Upcoming Sotheby’s Auction Features Oldest Macallan And Karuizawa Ever Bottled

Auction house Sotheby’s is planning for a rare wines and spirits auction in London on March 18. Among the spirits being put under the gavel are a range of extremely high end Scotch and Japanese whiskies it is believed will fetch top dollar amongst whiskey collectors. These include very old The Macallan and Karuizawa bottlings.

“We are delighted to present such a strong selection of bottles consigned directly from producers as well as from private collections to begin our 2020 sales in London,” said Jonny Fowle, Sotheby’s Spirits Specialist, in a prepared statement. “Among the most exciting bottles in this sale are the Gordon & MacPhail Private Decanters, all of which are numbered 1 of their respective outturn. This is the first time that any number 1 decanter from G&M has been offered for sale rather than kept within the Urquhart Family archives.

“Offering these alongside such iconic bottles as Karuizawa 52 Year old from Cask #5627 and so many Macallan in Lalique decanters showcases the strength of current demand for the very best in the world of whisky.”

Highlights of some of the offered bottlings are as follows, according to Sotheby’s.

• The highly sought after Karuizawa 52 Year Old Cask #5627 Zodiac Rat 1960, the most coveted bottle from this closed Japanese distillery that is fortuitously offered this year, the Year of the Rat. In 2018, a bottle of this Japanese single malt broke the record for the most expensive bottle of Japanese whisky ever sold at auction, superseded several months later by a rare bottle of Yamazaki 50 Year Old 1^st Edition.
  • 4 lots with a combined value in excess of £235,500
    • Karuizawa 52 Year Old Zodiac Rat Cask #5627 1960, 51.8% est. £160,000-220,000
      adorned with unique Zodiac Rat netsuke (carved wooden figure)
    • Karuizawa 51 Year Old Cask #1917 1964, 51.6% est. £50,000-90,000
• An impeccable array of old Gordon & MacPhail releases from previous decades with vintages stretching back to the 1930s, which culminate in a collection of four highly aged and very limited Crystal Decanters from the G&M Private Collection. These decanters have been consigned to Sotheby’s directly from the Urquhart family and each is number 1 out its respective outturn. This is the first time that any decanter numbered “#1” has been released for sale from Gordon & MacPhail rather than being kept in the Urquhart family’s own collection.
  • 27 lots with a combined value in excess of £90,000
    • Gordon & MacPhail Private Collection Decanters numbered 1, including:
      Linkwood Gordon & MacPhail 60 Year Old 1956, Longmorn Gordon & MacPhail 57 Year Old 1961, Longmorn Gordon & MacPhail 57 Year Old 1961, and Glenlivet Gordon & MacPhail 70 Year Old 1943 with an Exclusive Experience in Scotland est. £70,000-100,000
• A truly impeccable lineup of aged Macallan Whiskies ranges from an independently bottled 48 Year Old throughan unbroken vertical of The Macallan in Lalique Six Pillars Collection – six crystal decanters ranging from 50 to 65 years old, rarely seen in an unbroken vertical – to the inimitable 72 Year Old Genesis Decanter, the oldest whisky to be released from this exemplary distillery.
  • 21 lots with a combined value in excess of £522,000
    • The Macallan in Lalique Six Pillars Collection est. £320,000-480,000
    • The Macallan Lalique Genesis Decanter 72 Year Old, 42% est. £70,000-100,000
    • The Macallan Duncan Taylor The Rarest of Rare Collection 48 Year Old 1969, 40% est. £24,000-32,000
    • The Macallan 50 Year Old Anniversary Malt 1928, 38.6% est. £50,000-70,000
• Glenfarclas Family Cask Trunk est. £55,000-75,000
  • A vertical of 50 vintage bottles ranging from 1954 to 2003. The first time this trunk has been offered at auction.