Cutty Sark Prohibition Edition fell into my lap sometime in late 2014 by way of a mass email from a PR agency. It’s not exactly the most romantic or serendipitous way to stumble upon a new bottle, but that was the reality of my job as a drinks writer back then.
The email announced a new branded campaign between Cutty Sark and now-defunct shoe brand Generic Surplus—a campaign that included a pair of black-and-white Prohibition Edition sneakers to kick off the partnership. A fan of Scotch whisky, sneakers, and free stuff, I knew I had no grounds to turn down this offer.
The bottle was dark and moody with a vaguely medical shape that runs in line with its Prohibition-centric messaging. Bearing a retro black-and-white label with an illustration of one of the most famous clipper ships in history—its namesake, the Cutty Sark. (The shoes, on the other hand, were decidedly the opposite of the meticulously crafted story crafted to promote the bottle. They looked like something an early 2010s jock would wear to a Gen X wedding).
Prohibition Edition pays homage to the famous Captain William McCoy (famous for inspiring the phrase “The Real McCoy”) who gained notoriety for smuggling Cutty Sark into the U.S. during Prohibition. The deep black bottle of Prohibition Edition stood out amongst my collection of boring wines, whiskies, gins, and rums that entombed my desk.
Getty Images; Ilya S. Savenok
On the nose, Cutty Sark's Prohibition Edition decorates the air with a wave of vanilla, toffee, spice, and dried fruits. A more complex palate of rich toffee, vanilla, and pepper melts away with a creamy texture and warm and toasty oak finish. It’s the kind of drink that can make you respected, professional, and worldly. A blend of both single malt and grain whiskies, Prohibition Edition is aged in American oak casks and, as such, bridges the gap for bourbon drinkers.
You can’t deny the inherent style and class behind an order like: ”Cutty Sark. Prohibition Edition. Neat.” With a price point typically hovering around $30 per bottle, Prohibition Edition feels under-appreciated: the cursed step-child of a legacy brand who doesn’t quite know their place in the world. When I moved outside the New York area, I found bartenders unable to fulfill my go-to whisky order.
In a time of endless gimmicky product launches, Prohibition Edition always stood out to me. Perhaps it was that adherence to its backstory and footwear tie-in that ultimately secured this bottle’s spot coasting under the radar. Even the era of Prohibition always carries with it more of a weight than it did even back in 2014. In the last 10 years, articles exposing the U.S. government's role in adding toxic additives into products they knew would be converted into bootleg alcohol remind us what Prohibition looked like without the rose-colored glasses.
Beyond the romanticized history and mismatched footwear collaboration, Cutty Sark Prohibition Edition eventually helped me step outside my comfort zone by encouraging my brain to shut up and enjoy the nice glass of whisky in my hand. Not every brand story has to make sense or check boxes—especially when what’s inside brings your mouth happiness.
