The 149th Auction

Salutations and season's greetings (well, almost) to our now live and full to the brim 149th auction!  With more than eight and a half thousand bottles in this month this one will take a while to scroll through.  With that in mind we've picked out a few interesting bottles to get you started on your monthly whisky odyssey.

Another superb release from the now-silent giant of Japanese distilling, this is the Karuizawa Ruby Geisha Cask #7582.  The Geisha releases from Number One Drinks come in pairs and have proven to be extremely popular on the secondary market.  The older of the Ruby Geisha pair  ( which is the penultimate release in the Geisha series) this 38-year-old whisky was matured in a sherry butt and shows off the classic Karuizawa character of sweet and savoury notes, run through with dark oak and spice. Due to the limited number of bottles available, this expression was sold via ballot so is as rare as they come.

Next up is a supremely well-aged bourbon from the famed Buffalo Trace distillery in Kentucky, the Double Eagle Very Rare 20 Year Old 75cl.  Twice the age of the standard Eagle Rare this special edition contains two crystal eagles to represent the two decades of maturation. One sits inside the bottle at the base and one comes as a stopper to be used after opening. The decanter is hand blown and there is a small switch on the base of the box that turns on white lights to illuminate the bottle and stopper.  All this AND some incredibly delicious bourbon to boot.

Released by the Glasgow Whisky Company in 2022 this is the Bruichladdich 1990 32 Year Old Single Cask #2691 The Munros.  The ownership of Bruichladdich distillery on Islay has changed hands multiple times in its history and this whisky is an older iteration, being produced in 1990 4 years before it was mothballed by Whyte & MacKay.  Aged for over three decades in a single sherry butt this an excellent example of an older Bruichladdich.  As well as the tremendous dram it contains this independent release has a quirky label and imposing box (with a hygrometer and humidifier included) designed by Takeru Amano.

An unusual one this one, the Yamazaki 1986 for the 20th Anniversary of Korinbo Yamato 60cl.  This a rare 1986 vintage from one of Japan's most celebrated and successful distilleries, Yamazaki.  It's relatively rare to get Yamazaki's with stated vintages and equally unusual to get one at cask strength with this beauty coming in at a whopping 50% ABV.  It comes in a rather beautiful and understated ceramic decanter with traditional calligraphy and was produced to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Korinbo Yamato department store in Kanazawa.

The undisputed jewel in the crown of the exceptional cask series, this is the Macallan 1950 Exceptional Cask #13 2018 Release.  Aged for a frankly ridiculous 67 years this is a vintage Macallan almost without peer.  For over 6 decades this fabulous liquid has slowly aged in a single 1st fill sherry butt and has taken on the deep dark tones synonymous with the best releases from the famed Speyside heavyweight.  A truly excellent expression of unparalleled quality this is one for the serious collectors amongst us.

For our customers outside the UK this auction this might be your last chance to get a special bottle in time for Christmas, and as always we charge no sellers commission and only 10% buyer’s premium so now is the time to procure that perfect festive tipple.

We have a wide range of drams with something to suit everyone, so now is the time to wade in and start picking out your own personal favourites for your watchlist.  Best of luck to everyone in the auction, and as always………..don’t lose your bottle.