I’ve always considered alcohol like art – you have your raw ingredients, whether grape, grain or anything in-between, much like you have your paint, chalk or pencils. Upon taking your palate you begin to create your masterpiece on the canvas, one colour and one stroke or brush at a time. Take your distillation methods or winemaking process, which yeasts you use, how many times you filter and the same can be said for producing wine and spirits. The connection between the two has always fascinated me and much like procurers of fine art, I spend a lot of my time searching auction sites around the world in an attempt to find a truly old, truly unique piece of history that I can add to my collection. Sometimes I’ll drink it, sometimes I’ll simply admire it.
You see, out there in the world, hidden in the darkest corners of distilleries, wineries and bodegas sit rare treats that have stood the test of time. Some of these, their owners are very much aware exist, whereas others have simply gone forgotten given the sheer number of casks stored. While I may be able to look up a listing on an auction site, I’m not able to walk into a highly fortified warehouse to take a peek at 50+ year old casks. But there is a company which is – and my god has it sourced some treasures. Enter, The Last Drop Distillers.
From left: Rebecca Jago, Beanie Espey, Tom Jago and James Espey
But here’s the thing, regardless of what your company is, you don’t get to simply walk into any old warehouse, for that, you need credentials and relationships that have been forged over many years – and these two things are exactly what this team holds, which is why this company has been able to achieve so much in such little time.
Co-Founders James Espey and the late Tom Jago are two very familiar names within the drinks industry, having throughout their joint careers of over 110 years been responsible for the growth of countless iconic spirits like J&B Rare, Johnnie Walker, Chivas Regal and Bailey’s Irish Cream to name just a few. Today, the company is overseen by the next generation, Rebecca Jago and Beanie Espey, both of whom over the years have comfortably called the drinks industry their home, following in the footsteps of their fathers and in the process showcasing that this industry is just as much for women as it is for men.
Then there’s the various directors of the company, each with their own unique skillsets – take Ben Howkins for example, one of the most charming gentlemen I have met and an encyclopaedia for anything sherry, port, tokaji and so much more. It’s people like this who attain the much-needed knowledge, relationships and palates, based on decades of experience, to determine the quality of those magical finds.
The point I’m trying to make is that this company is built up of a family of gracious people who have an exceptional talent to seek out precious ‘last drops’ of some of the oldest and most perfect spirits in existence. But even then, it’s not easy and the team openly acknowledges just how difficult it is to succeed in their quest; not all spirits age well and too long in wood can ruin them. But occasionally all the elements – original distillate, type of wood, the right climate for storage – combine to produce an unlikely miracle.
Right, I keep referring to these miracles, so at the risk of beginning to sound like a cork-tease, I suppose I should tell you about some of the most fascinating finds The Last Drop has come to discover. Here are six instrumental releases that have given this company its reputation over time.
The Last Drop Release No 1: the 1960 Blended Scotch Whisky
This was the very first release and how it all began. Upon launching the company James and Tom knew they needed to do something special, so calling upon their incredible list of contacts in Scotland, Tom narrowed down his search to three casks, which upon tasting, he immediately knew were the ones. Up until the day he passed away in October 2018, Tom swore this was the best whisky he’d ever tasted – which coming from a man whose career was built on building brands made from the stuff, is quite a lot.
Hidden away in the back of a warehouse in the Lowlands, what really set these casks apart was not where they were hidden so much as the treasure that was hidden inside. You see, The Last Drop aren’t just ‘rare spirit hunters’ in the sense of the quest, and the treasure hunt, but also in their ability to source and uncover gems that are literally hidden in plain sight. It took three years to sell out of the first release, but this bottle set the benchmark of quality for what was soon to become the most highly accoladed rare spirits company in the world.
The Last Drop Release No 2: the 1950 Cognac
Their second release was one of grave importance because it set it apart from being an ‘independent bottler of Scotch Whisky’, by which I mean a company who simply bottles a whisky then sells it on. You see, by releasing a Cognac it became a ‘Spirits Company’ and Cognac was by no means its only foray beyond the dram. Once again, that carefully built contact list of colleagues became invaluable and they found themselves sourcing a 1950 Cognac from a family-owned business on the banks of Charente that has been in operation for multiple generations. This was the beginning of a fascinating evolution.
The Last Drop Release No 7: the 1972 Lochside Single-Grain Scotch Whisky
Only 106 bottles were ever created from this incredibly rare single cask. It’s not often to firstly find a whisky as old as this, but secondly from a distillery which no longer exists and Lochside is an example of just that. Its mission to champion single-grain whiskies continued as it maintained its reputation for producing incredibly small amounts of precious liquids. A light, but complex whisky which deserved to be seen for the gleaming gem it had become.
The Last Drop Release No 14: the 1925 Hors d’Age Grande Champagne Cognac
As if a 1950 Cognac wasn’t a triumph in itself, the team decided to take things one step further and the story behind this particular find is stunning. A single barrel of a Cognac, distilled by the current owner’s grandfather in 1925, was hidden behind a wall of rubble as the Germans approached the south-west of France before WWII. Forgotten, it lay there until late 2017, when the grandson undertook some renovation work on one of the barns, and there was a treasure: barely enough for 182 bottles of a simply glorious 93-year-old Cognac, untouched for over 70 years. It had never been topped up or in any way tampered with and is believed to have spent its life in an ex-Pineau des Charentes barrel, which imparts an extraordinary sweetness. In a fitting tribute, this true beauty was made in the year Tom Jago was born and bottled in the year he passed – a lovely nod to a man who has helped get moments of history like this into the hands of those who will truly appreciate them.
More details at The Last Drop Distillers.
