The Macallan & Lalique Launch 64 YEAR OLD SINGLE MALT WHISKY: CIRE PERDUE – Scotch Whisky News
The Macallan and Lalique launch 64 YEAR OLD SINGLE MALT WHISKY: CIRE PERDUE
Following an eight month global fundraising journey, including a London exhibition in May, Sotheby’s will auction this one-of-a-kind piece in New York with all proceeds benefiting charity: water
Iconic luxury brands The Macallan and Lalique have again come together on the 150th anniversary of Rene Lalique’s birth, building on their successful partnership to produce a one-of-a-kind decanter, created by the ancient “cire perdue” or “lost wax” method.
The decanter will hold the oldest and rarest Macallan ever bottled by this Speyside distillery, containing a 64 years old Macallan single malt whisky, and will be auctioned by Sotheby’s on November 15, 2010 in New York. All proceeds will be donated to charity: water, a non-profit organisation bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations.
Exhibiting in London in May, along with stops in Madrid, Moscow, Seoul, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Taipei, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo, the decanter will embark on an eight month fundraising journey starting in Paris (April 6) and ending in New York (November 15).
The Cire Perdue decanter has been designed by the French crystal house Lalique, exclusively for The Macallan. Painstakingly hand crafted with the skills for which Lalique has achieved world-wide recognition and renowned since the first glass pieces were designed and made by Rene Lalique in the first half of the twentieth century, the inspiration for the design has come from the beauty of the Speyside distillery.
David Cox, Director of Fine & Rare Whiskies for The Macallan, comments: “We have established a very close working relationship with Lalique over the past six years. We share a heritage based on a commitment to craftsmanship and creativity, underpinned by a genuine passion to strive for the best in all our endeavours. This extraordinary project has raised our partnership to new heights, combining the brilliance of Lalique’s designers and craftsmen and the outstanding quality and character from the masters of spirit and wood at The Macallan to produce a single decanter which will never be replicated, filled with the oldest and rarest Macallan our distillery has ever released.
“Having decided to donate the proceeds from the auction of this beautiful decanter and its rarest of whiskies to charity, we decided to partner with charity:water. Given the predictions of future water shortages and recent natural catastrophes, we felt we wanted to contribute something really positive to help. We are hoping for some extraordinary generosity at the final auction in New York in November.”
Scott Harrison, founder of charity: water, said: “We are delighted that the proceeds from this historic auction of The Macallan in Lalique: Cire Perdue decanter will benefit charity: water. Clean water projects bring communities together and offer improved health, a better quality of life and hope for a better future. I look forward to working closely with The Macallan and Lalique to bring clean water to some of the billion people on the planet without it.”
David Cox, Director of Fine & Rare Whiskies for The Macallan, continues: “Water is fundamental to the craftsmanship behind both The Macallan and Lalique. The word “whisky” derives from the Latin, ‘aqua vitae’, or ‘water of life’, and is one of the three natural ingredients of The Macallan, together with barley and yeast. Water is also critical for Lalique at the point of detailing, sanding and polishing the crystal pieces.”
The 64 years old Macallan has been vatted together from three casks, all built from sherry seasoned Spanish oak. The first was filled in 1942, the second in 1945 and the third in January 1946, from which the age of this great Macallan has been taken.
This is the oldest Macallan ever released by the distillery in its 186 year history and prior to the release of this 64 years old Macallan in the Cire Perdue decanter, the previous oldest Macallan released by the distillery was the 60 years old, distilled in 1926 and bottled in 1986, of which only forty bottles were ever produced.
Designed at Lalique’s Design Studio in Paris, the decanter has been based upon a ship’s decanter of the 1820’s, the decade in which The Macallan was founded, in 1824. Lalique’s designer felt the shape lent itself perfectly to the beautifully crafted panorama of The Macallan estate in Speyside.
