Beginning in 1779 when Bowmore was established through to the present day, the distillery team has served as guardians of Bowmore's whisky-making traditions and its inventory, safeguarding them so that future generations can continue to experience the unique spirit that is Bowmore. A collection of casks were bottled in 1995 but one in particular was held back because it was a bit more special, a bit more exceptional than the rest. Since 1995, the whisky in that cask has been examined every six months to check the quality, the taste, the developments and changes the spirit was taking on its ageing voyage. It was also closely watched to see how long the whisky could mature without losing Bowmore's signature trait of a sweet/smoky balance.

Today Bowmore Distillery announced the release of their Bowmore 1957 - 54 years old. This is the oldest ever Bowmore and the oldest Islay single malt ever released to the public. Bottles like these are not for sale in the average whisky shop and neither in the top class whisky shops in the country. Bowmore has something special planned for these rare bottles, these bottles will be sold at auctions in Edinburgh and New York City: "Auctions are set for Edinburgh on October 10 (http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/19871/) and New York City on October 28 (http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/20459/) with bids accepted live in each location as well as live internet bidding. Inquiries regarding bidding can be directed to bids@bonhams.com. The minimum reserve set by Bonhams is £100,000 per bottle, the highest reserve ever set for a Single Malt Whisky."

And now comes the best part: "We have chosen to donate all net proceeds of both auctions to five Scottish charities that encompass a variety of worthy causes: alzheimer scotland (care for people with dementia, their caregivers and families); the beatson oncology centre (care for cancer patients receiving treatment in the west of scotland); chas (children's hospice services); erskine (medical care for armed forces); and marie curie cancer care (cancer care and research)."

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