When Chivas Brothers, the Scotch whisky arm of Pernod Ricard, reaches into its archives, the world tends to stop and pay attention. This autumn, the company has announced not one but two extraordinary donations to the 2025 Distillers One of One charity auction, the biennial event that has become a kind of holy day on the whisky calendar. Taking place on October 10th at Hopetoun House near Edinburgh and staged in partnership with Sotheby’s, the auction gathers some of the rarest single malts ever released, with all proceeds supporting disadvantaged young people across Scotland.
The Glenlivet Spira: A 60-Year-Old Masterpiece
Leading the Chivas Brothers offering is The Glenlivet Spira, distilled on October 1, 1965 and matured for six uninterrupted decades in a single hogshead cask. Bottled at natural cask strength, it represents the oldest whisky ever to leave The Glenlivet distillery.
The tasting notes read like a novella of sensory memory: aromas of homemade orange marmalade, sultana cake, apple, and sweet liquorice balanced against salted caramel, lemon peel, and Earl Grey tea. On the palate, pear and kiwifruit give way to vanilla nougat, apricot, honey, roasted pistachios, and a late flourish of cinnamon.
Its name comes from the Latin word for spiral, an homage to the dance of vapours in The Glenlivet’s copper stills and the River Livet’s winding course through the Cairngorms. The decanter—sleek, coiling, architectural—is less bottle and more sculpture. Sotheby’s has placed its pre-sale estimate between £60,000 and £110,000 ($80,500–$147,600), with the entire hammer price directed to charity.
Aberlour’s Whispering Legacy: The Mouth of the Chattering Burn
If The Glenlivet’s offering is an essay on time, Aberlour’s The Mouth of the Chattering Burn is a poem of place. Distilled in 1967 and aged for 53 years in a single cask, it takes its name from the ancient Gaelic meaning of Aberlour itself. The whisky is housed in a magnum decanter handblown by Swedish master glassblower Micke Johansson, who worked in collaboration with mould maker Gunnar Englund. The surface features delicate carvings by Simon Holm, turning the vessel into a three-dimensional story of water and wood.
The presentation box doubles as both display and origin story—it was once the mould used to shape the decanter. Sotheby’s has estimated its value between £20,000 and £40,000 ($26,800–$53,700).
A Broader Constellation of Rare Spirits
The Distillers One of One has quickly become the rare whisky world’s North Star, gathering bottles whose existence alone alters the cultural landscape of Scotch. Alongside the Chivas Brothers donations, the 2025 auction will feature Port Ellen Prism, a 46-year-old single malt from Islay, and Kandoblanc’s Dragon in Clouds, a 60-year-old rarity shrouded in myth-like naming. In total, 39 one-off lots from 35 distilleries will be offered.
Ahead of the auction, Sotheby’s will stage its first London exhibition of the lots from 19–30 September, giving enthusiasts a rare chance to stand before whiskies that will likely vanish into private collections.
With whiskies spanning six decades, artful decanters that blur the line between sculpture and vessel, and proceeds earmarked for social good, the 2025 Distillers One of One charity auction is more than a sale. It’s a reminder that Scotch whisky, in its highest forms, exists at the intersection of history, craft, and philanthropy.
For more information on the Distillers One of One 2025, head over to the official website.
The auction has already unveiled a number of other lots earlier this year, including:
The Port Ellen Prism 46-Year-Old
Kandoblanc Unveils 60-Year-Old Dragon in Clouds
Old Pulteney Polaris 47-Year-Old