The decanter itself has been created by the lost wax process, an ancient practice originally developed to cast large pieces in bronze. After first modelling a piece in wax, it is covered with plaster and then sent to the oven to bake the clay while the wax melts. Finally, molten crystal is poured in the emptied shape. Up until 1930, Rene Lalique himself crafted glass pieces using the Cire Perdue technique, but abandoned it as arthritis increasingly affected his fingers.
Today, investing in the artistic and technical training of its artists to master again this extraordinary know-how, a new workshop has been created on the 150th anniversary of Rene Lalique’s birth in 1860, dedicated entirely to the ‘lost wax’ process, to make the first Cire Perdue pieces in eighty years, including The Macallan 64 years old in Lalique.
Silvio Denz, President and CEO of Lalique, commented: “We are enormously proud to be collaborating again with The Macallan, and in such a worthwhile cause. In today’s highly interconnected world, we are all increasingly aware of the needs of those much less fortunate than ourselves. We have been working on a series of decanters with The Macallan since 2004 and, over that time, have come to appreciate our shared values of a passionate commitment to outstanding quality, artistry and integrity. These decanters, each holding Macallan whiskies of 50, 55 and 57 years old respectively, have proved hugely admired and sought after around the world by whisky consumers and connoisseurs, as well as collectors of Lalique crystal and lovers of beautiful objets d’art. This latest decanter, a remarkable, unique work of art, holding such an old and rare Macallan, takes our partnership to a new level. I wish every success to its “tour du monde” and to the final auction by Sotheby’s in New York in November”.
The Macallan and Lalique at Auction
The Macallan is the most sought after of all single malt whiskies in the rare whiskies auction market; a 60 years old Macallan, distilled in 1926, sold for US$75,000 to a South Korean buyer in 2005. As the Cire Perdue decanter contains a 64 years old Macallan, the oldest and rarest ever released by the distillery, the extraordinary price for the 1926 is likely to be surpassed.
Lalique is also highly sought after by collectors around the world, with recent sales prices significantly exceeding pre-sale estimates; a Rene Lalique jewel of 1903, “Chardons”, sold for US$363,000 in October 2006 in New York, and, in October 2009, AN ART NOUVEAU MULTI-GEM AND ENAMEL PENDANT NECKLACE, BY RENE LALIQUEAN ART NOUVEAU MULTI-GEM AND ENAMEL PENDANT NECKLACE, BY RENE LALIQUE an Art Nouveau multi-gem and enamel pendant necklace by Rene Lalique was auctioned in New York for a world record US$554,500, against an estimate of US$400,000.
Jeremy Morrison, Director of 20th Century Design, Sotheby’s London, commented, “Both The Macallan and Lalique are premier brands and Sotheby’s has worked along side them both in various guises for a long time. The virtuoso glass art of René Lalique is amongst the most sought after and recognizable forms of 20th century design. One of the masters of the Art Deco style, Lalique’s pioneering work has been offered in Sotheby’s sales since we first held dedicated auctions of Decorative Art in the late 1960s. Sotheby’s is very proud to be involved with Lalique and The Macallan in their project to raise substantial funds for charity;water to help bring clean drinking water to developing nations”.
The Exhibition and Fundraising Tour
The decanter will travel across the world, beginning in Paris on April 6, 2010 and ending in New York City at the Sotheby’s auction on November 15, 2010. At events along the way, The Macallan and Lalique will auction rare, 10cl drams of The Macallan 64 Year Old in Lalique: Cire Perdue to benefit charity:water.
Tour du Monde:
Paris : early April
Madrid : late April
London : early May
Moscow : late May
Hong Kong : early July
Johannesburg : August
Taipei : early September
Shanghai : late September
Singapore : early October
Tokyo : late October
New York : early November
To track the fundraising progress and view images from the tour, visit: www.themacallan.com. Details will also be shared on this site on how to participate in or follow along with the final auction.
