Iron Gate Spirits Auction (Canada)

Upcoming: Apr 28, 2025 to May 05, 2025

Spring has arrived and Iron Gates’ third Spirits Auction of 2025 is in full bloom. Featuring the never auctioned in Canada, The Macallan Distil Your World: NEW YORK Edition. A collaboration owners of El Celler de Can Roca. Only 1000 bottles worldwide. Sharing the sunlight is a hand-filled, single cask Balvenie 30-Year-Old, a Port Ellen 25-Year-Old, and Springbank 30-Year-Old. Independent bottler Gordon & MacPhail showcases its finest spirits with a 46-Year-Old Mortlach and 25-Year-Old Rosebank.

Operated under license by Alberta Gaming Liquor and Cannabis and Alberta Auction license #352487.

April Spirits Spotlight: The Macallan Distil Your World: New York Edition

Whisky connoisseurs and collectors, prepare for an unprecedented opportunity in Canada! This is your chance to bid on the never-before-auctioned Macallan Distil Your World: New York edition—one of the most coveted and limited releases from The Macallan.

The Macallan’s Whisky Maker Polly Logan and the Roca brothers, owners of El Celler de Can Roca, twice named Best Restaurant in the World, have selected the finest combination of American and European oak casks to create this unique single malt whisky.

Distil You World New York is bottled at 49.5% and delivers notes that reflect the artistic character and ingredients which define New York. Celebrating the combined expertise of these two masters of their craft.

Discover the inspiration behind The Macallan Distil Your World New York Edition.  Fall in love with artistry, creativity and  symbiosis of two global icons.

YouTube:  The Macallan – Distil Your World New York

APRIL 2025 AUCTION HALFWAY THROUGH!

We thought it would be a great time to take a closer look at a few little belters like this; Distilled by the now closed Speyside distillery Dallas Dhu in 1975 then bottled in 2007 by Elgin independent bottling supremos Gordon & MacPhail.

Following the success of the Rare Malts bottlings by Diageo, annual releases of stock from their closed distilleries were then made available in 2002. These rare releases proved to be incredibly popular given the age and rarity of the whisky from these closed distilleries, none more so than from the Iconic Highland distillery Brora. This particular expression was released in 2017, the last of these incredible bottlings to be released. This is bottle number 290 of only 3,000 bottles.

Or how about this pair of Highland Park expressions, both beautifully presented in solid Oak housing, in contrast to the striking but unusual coloured bottles, showcasing the two natural elements they’re named after, ‘Fire’ and ‘Ice’.

Distilled in 1974 and then aged for 28 years before being bottled at natural Cask strength in 2002, this rare bottling of Glen Moray was signed by distillery manager Ed Dodson. Bottle number 292 of only 676 bottles produced!

These are only a few of the old, limited and collectable bottles featured in our April auction, to view more wee gems visit clickwhiskyauctions.com. Register to bid. Remember, you’ve got to be in it to win it! Auction ends Sunday 20^th April from 8pm BST.

The Grand Whisky Auction ENDS TOMORROW TONIGHT!

The auction closes on Tuesday, 15th April from 9:00pm (BST)

________________________________

Are you interested in selling whisky in our next auction?

📞 +44 (0)1463 210 427

📧 sales@tgwa.com

NEW AUCTION RECORD FOR AMERICAN WHISKEY AT SOTHEBY’S

Bottle of Old Rip Van Winkle ‘Van Winkle Selection’ Sells for $125,000

Historic Result for the Only Bottle in Existence

NEW YORK, – A one-of-a-kind bottle of Old Rip Van Winkle ‘Van Winkle Selection’ Kentucky Bourbon Festival Master Distiller’s Auction 2007 shattered records at Sotheby’s today, achieving $125,000 and becoming the most valuable single bottle of post-prohibition American whiskey ever sold at auction.* Offered with an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000, this ultra-rare bottle captivated collectors with its unique provenance, likely containing whiskey from the legendary Stitzel-Weller distillery, and its historical significance as one of the highest-proof Van Winkle releases ever produced. 

The bottle, which has not been seen in nearly 20 years, was originally created for the 2007 Kentucky Bourbon Festival and hand-bottled at full strength under the supervision of Julian Van Winkle. Its label, designed by Preston Van Winkle, and the glass, signed by Julian P. Van Winkle III and dated 9-15-07, add to its exceptional rarity and desirability. 

