Three bottles of whisky that spent more than 100 years encased in Antarctic ice have been returned to Scotland

Sky News

According to Sky News, the scotch, taken by Ernest Shackleton on his expedition to the South Pole in 1907, have been brought back for analysis.

Five cases were dug up last year, before being carefully thawed by museum officials in New Zealand.

One of the cases of McKinlay whisky has been flown to Scotland after distillers Whyte and Mackay, which owns the McKinlay brand, were keen to get hold of a bottle.

They are so rare and valuable that the trust and New Zealand authorities refused to let them travel unaccompanied so Whyte & Mackay's owner, Dr Vijay Mallya, brought them back to Scotland on his private jet.

For the next six weeks, the whisky will be analysed, nosed, and tasted in full laboratory conditions.

Richard Paterson, the company's master blender, said the analysis would be "for the benefit of the whisky industry".

He said: "Never in the history of our industry have we had a century-old bottle of whisky stored in a natural fridge and subjected to some of the harshest conditions on this planet.

"It is an absolute honour to be able to use my experience to analyse this amazing spirit for the benefit of the Antarctic Heritage Trust and the whisky industry."

The findings will be sent to the Antarctic Heritage Trust and the bottles returned to Shackleton's hut.

Dr Mallya said: "Shackleton made history with his travels and adventures, and I am sure we will make history ourselves when we unlock the marvels of these unique 100-year-old time capsules