Cask Edradour Straight from the cask - Burgundy finish 3 88/100
Straight from the Cask Glenburgie Straight from the Cask, 39 years 2 82/100
The antique collection Millburn The Antique Collection, 1979 3 83/100
The flagon collection Caol-Ila Flagon collection (Signatory) 1991 5 80/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Ardmore Un-chillfiltered Collection 1992 2 83/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Ardmore Un-chillfiltered collection 1990 3 82/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Ardmore Unchillfiltered collection 1992 1 84/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Auchentoshan un chillfiltered collection 1992 2 74/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Benriach 1994, Heavily Peated 1 78/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Brora Un-chillfiltered collection 1981 3 81/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Bunnahabhain Vintage 1997 - peated - cask 5269 1 84/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Caol-Ila Un-chillfiltered collection 1989 3 84/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Caol-Ila Un-chillfiltered Collection 1999 1 81/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Caol-Ila Un-chillfiltered collection 1991 Port 4 81/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Clynelish Un-chillfiltered collection 1992 4 81/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Coleburn Un-chillfiltered collection 1981 3 85/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Cragganmore Un-chillfiltered collection 1989 5 76/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Edradour Un-chillfiltered collection 1992 4 80/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Glenrothes Un-chillfiltered collection 1990 2 81/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Highland-Park Un-chillfiltered collection 1988 4 86/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Highland-Park Orange Label for LMDW , first edition 1 91/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Imperial Un-chillfiletered Collection 1995 1 84/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Isle-of-Jura Un-chillfiltered collection 1988 4 85/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Laphroaig Un-chillfiltered collection 2001 1 82/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Laphroaig Un-chillfiltered collection 1988 sherry 6 85/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Millburn Un-chillfiltered collection 1983 5 79/100
Un-chillfiltered collection Mortlach Un chillfiltered collection 1989 2 84/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Mortlach Un chillfiltered Collection 1991 3 77/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Pulteney Un-chillfiltered collection 1990 2 78/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Springbank Un-chillfiltered collection 1989 3 84/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Strathisla Un chillfiltered collection 1987 1 74/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Strathisla un-chillfiltered colletion 18 years 1 81/100
Un-chillfiltered Collection Tomatin Un-chillfiltered collection 1989 3 84/100
Very Cloudy Caol-Ila Very Cloudy 7 years 1 84/100
Vintage Bladnoch Vintage 1980 (Signatory) 3 87/100
Vintage Caol-Ila Vintage 1981 (Signatory) 5 85/100
Vintage Edradour Vintage 1976 (Signatory) 3 81/100
Vintage Mannochmore Vintage 1978 3 82/100
Vintage Miltonduff Mosstowie Vintage 1976 (Signatory) 3 82/100
Vintage North-Port Vintage 1975 (Signatory) 6 79/100
Vintage StMagdalene Linlithgow Vintage 1975 4 86/100
Whisky Magazine Ardmore Whisky Magazine 1990 2 83/100