Zev Glesta, Sotheby’s Whiskey Specialist, commented: “This sale marks a defining moment in the history of American whiskey, underscoring the legendary status of Van Winkle bottlings and the continued strength of the fine and rare whiskey market. Bringing such a remarkable piece of American whiskey history to auction is a testament to the growing appreciation for the craft and heritage of American distilling.” 

The sale of this bottle further cements Sotheby’s leadership in the spirits market, building on past successes with rare American whiskey, historic Scotch collections, and one-of-a-kind whiskey auctions. With today’s result, Sotheby’s once again demonstrates the increasing global demand for American whiskey and the unparalleled prestige of the Van Winkle name in the world of fine spirits.

A selection of high-res images is available for download here. 

The Whisky & Whiskey online auction continues with significant offerings from The Macallan, Van Winkle and more. See the full catalogue here.

*The previous record was $107,715 for Van Winkle 18-year-old Bourbon for Binny’s, a price that includes buyer’s premium and tax.

About Sotheby’s

Established in 1744, Sotheby’s is the world’s premier destination for art and luxury. Sotheby’s promotes access to and ownership of exceptional art and luxury objects through auctions and buy-now channels including private sales, e-commerce and retail. Our trusted global marketplace is supported by an industry-leading technology platform and a network of specialists spanning 40 countries and 70 categories which include Contemporary Art, Modern and Impressionist Art, Old Masters, Chinese Works of Art, Jewelry, Watches, Wine and Spirits, and Design, as well as collectible cars and real estate. Sotheby’s believes in the transformative power of art and culture and is committed to making our industries more inclusive, sustainable and collaborative.

 *Estimates do not include buyer’s premium. Prices achieved include the hammer price plus buyer’s premium and are net of any fees paid to the purchaser where the purchaser provided an irrevocable bid.

Stream live auctions and place bids in real time, discover the value of a work of art, browse sale catalogues, view original content and more at sothebys.com, and by downloading Sotheby’s apps for iOS and Android.

Our collection schedule for April 2025 has now been finalised. There are a few changes this month, our Aberdeen collection will now start at 10am. Our South West London and East London collections will now start at 9.30am.

For April only we will be offering our North West London (Brent Cross) customers appointments on Monday 21st April 2025 at 8am. Please click HERE to see the list of dates, locations and to register your interest in the collection service.  We can collect lots for up to three auctions.

The deadline for collection requests is 12noon on Monday 14th April 2025.

Home collections are available for those customers sending 10+ bottles or bottles to the value of £1000. Lots can be split over the next three auctions.   Unfortunately this service is not available in London or to those customer who live within 10 miles of a collection point. Although we do have four collection points in London.

Collections are limited and offered on a first come first served basis. It is essential that a submission sheet is completed, you can find the link to do so under the selling section on your ‘My SWA’ page.

It would be appreciated if bottles could be packed for uplift with your name clearly marked on the front of the box. A winner in our auction? We are now offering a delivery service to customers who are dropping bottles off for a future auction. This service is charged at £12 (inc. VAT), optional loss and breakage cover is available.

The Grand Whisky Auction is now LIVE!

The auction closes on Tuesday, 15th April from 9:00pm (BST)

________________________________

Are you interested in selling whisky in our next auction?

📞 +44 (0)1463 210 427

📧 sales@tgwa.com

As our 166th auction approaches the midway point now is the time to start getting your bids in for any of the bottles which have caught your eye this month.  We have a plethora of superb bottlings this month as well as some really interesting full casks so without further ado here are a few of the great offerings we have in the auction this month.

Brora Triptych – 1972 Elusive Legacy, 1977 Age of Peat and 1982 Timeless Original 3 x 50cl

Our first stop is in the Highlands with this fabulous collections of whiskies, this is the Brora Triptych – 1972 Elusive Legacy, 1977 Age of Peat and 1982 Timeless Original 3 x 50cl.  A distillery with a somewhat troubled past Brora has nonetheless gained a fearsome reputation for quality over the years.  This extra special set of bottlings from Brora was produced to celebrate the reopening of the distillery in 2021. With only 300 sets released, this is a genuine piece of history and includes a 38 year old, a 43 year old and a 48 year old!

