NEW WEALTH REPORT ON LUXURY INVESTMENT INDEX REVEALS WHISKY AS MOST COVETED COLLECTABLE
Results of The Wealth Report’s new unique luxury investment index reveals whisky was one of the most coveted objects of desire in 2019.
The report out this month, produced by Knight Frank, says Rare Whisky has grown in value the most over the last 10 years at +564% and increased by +5% in the past 12 months; and states casks remained in huge demand. By comparison cars have seen an increase of 194%, art by 141% and wine by 120%.
Simon Aron, Owner of Cask Trade, that offers a transparent, trustworthy and honest marketplace for the trading of whisky by the cask, says: “Whisky will always be drunk in times of celebration and in times of crisis. Cask whisky is the best long term alternative investment with no free fall.”
Objects of desire
In the last 10 years, whisky has far outstripped the more established alternative assets such as art, cars, wines, watches and jewellery and is now one of the most coveted objects of desire. According to the report, whisky was one of 2019’s top performing luxury investments.
Be investment savvy
Whilst Cask Trade recognise the famous whisky names of Macallan, Bowmore and Dalmore have done well in bottle at auction, they say these aged whisky casks are very rare, and getting rarer, are very expensive and becoming a weaker in investment value as they get older and the alcohol levels reduce.
Cask Trade believe the real investment opportunity is with distilleries who have been quietly producing fantastic whisky for years that has either been independently bottled or was used for global blends of whisky. Examples of those looking to carve out their place in the market and fulfil a much larger demand from around the world include: Miltonduff, Caol Ila, Craigllachie, Glenallachie, Glenrothes, Glen Moray, Fettercairn and Glen Garioch.
Aron adds: “Casks from these distilleries have all got a fantastic price point and make very good whisky but don’t have the capacity, global reach the marketing power yet. But the demand is there and people want to know more.”
Auctions
As the new Wealth Report explains, as luxury collectables continue their rise up the investment agenda, a growing number of fledgling UHNWI collectors are making their first forays into the world of auction sales.
In January, Cask Trade hosted the world’s first live, online whisky auction dedicated to casks.
More than 300 whisky lover from around the world registered on auctionyourcask.com and over 100 samples were sent to prospective buyers around the world including America, Asia, Australia and Europe. Among the casks sold during the auction was a 1995 Springbank sherry hogshead which was bought for £47,200 and the Glen Ord barrel April 2015 went for £3,186. The second aution will take place on 22nd April 2020.
The Wealth Report says: “Money flows fastest in those areas with the highest “supply” and turnover: contemporary art, jewellery, cars, wine, whisky and watches. These specialist auction markets are concentrated in London, New York and Hong Kong, creating a dynamic market with associated price fluctuations that percolate at different levels depending on where they are offered. Such collections should be valued regularly for insurance and tax planning purposes.”
World record
A new world record for a bottle of whisky was set in October, when Sotheby’s sold this bottle of The Macallan Fine & Rare 60-Year-Old 1926 for £1.5 million in London.
NOTES
KNIGHT FRANK WEALTH REPORT 2020
Full details of The Wealth Report 2020 can be found here: https://www.knightfrank.com/wealthreport
ABOUT CASK TRADE
Founded in 2018 by Simon Aron in partnership with several of the world’s foremost whisky masters, including Keeper of the Quaich Sir Colin Hampden-White, Cask Trade buys and sells exceptional cask whiskies. The company is unique because it only sells casks it owns outright, and it only sells whole casks: it is not a whisky cask broker and it does not offer fractional sales.
A passionate whisky collector for more than 20 years, Simon Aron suffered many false promises from whisky investment companies and this drove his ambition to create a real and trustworthy market place for whisky collectors and investors, and bottlers:
The company’s casks are held in the best HMRC bonded warehouses, regularly visited and approved by Cask Trade whisky masters. All stock holdings have a complete paper trail…
- Delivery orders from supplier to Cask Trade
- Invoices for transfer of ownership, storage insurance, re-gauging, sampling or movement
- HMRC-issued WOWGR (warehouse keepers, warehouse premises, owner of goods and registered consigners): a fully regulated and closely monitored license requiring due diligence on suppliers as well as customers.
Included in its extensive list of customer services, Cask Trade’s rigorous processes means that the company will guarantee to buy back from its clients the casks they buy from and have had managed by Cask Trade. It also offers…
- Regular sampling and re-gauging of casks
- Re-racking (sherry wine, port etc)
- Estimates of bottles and strength in cask (effects of angels’ share 0ver years of maturations)
- Financial modelling for each cask based on age and rarity with estimated % returns
- Costings for bottling, labelling and shipping (duty & tax)
- Regularly updated whisky investment guide which includes statistics from two authoritative third parties (independent of Cask Trade)
- Cask Trade will arrange for clients to receive samples of their whiskies and visit their barrels(s), upon request – wherever possible.
Cask Trade has started the first live auction website dedicated to exceptional whisky casks: www.auctionyourcask.com
Hosted four times a year and helping private owners/investors sell their cask to independent bottlers and other investors all around the world. All casks will be re-gauged ready for auction and a full 70cl sample will be drawn so that bidders have the opportunity to try the whisky before they buy. – Wherever possible. We validate all the sellers and confirm proof of ownership and the history of the cask enabling bidders to safely buy. With complete transparency and no sellers’ fee we can offer you the actual hammer price. Our low buyers’ fee of 15% + VAT will offer the opportunity to buyers, trade or private, to buy rare casks. The next auction will take place on 22nd April 2020.
https://www.casktrade.com
https://www.auctionyourcask.com
