The first, the last, my everything

It’s understandable why some whisky lovers are beginning to feel a little cynical about the recent slew of old and rare releases from some of Scotch whisky’s most venerable distillers, boasting five- or even six-figure price tags. The industry’s current penchant for indulgent packaging and the tendency to see such releases as works of art has become a bone of contention for many, with calls from some quarters for a refocus on whisky as a drink, rather than an asset or investment.

This contemporary context makes it especially pleasing to be presented with a release quite as unquestionably ‘liquid-first’ as Diageo’s Prima & Ultima Collection. Perhaps more so than any other similar Scotch whisky release in recent years, these whiskies have been chosen on the unique merits of the spirit – not just the age statement. Each shines a light on distillery style, the development of and difference between various maturation techniques, and the careers of two (so far) of the industry’s most experienced whisky makers. The packaging, while undeniably premium and attractive, is nevertheless relatively simplistic and functional, playing second fiddle to the liquid inside.

Launched in mid-2020, the first Prima & Ultima Collection was curated by Johnnie Walker master blender Dr Jim Beveridge OBE and comprised eight whiskies which illustrated meaningful periods of the whisky maker’s time in the industry. For 2021, the arduous task of selecting the whiskies has fallen to 40-year Diageo veteran Maureen Robinson. Bottled at natural cask strength, this year’s whiskies tell the tale of Maureen’s personal journey from trainee to master blender, but, like last year, each is also in some way representative of a beginning or an end – hence the name Prima & Ultima, Latin for ‘first’ and ‘last’. Whether it be a cask filled on the first day of distillation, a pioneering experiment, the end of a significant period in a distillery’s history or simply the last drops of something special, each bottle is a snapshot of a unique moment in time.

“If you look back at the last collection, for example, the Cragganmore was the last whisky we ever made on coal-fired stills – it varies depending on the distillery and the story behind it,” says Ewan Gunn, senior global brand ambassador at Diageo. “When Maureen and the team curate this, it’s not just about saying, ‘here is some