The much anticipated Prima & Ultima second collection from Diageo Rare & Exceptional returns with a new curator: Maureen Robinson. With over 40 years’ experience and the title of Keeper of the Quaich in 2012, she’s assembled a collection of extremely limited single malts.

Like her predecessor Dr Jim Beveridge OBE, her top eight come from Scotland’s most renowned distilleries. Among them are a Lagavulin 1992 (a vintage Ron Swanson from Parks and Rec would enjoy) and a 1984 star from 127-year-old ghost distillery Convalmore that closed in 1985, with vanishingly little of its stock left. So is the last of a smoky Brora 1980 distilled when peated Brora was at its zenith. 

Also in the line-up is a whisky that is particularly close to her heart – Linkwood 1981. The bottling was part of the pioneering trial to finalise different maturation processes. It was aged for a decade in refill casks and then double matured for more than 25 years in new Pedro Ximenez/Oloroso seasoned American oak. The result is a complex nose with notes of Christmas cake, orange peel and mince pies. 

 

There are only 376 sets of the full selection, each with engraved glasses, 20ml samplers and a booklet of Robinson’s perspectives on each whisky. Diageo’s Rare and Exceptional Private Client Team is available for enquiries at diageorareandexceptional.sg.