We don’t stick to the rules at Ballantine’s – we break them. Think of a typical whisky bottle and they all look pretty similar – smooth and round like an average bottle. Not ours. The square Ballantine’s bottle stands out from the crowd, thanks to its sharp, defined edges. It’s an iconic design, and an important part of the Ballantine’s story, but where did it come from and why do Ballantine’s use rectangular whisky bottles?
The iconic square Ballantine’s whisky bottle
Finding Quality Scotch During Prohibition
Take yourself back a century to Prohibition-era America. It’s 1920 and the US government have passed a law banning practically everything to do with alcohol. You can’t order scotch at a bar because your favourite drinking spots have all closed down and it’s practically impossible to get hold of a good drink – unless you know the right people. Even your favourite speakeasy is selling watered-down liquor and most people are simply putting up with substandard drinks.
Not you. You know the difference between quality whisky and homemade moonshine and only the best will do. Luckily, you know a guy and arrange a meet-up. He turns up with a briefcase, looking like a respectable businessman, nothing untoward here.
Then he opens the case and all of a sudden it’s like the golden briefcase scene from Pulp Fiction. Inside, you see six bottles of Ballantine’s finest blend, stacked neatly, fitting like a glove.
That’s right. Legend has it our famous rectangle whisky bottle came about so that whisky salesmen could make their sales without looking or sounding suspicious during Prohibition. True or not, myths like these don’t spring up around any old whisky.
Unique And Original
Although you won’t be stopped for holding a bottle of blue these days, we believe in staying true to our roots. That means doing things differently – and better. The unique and unusual whisky bottles that we use for our Ballantine’s blended scotch whisky are as important to the spirit of Ballantine’s as they have always been.
Find the perfect way to enjoy your Ballantine’s with the help of our drinks collection. How will you enjoy yours?
The best whisky glasses to drink your scotch in
Once you’ve chosen your whisky you need to decide how to drink it. Neat or mixer? Ice or cocktail? There’s a ton of options but no matter how you serve whisky, there’s always a scotch glass for the job. You don’t need to follow these points to the letter – good whisky doesn’t need rules – but it’s always useful to know the ropes when it comes to the different types of whisky glasses.
Read More
18 mixers to drink with whisky for when you want something simple
Here we share the best whisky mixers, from classic combos to more exotic pairings. Which will you try first?
Read More
Blog
You already know we’ve nailed the Finest Whisky to ever grace a glass. But that’s just a little drop of what we’re about. Scroll on for the latest news and features from across the world of Ballantine’s whisky, True Music and much, much more.
Discover More