A bespoke blending experience of the rarest whiskies at the Johnnie Walker Vault in Scotland

For the first time in its centuries-old history, Johnnie Walker is opening its vault to the public. The new Private Blend experience will give whisky connoisseurs access to a hidden ‘atelier’ deep beneath Johnnie Walker’s Princes Street home in Edinburgh, an invite-only space where a hand-selected collection of 500 of the distillery’s rare, aged and ghost casks personally curated by Johnnie Walker Master Blender Dr Emma Walker is kept.

To provide some perspective on the singularity of the Private Blend experience, that’s 0.00005 per cent of the 10 million casks of Scotch available for selection by Dr Walker and her team from over 30 distilleries. These casks include those aged for over 50 years, as well as ‘ghost’ stocks from the appointment-only Port Ellen and Brora distilleries that reside in the realm of the rare and exceptional.

For Dr Walker, the magic transcends the spirit; it’s the opportunity to translate clients’ deeply personal stories into beautiful, one-of-a-kind blends that she treasures the most.

“Johnnie Walker Vault is our treasure trove,” she said. “It’s where I can curate and share our rarest and most exceptional Scotch whiskies, and from these create unique blends which sing to my guests and showcase the blending artistry at the heart of Johnnie Walker.”

Tailored with the ultimate whisky connoisseur in mind, the Private Blend packages start from £50,000 (US$64,700; S$86,300) with a luxury agenda deeply rooted in Scottish heritage and includes a glorious stay at the Gleneagles Hotel in Perthshire, Michelin-star dining, and a private tour of the invite-only Diageo Archive culminating in a one-on-one bespoke blending session with Dr Walker.

Following the session, clients’ personal made-to-measure blends will then be presented in a crystal decanter handcrafted by Baccarat artisans not unlike a beautiful bottle of parfum certified, signed and inscribed to mark the occasion.

Their unique blend recipe will also be chronicled in the Johnnie Walker Vault archive thus allowing for future commissions, subject to the availability of these rare stocks at the time of re-commission – a wonderful way to leave a storied legacy imbued with deep, personal meaning for future generations of your lineage when they come of age.