Recently a ‘forgotten’ whisky cask was listed for auction on Whisky Hammer. The current bid for the 374-litre cask is currently sitting at a staggering bid of £475,000.  The cask of whisky was bought for the sum of £5000 around 30 years ago. 

macallan whisky barrels

Credit: rosn123 / Shutterstock.com

The cask owner

The cask owner is an ex-pat (expatriate) who had left the cask with The Macallan after he purchased it. The cask owner was only reminded of their ownership recently. Having held onto the cask unaware of its existence, the owner has let the cask increase in value by 9400% or just over 400% taking into account inflation.  

The Whisky Hammer auction

The auction will end on Sunday the 24th of April 2022. To access the whisky auction you will need to be a member of Whisky Hammer. However, it is easy to become a member simply by registering on their website. 

It is expected to break the previous $574,000 (£439,000) record set in 2021 for the sale of a 30-year-old re-racked Sherry hogshead from Macallan.

Why is it so expensive?

Both the size and scarcity of a cask from The Macallan cask have brought it an unprecedented amount of attention. 

Daniel Milne, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Ellon-based Whisky Hammer, said: “Casks of this age and size are extremely rare, especially from The Macallan.

“This is, without doubt, one of the most exciting casks we’ve seen come to auction in recent years and we expect it to set a new world record by the time the auction closes on Sunday.”

Read more about the History of Macallan Scotch Whisky

Tasting notes

The whisky is yellow to amber gold. On the nose, it has sweet scents of chocolate, honey, orange marmalade and hints of tobacco leaf. The palate contains the same waves of sweetness. Then a mature dryness follows it. The last notes are a mixture of spices such as nutmeg, ginger and ground coriander, followed by apricot. 

UKV International AG’s primary business centres around acquiring, supplying, and selling bonded whisky. 

We supply for consumption and or investment depending on our client’s requirements and offer a brokerage service for those who wish to sell investment-grade whiskey held in UK regulated bond.

We are here to assist you with choosing which whisky to invest in and to guarantee your cask is put away accurately and safely. Regardless of whether you will drink, gift or sell your whisky.

To find out more, contact us here.