Johnnie Walker Blue Label Ghost and Rare Brora

The Spirits of three Ghost Distilleries live on for a very limited time.

Johnnie Walker is one of the most recognized Whisky names in the World. The brand was established in 1860 by John “Johnnie” Walker, when he started blending Whiskies from his grocery shop in Ayrshire, Scotland. During the Victorian Era, success came when his son Alexander exported around the British Empire, establishing the Whisky early as one of the first truly global brands. Today, Johnnie Walker’s famous square-shaped bottle — with the label set at a jaunty 24 degrees — is THE most popular blended Whisky in the world, selling more than 130 million bottles per year in nearly every country on the planet across a wide range of ages, special editions, and finishes.

In 2017, Johnnie Walker launched a brand new series of limited released editions dubbed, Johnnie Walker Blue Label Ghost and Rare. The idea is simple. Johnnie Walker has huge stocks of aging Scotch. They find the odd barrel lots from rare releases of now-closed distilleries and build blends around them — highlighting the character of the lost plane. At the heart of Johnnie Walker Blue Label Ghost and Rare is a Highland Single Malt named Brora — which closed in 1983 and is now a visitor center for Clynelish. The rest of the blend consists of seven more Scotch Whiskies, including the two ghost Spirits Cambus and Pittyvaich. These glittering gems of the Spirit-world are bottled at a perfect 46% ABV. But like all Ghost Spirits, once they’re gone only a memory will remain.

Smartass corner:
There may be a resurrection of sorts in store for Brora. Just this year, Diageo announced plans to revive the classic Brora Distillery and resume production starting next year. The details are sketchy and we are all waiting eagerly to know if it will be a Single Malt or Grain. But one this is for certain… it will be a Spirited place.