Moon Import was founded by Pepi Mongiardino in 1980 and he bottled his first whisky in 1982. Always beautifully labelled, Pepi is acclaimed for designing the packaging for Moon Import bottles himself, often using images found in old books. These iconic designs, coupled with the quality of the liquid saw Moon Import steadily grow in popularity. The company is still going strong, and their early releases are some of the brightest gems in any whisky collection.

Moon Import released two The Birds series, the first in 1987 and the second in 1990. This is the 1971 vintage Glendronach from the second releases. One of 600.

Colour: dark brown amber. Nose: ah well, this is simply the most complex and richest kind of raisiny sherry-matured malt one can find on Earth. In other words, an avalanche of fruitcakes, figs, dates, sultanas, dried bananas and even touches of Demerara, then old balsamico. What’s quite incredible is that it remained extremely elegant and never ‘too much’, which may partly come from bottle ageing. It’s also a bit similar to the best old cognacs. Mouth: probably a little less polished now, maybe a little metallic in a certain way, but it’s still very excellent. Notes of strawberry jam and then more marmalade and liquorice, as well as some cloves, star anise and cinnamon. And what a body at 43% vol.! Finish: medium long, on a combination of coffee andliquorice, with some mint and more liquorice in the aftertaste. Comments: quite amazing, almost on par with the best old Macallans in a similar style.

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