Whisky Online Auction “Our May 2018 Auction Is Now Live!” – Whisky News
Andrew Usher & Co. Edinburgh
Green Stripe early 20th century
From time to time we come across truly magical whiskies from eras that are long lost and whether they’re single malts or blends, they’re all worth getting excited about.
This bottle was purchased in 1914 by the vendors Grandfather (A Worcestershire farmer 1876 – 1960) at the beginning of the first World War with the intention of opening it to celebrate the end, which came in 1918. He never ended up drinking the whisky but instead passed it down to his son (Also a Worcestershire farmer). Again he never found the time to drink the whisky and consequently passed it down the his daughter, the current owner of the bottle. It has been sat in a cupboard in her home in Worcestershire until recently when Wayne I consigned the bottle for auction.
”I remember it sitting in the Cupboard waiting for a Suitable Event that would Warrant opening it!! I think that now, that decision maybe left to Another to choose the Occasion?”
Relics like this don’t turn up in auction often, especially with such precise provenance. Bottles like this deserve spot light in a museum or opened and shared with good friends. Either way we know this bottle will go to a good home with one of our bidders.
Ardbeg 1963
This is definitely one to look out for and one we’ve never seen in our auction before. A 1963 Ardbeg bottled in 1994 by Gordon & MacPhail for their Connoisseurs Choice Map label. We’re seeing less & less off these older 1960s distillate Ardbeg’s in auction and this is mainly down to their reputation of being absolutely spectacular whiskies.
Ardbeg 1966
Joining the 1963 Connoisseurs Choice Ardbeg is this 1966 32 year old. A single cask from Cadenhead’s Authentic Collection with the Chairman’s Stock Gold Seal; This gives you and idea they were impressed with his whisky when they bottled it – This will be equally as good and you could argue harder to find with only 120 bottles produced.
Glen Grant 10-year-old
Dark Sherry 1960s
By far my favourite bottle in this months auction. We collected this from the vendors house in Chiddingfold. We’ve never come across this one under the Peatling & Cawdron label before and we’re excited to see what interest it creates.
Peatling & Cawdron is one of many business established by Thomas Peatling, a wine and spirits agent dating back to 1826. In 1988 Peatling & Cawdron was incorporated with several other small businesses before reverting to its original name of Thos. Peatling.
Old Blended Scotch Whisky
We have even more old blends avalible in our May auction. You will find numerous examples from White Horse, Black & White, Johnnie Walker, Haig & Logans. Along side these brands you will also find a very interesting 1930s Gilbey’s Spey-Royal. This will contain a high proportion of malt distilled at the Glen Spey distillery. Like many of the blends bottled before the war, the malt contributed was much more concentrated and often peaty. These make for fascinating drinking sessions and often the only way to experience the flavour profile of a distillery from this period is through blends like this.
Macallan Madness
With the hype of the official opening of the new (£140m) Macallan distillery, it would be rude not to share a few highlights from their old stock that are avalible in our May auction.
Macallan in 1996
In nineteen ninety six Macallan produced two iconic whiskies and arguably two of the most collectable whiskies every produced. The Macallan Private Eye, bottled in 1996 for the 35th anniversary of the magazine. The whisky is a vatting of several casks including a 1961 vintage to represent the year the magazine was founded. The very catching screen printed label was designed by Ralph Steadman, a freelance illustrator for the magazine. At the time of release they decided to keep the price of the whisky in theme with the occasion and therefore sold them for £35. To put things into perspective the p&p was £6.95. The Nicol’s Nectar is another classic collectable Macallan and is somewhat rarer than the Private Eye. Produced for the occasion of Peter Nicol’s retirement from the office. The label was drawn by artist Colin Rizza who has created numerous labels for the distillery. These were never sold publicly but instead given to everyone who worked at the distillery at the time. From a close and very reliable source approximately only 120 bottles were produced.
Macallan Private Eye
Macallan Nicol’s Nectar
Experience Macallan ten, through the decades
We have a run of 10-year-olds bottled from the seventies through to the noughties. This would make a great line-up for anyone planning a whisky tasting and would given those attending a much clearer understanding of how the profiles of the same whisky can changes over many decades.
A run of Macallan through the decades 1970s – 2000s
Masters Of Photography
The Masters Of Photography by Rankin is a series of 1,000 bottles and unique portraits taken by Rankin on the Macallan estate that heavily features Easter Elchies House. Most will agree the best portraits include the nude shots of Tuuli, Rankin’s inspiration and wife. Each piece is presented with the original Polaroid that is depicted on the bottle of 30 year old with a booklet telling the story and Rankin’s signature to certify it’s an original.
”This project is very special to me for two reasons. Firstly, I’ve been able to come back to the country of my birth and portray its beauty through one of the most ambitious projects I’ve ever attempted. The second reason is that this collection marks the full stop after Polaroid, as we head into the digital age.”
Macallan Masters Of Photography – Rankin
The Masters Of Photography by Annie Leibowizs is a set of four single cask Macallan that feature the actor Kevin McKidd. The scenes include The Library, The Skyline, The Bar & The Gallery. Within the whole series there were 1000 bottles produced. The library edition has the smallest outrun with only 145 bottles, the other three in this series yielded 285 bottles making The Library edition the rarest of the four bottlings. Taking this into account means there were only 145 possible complete sets available Worldwide.
Macallan Masters Of Photography – Annie Leibowitz
As always there’s a whole load more of amazing whiskies to discover over on our website. If you’re not already registered, you can do so here.
All the best from all of us here at Whisky Online Auctions.
