The opening of Gatsby’s in Calgary marks the restaurant’s appointment as the first Canadian home of the House of Hazelwood’s rare whiskies.
True connoisseurs of the finer things in life seemingly have no problem travelling to original sources to indulge in their particular passions: coffee lovers will go to Istanbul, cigar aficionados will journey to Havana, fans of maple syrup will venture to Quebec and those who seek the finest in Scotch whisky will go to one place and one place only, the hills of Scotland.
Specifically, they will seek out the House of Hazelwood, where for almost one hundred years, generations of the Gordon family have carefully laid down stocks of the rarest whisky for special occasions and personal consumption, and where every cask is aged at least 45 years. The original Hazelwood House, the Gordon family’s Dufftown, Scotland home, was where Charles Gordon, a legend within the Scottish whisky community, spent much of his youth. It was he who was instrumental in laying down some of the earliest stock for what became the House of Hazelwood rarest flights, among the most prized Scotch whiskies in the world.
The ability to savour House of Hazelwood Scotch whisky became much easier in May with the opening of Gatsby’s in Calgary, the Vintage Group’s newest ultra-fine dining restaurant, which has been officially appointed the first Canadian home of the House of Hazelwood’s exceptionally rare flights.
“We are very proud that Gatsby’s has become an official home of our rare and aged House of Hazelwood collection,” said director Phil Keene. “These whisky flights showcase the best of the best and I know, given the reputation of the wider Vintage Group, the new venue and staff are ideally placed to be ambassadors of what are arguably the world’s most coveted rare Scottish whisky collections.”
Gatsby’s appointment as the first-ever Canadian House of Hazelwood Keyholder account grants it early access to exclusive whiskies, tastings and curated customer offerings. To mark the restaurant’s opening, House of Hazelwood has made the only remaining bottles of The Old Confectioner’s, a 44-year-old blended malt, exclusively available to Gatsby’s. They have also curated two whisky flights which together offer 281 years of whisky heritage. The Charles Gordon Flight, priced at $1,000, celebrates the legend himself, who laid down the oldest whiskies in the House of Hazelwood collection. The flight comprises The Old Confectioner’s, The Cask Trials, a 53-year-old single-grain Scotch whisky, and The Lost Estate, a 43-year-old blended-grain Scotch whisky.
A Flight Through the Decade, priced at $700, takes connoisseurs on a journey back in time through the 1960s to the ’90s. This flight comprises The Long Marriage, a 56-year-old blended Scotch, The Spirit of Scotland, a 46-year-old blended Scotch, and Sunshine of Speyside, a 39-year-old blended malt.
Today, the House of Hazelwood collection has grown to become the greatest inventory of aged Scotch whiskies held anywhere in the world. Spanning decades of craftsmanship and commitment and gathered from every corner of Scotland, the diverse whiskies held in its casks embody the essence of remarkable places, redolent of the stories to be heard in pubs throughout Scotland, from its smallest village to its biggest cities.
The House of Hazelwood inventory is held in carefully selected warehouses across Scotland, with fresh stock laid down each year. Prior to bottling, a small portion of the whisky is aged in traditional dunnage warehousing near Dufftown in Speyside, where it is carefully monitored and sampled ahead of release.
Gatsby’s seems like the perfect place for the House of Hazelwood to call its first home in Canada. Located in the dynamic heart of downtown Calgary, Gatsby’s pays homage to the extravagant spirit of the Roaring Twenties, blending its meticulously designed Art Deco interiors with the contemporary sophistication that marks today’s fine dining and an immersive, guest-first service philosophy.
“Gatsby’s is the culmination of everything Vintage Group stands for: exceptional hospitality, elevated cuisine and an atmosphere that invites celebration,” says Lance Hurtubise, founder and president of Vintage Group. “We’ve created something rare and unforgettable. Gatsby’s goal is to be the ultimate experience in fine dining.”
Move over, Istanbul, Havana, and Quebec — true connoisseurs of the rarest of Scotch whiskies can now add Calgary to their list of places to go when they want to enjoy the finest life can offer.
