A 30-year-old whisky cask from Scotland’s Springbank distillery will anchor two major spirits auctions at Bonhams Edinburgh this month. The rare 1995 sherry butt carries an estimate of £250,000-£300,000 (~$270,000 to $405,000).
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The cask has remained in the same Campbeltown warehouse since it was filled in May 1995. Recent testing shows it contains enough whisky to produce more than 550 bottles at 53.6% alcohol by volume.
Additional lots include Tales of The Macallan Volume 1 71 Year Old, and two bottlings (a 40-year-old and a 50-year-old) from The Macallan Red Collection.
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Bonhams Offers Rare Springbank Cask Opportunity
The online auction runs from September 22nd to October 14th. A parallel bottle auction featuring a Belgian whisky collection will take place from September 22nd to October 7th.
Patricia Byott, Head of Spirits, Scotland, said the cask represents “a once in a lifetime opportunity to own a cask from one of the most unique and celebrated single malt distilleries. In the secondary market, cask provenance is crucial, therefore full documentation and provenance details from 1995 and cask samples are available for interested bidders.”
The cask was purchased directly from Springbank Distillery by a private buyer in 1995. It has matured in Warehouse No.5 of J.&A. Mitchell in Campbeltown for three decades.
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Official tasting notes describe the whisky’s nose as offering vibrant red fruits and chocolate-coated raisins. Smoked almonds and salt-laced coastal air also feature. The palate delivers bold fruitcake spice with black pepper and sweet, smoldering peat on an oily texture.
Belgian Collection Features Macallan Rarities
The bottle auction includes more than 190 lots of spirits. A single-owner collection from Belgium forms the centerpiece of this sale.
Alongside rare Macallans, other notable bottles in the auction include a Hanyu Ace of Spades 1985 valued at £20,000 to £30,000. A Springbank 50 Year Old bottle is estimated at £6,000 to £9,000.
The auctions mark Bonhams’ largest UK spirits sale of 2025. The company recently appointed Patricia Byott as UK Head of Spirits and has reinforced its Edinburgh saleroom as a dedicated spirits platform.
Bonhams positions itself as Scotland’s only global auction house. The Edinburgh location allows the company to maintain a strong presence in the Scottish whisky market while offering international reach to buyers and sellers.
Starting bids for the Springbank cask will begin at £160,000. The cask’s provenance and documentation make it particularly attractive to collectors and investors in the secondary whisky market.
