Old Fitzgerald will offer three archival Bourbons from the personal collection of Heaven Hill executive chairman Max Shapira in Sotheby’s online Whisky & Whiskey auction, which runs from June 11-26, 2026. The lots span distillation and bottling dates from 1917 to 2015, with proceeds earmarked for Bernheim Forest and Arboretum in Kentucky.
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READ THE STORYHeaven Hill said the Old Fitzgerald Archival Collection from Max Shapira “represent many decades of Bourbon craftsmanship,” and traces the brand “from its pre-Prohibition roots to its modern revival under Heaven Hill’s stewardship.”
The three bottles will be sold as part of Sotheby’s online sale, with bidding open June 11 through 12 p.m. ET on June 26, via Sotheby’s website.
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The oldest bottle is a 1934 Old Fitzgerald 18-Year-Old Bottled-in-Bond Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, distilled and barreled in 1917 and bottled in 1934 at 100 proof. The company described it as “an impossibly rare artifact preserved from an era long past,” and noted it was distilled by A. PH. Stitzel, who later became part of Stitzel-Weller.
Also included is a 1965 Very Xtra Old Fitzgerald 10-Year-Old Bottled-in-Bond Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, distilled and barreled in 1955 and bottled in 1965. Heaven Hill said the whiskey was bottled expressly for “Colorado Electric Co.” and presented in a red box set with two tasting glasses, adding that it “captures the zenith of the Van Winkle era at Stitzel-Weller.”
The third lot is a 2015 John E. Fitzgerald Very Special Reserve 20-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, distilled and barreled in 1992 and bottled in 2015 at 90 proof. Heaven Hill said it was made after the company acquired Old Fitzgerald with its purchase of the Bernheim Distillery in 1999, including “12 barrels of Stitzel-Weller Bourbon,” and that it is “one of just 3,000 bottles made and sold.”
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Max Shapira, executive chairman of Heaven Hill, said: “Each of these bottles is a snapshot of Old Fitzgerald through the ages. They tell the story of a brand that has survived and thrived through every chapter of American whiskey history, of which Heaven Hill is a proud part.”
Shapira added: “I’m honored to now share them in a way that will support a meaningful charitable cause.”
Heaven Hill said proceeds will benefit Bernheim Forest and Arboretum, a 16,000-acre protected forest founded in 1929 by Bourbon maker Isaac Wolfe Bernheim, located around 30 minutes south of Louisville.
More information about the brand can be found at https://www.oldfitzgeraldbourbon.com/our-story and https://www.heavenhilldistillery.com/.
