Cutty Sark
Place in the hierarchy
The brand in brief
Cutty Sark is a blended Scotch created on 23 March 1923 by the London house Berry Bros. & Rudd for the American market during Prohibition. Instead of heavy, peated whisky it offered something new: a pale, light and fresh Scotch, made for ice and the era's emerging cocktails.
The name comes from the fastest tea clipper of the day (and a Robert Burns poem), while the famous bright-yellow label was a printer's mistake — judged so eye-catching it was never changed. Prohibition also gave it the legend of Captain William McCoy, who delivered Cutty Sark unadulterated — the origin of the phrase "The Real McCoy".
For a century the blend's heart has been light, fruity Speyside malt (especially Glenrothes) married with delicate grain whisky: citrus, vanilla and pale oak, with no smoke at all. Browse it in the Cutty Sark catalogue.
Timeline
- 1923 The Cutty Sark brand was created by the London-based wine and spirit merchant Berry Bros. & Rudd.
- 1923 Cutty Sark whisky was launched in the American market, gaining popularity during Prohibition.
- 2010 The Cutty Sark brand was acquired by the Scottish company The Edrington Group.
- 2018 The Edrington Group sold the Cutty Sark brand to the French group La Martiniquaise-Bardinet.
