A rare Scotch whisky has sold for a staggering £16 million. The sale smashed the previous record, set only this year, by £1m.
The cask of single malt, from 1975, was distilled at the Ardbeg distillery on Islay and was sold to a private buyer in Asia. The barrel – called only Cask number 3 – sold for more than double what owners Glenmorangie Co, a subsidiary of LVMH luxury group, paid for the Ardbeg distillery back in 1997. It is the oldest cask ever released by the firm.
Thomas Moradpour, president and chief executive of the Glenmorangie Co, said the sale was a “source of pride” for the Ardbeg community on Islay, which produces “one of the most sought-after whiskies in the world”. The Ardbeg distillery began bottling in 1815, but fell on hard times from the 80s, nearly being mothballed, until being bought over by Glenmorangie Co.
Speaking to the FT, Charles MacLean, Scotland’s leading whisky writer and expert, called the cask “a remarkable piece of liquid history”. He said: The factors which make a particular whisky investable are threefold: rarity, flavour and variety. And collectors do love Scotch, because of the provenance and history.”
Scotch whisky is worth £5.5 billion to the Scottish economy per annum and accounts for 75 per cent of food and drink exports. Earlier this year, a Scottish drinks maker announced it would sell a rare batch of whisky dating back to World War Two for a staggering £92,000 per bottle.
Macallan has announced the release of The Reach which was laid to rest in 1940, just before the distillery was forced to close its doors for the first time in history due to the war.
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