The 125-bottle cask can mature for up to five more years at Royal Lochnagar, and Diageo has not published a price.
Diageo has unveiled the 2026 edition of The Twelve by Casks of Distinction, offering twelve rare Scotch whisky casks to private clients at Royal Lochnagar Distillery in Scotland this September. The centrepiece is Lagavulin 1991 Cask #1069, the oldest Lagavulin cask the company has offered for private sale. Prices are available on request, so financial terms are undisclosed.
Two lives in oak
The Lagavulin was filled in 1991 into refill European and American oak. In 2007 it moved into an American oak hogshead that had held Pedro Ximénez sherry, and it has stayed there for almost two decades. Diageo says the whisky pairs Lagavulin’s peat smoke with dried fruit and liquorice.
Lagavulin master blender Stuart Morrison said that after more than 35 years it “still has remarkable vitality”. The buyer can keep it maturing at Royal Lochnagar for up to five more years, which would make it a 40-year-old. The buyer will also be invited to the Lagavulin distillery on Islay.
The other eleven
The remaining casks span nine distilleries, with two each from Talisker and Caol Ila. Talisker 1978 (Cask #2824) is the oldest by vintage, at almost five decades, with about 131 bottles expected. Caol Ila 1984 (Cask #5772) is the largest, at around 470 bottles.
Five of the twelve casks, the Lagavulin included, should fill fewer than 150 bottles each. Cragganmore 1989 is the smallest at about 110.
Cask #1005 holds Port Dundas 1991, from a Glasgow grain distillery that closed in 2010. No new spirit can be made there, and this cask is expected to yield about 243 bottles.
How a cask makes the list
Diageo picks from more than 10 million maturing casks in Scotland. Its master whisky makers spend over 4,200 hours a year tasting them. According to Justerini & Brooks, no cask joins the list without the unanimous backing of the whole panel.
What buyers get
Buyers purchase the whole cask rather than bottles. They can then work with Diageo’s whisky makers on further maturation, bottle with personalised labels, and book distillery visits and private client events around the world.
The Twelve began in 2023 as the programme’s annual showcase. Tod Bradbury, Private Client Director at Justerini & Brooks, said returning owners brought bottles from their own casks to share with other collectors at this year’s launch. Prices are given only on request, so none of the twelve has a public price.
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