Please enjoy our brand responsibly, www.drinkaware.co.uk
NOTES:
The Macallan in Lalique : Cire Perdue – nosing and tasting notes:
Colour: Rich oak
Nose: Peat smoke, dried orange peel, muscovado sugar and cedar wood, mixed with spicy cinnamon sticks and cloves
Palate: Spicy, blood oranges, rosin, treacle, walnuts, cocoa chocolate and peat smoke
Finish: Soft, smooth and spicy, with lingering peats and dark chocolate
Alcohol Strength – 42.5% Alc/vol
About The Macallan:
Founded in 1824, The Macallan is one of the world’s most admired and awarded single malt whiskies. The reputation of The Macallan is based on a product of outstanding quality and distinctive character, founded upon a set of guiding principles, the Six Pillars. An obsession with quality has been the hallmark of The Macallan since its founding by Alexander Reid on a plateau above the river Spey in north-east Scotland. The distillery is surrounded by a 150 hectare estate, with Easter Elchies House, a Highland Manor built in 1700, at its heart. Traditionally known for maturation in Spanish oak, sherry seasoned casks, The Macallan’s range of outstanding single malts includes :Sherry Oak, matured in Spanish oak casks seasoned with sherry; Fine Oak, matured both in sherry casks of Spanish and American oak and in American oak casks seasoned with bourbon; the 1824 range, exclusive to Global Travel Retail. In addition, The Macallan is well known for its great range of vintage whiskies, dating back to 1926, and is considered the most sought after of all single malts among collectors and connoisseurs at auction.
About Lalique:
LALIQUE is more than just a name. It is René LALIQUE’s (1860-1945) talent, a genius destined to revolutionise the world of jewellery, beginning in 1885 with his famous ²Art Nouveau² jewellery sets, true works of art, which are now highly sought-after by museums and collectors.
A brilliant master glassmaker of the Art Déco movement, René LALIQUE’s creations were highly eclectic. Indeed, it was René LALIQUE, who was responsible for the great technological and commercial revolution which even today continues to influence the way bottles of perfume are created and packaged.
René LALIQUE’s imagination has proved to be the source of a vast and varied collection, including bowls, vases, statuettes and perfume bottles. They were produced at the Wingen-Sur Moder factory in Alsace, opened in 1922.
René Lalique’s creations belong to the international artistic and cultural patrimony. His works are displayed in more than 40 Museums worldwide including the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris, the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum in Lisbon, Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Lalique museum in Hakone, Japan. A Lalique museum will open in Wingen-sur-Moder, in the Alsace region of France in December 2010.
In February 2008, the Swiss company Art & Fragrance acquired Lalique SA from the Pochet Group and Silvio Denz became Lalique’s CEO.
About charity: water
charity: water is a non-profit organization bringing safe and clean drinking water to people in developing nations. Unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of all sickness and disease, and kills more people every year than all forms of violence, including war. charity: water gives 100% of the money raised to direct project costs, funding sustainable clean water solutions in areas of greatest need. Just $20 can give one person in a developing nation clean water for 20 years. In just 3.5 years, charity: water has brought clean drinking water to over one million people in 16 countries. www.charitywater.com
About Sotheby’s
Founded in 1744, Sotheby’s is a global company specialising in art auction, private sales and art-related financing activities. Founded in 1744, Sotheby’s is the oldest and largest internationally recognised firm of fine art auctioneers in the world with an international network of 98 offices in 38 countries in Europe, Asia and the Americas, including 17 worldwide auction centres. Nearly 1,000 sales a year are held around the world.
So far 2010 has seen two record breaking sales. The Impressionist and Modern Art sale in February achieved a world record for a work of art sold at auction with Giacometti’s L’homme qui marche I selling for £65m. During the February Contemporary Art sale 21 new artist records for a work sold at auction were set.
Central to Sotheby’s ability to achieve great successes is the well-established global name recognition, a reputation for knowledge and expertise, an extensive distribution network, and long-standing client relationships around the world, of which Sotheby’s is extremely proud.
