How much money would you be willing to cash out for a bottle of really good whiskey? A couple of hundreds? A thousand? What about $300.000? That’s how much an anonymous buyer spent in order to become the new owner of a bottle of Yamazaki, rare whisky from Japan which was produced five decades ago.
When Sotheby announced its Finest & Rarest auction in Hong Kong, experts predicted that this rare bottle could fetch between $90.000 and $140.000. They were proven wrong on January 27th, when one anonymous buyer decided it’s actually worth twice more than its estimated price, and spent $300.000 to add it to their collection.
This bottle of limited edition Yamazaki whiskey was released by Suntory Spirits Ltd. a few years ago. It was made of carefully selected malt whiskies aged for at least 50 years in Japanese oak casks, and was only one of 150 bottles offered for sale back in 2011. Paul Wong, a specialist at Sotheby’s Wine Asia, sees this record sale as an incredible way to kick off 2018.
“Once again we saw active bidding from across Asia, underpinned by discerning buyers here in Hong Kong. We are thrilled with the new world auction record set by the Yamazaki Aged 50 Years NV, the highest price achieved for any single bottle of Japanese whisky, illustrating a whisky market in full swing,” explained Wong.
The list of rare whiskeys sold at Sotheby’s Finest & Rarest auction in Hong Kong also includes Macallan Millennium Decanter from 1949 ($63.000) and Karuizawa Single Malt Whisky from 1965 ($55.000). If you like celebrating important moments with a glass of good-quality whiskey in hand, you might afford one of these luxurious bottles after the next Powerball draw. Buy your ticket HERE for a chance to become $184.000.000 richer!