Full Cask Offerings

If owning your very own cask of maturing whisky has ever been a dream of yours then we have fantastic opportunities to do just that in our auction this month.  With 5 casks available there is plenty to choose from with all casks currently in storage at Whisky Broker in Dumfries and Galloway.

BenRiach 2013 Butt #101 – 60.3%
Staoisha (Bunnahabhain) 2019 First Fill Oloroso Hogshead – 64%
Whitlaw 2016 Ex-Bourbon Barrel #655 – 59.6%
Whitlaw 2016 Ex-Bourbon Barrel #654 – 60.1%
Whitlaw 2016 Ex-Bourbon Barrel #653 – 58.8%

Chichibu Cyborg Trilogy Series 3 x 70cl

Japanese whisky has been going from strength to strength for a number of years now and with their focus on traditional methods and high quality production Chichibu have been at the forefront of the Japanese whisky revolution.  This is the Chichibu Cyborg Trilogy Series 3 x 70cl and is comprised of 3 single cask bottlings, two of which were aged in ex-Bourbon barrels and one aged in an Imperial IPA cask.  Following on from the Sci-Fi theme of the popular Intergalactic series the cyborg series features Ghost in the Shell style augmented humans on their rather cool labels.

Longrow 1974 25 Year Old

From Japanese Sci-Fi ladies to the picturesque Mull of Kintyre, this understated beauty is the Longrow 1974 25 Year Old.  The first distillation of Longrow was carried out in 1973 as an experiment, when the Chairman of Springbank Distillery set out to prove that it was possible to produce an Islay style single malt whisky on the mainland, and boy are we glad he did.  With its pungent punch and muscular finish Longrow has long been a favourite dram of us whisky nerds here at SWA, and this one is as good as they come!   Distilled just after production began in earnest and aged for a whopping 25 years this a very special dram indeed.As always, we have a wide range of drams with something to suit everyone, so now is the time to get moving 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.

Thinking of selling your bottles? 

We still offer 0% commission to all sellers making Scotch Whisky Auctions the best place to sell bottles.

For all relevant information just click here.

APRIL 2025 AUCTION NOW LIVE!

The clocks have sprung forward bringing us all an hour closer to our April auction! We have a wide variety of whiskies on offer this month, with a few ones that we think may require closer inspection, including this stunning 30 Year Old Glenglassaugh.

Distilled in 1972 by the now closed Speyside distillery Caperdonich, then bottled in 2011, this Connoisseur’s Choice bottling is a cracking example of the range that George Urquhart pioneered in the late 1960’s by selecting casks from from distilleries all over Scotland.

Officially released in the beginning of October 2023, the inaugural and historic first expression from the Isle of Harris ‘The Hearach’ derives It’s name from the Gaelic word Na Heardh, translating to ‘a person from Harris’. The 1,916 bottles produced for this momentous bottling, signifies the total number of people living on the Island. This is bottle number 1,356 of only 1,916 bottles produced.

Or how about this extraordinarily rare Macallan miniature which has rarely appeared at auction. No definitive age or abv is stated but the whisky itself was distilled in 1985 then bottled in 1995 for the 3i Group, which is a British multinational private equity and venture capital company based in London, England. 3i is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.

These are only a few of the old, limited and collectable bottles featured in our April 2025 Auction, to view more wee gems visit clickwhiskyauctions.com. Register to bid. Remember, you’ve got to be in it to win it! Auction ends Sunday 20^th April from 8pm BST.

Welcome one and all to our now live 166th auction!  We have some really interesting drams this month from just about every whisky producing nation on earth, not to mention a wide selection of other spirits and tipples to whet your appetite.  We also have some good news for our US customers this month as we can now ship to an additional 17 states, for a full list of available states check here.  So, without further ado, here are a few of the highlights from this month’s offerings.

Shirakawa 1958

This is the earliest-known single vintage Japanese whisky ever bottled, and as such is a tremendous rarity, this is the Shirakawa 1958.  Shirakawa Distillery was built in Fukushima in 1939 and was demolished in 2003. It became one of the first distilleries in Japan to produce malt whisky in 1951 and it continued to do so until 1969. In 2019, single malt whisky from the distillery was discovered after being sat in one of its parent company’s warehouses for decades, and this fine bottling is the result.  One of only 1500 bottles released this is a must-have for any collectors of Japanese whisky.

Old Fitzgerald Prime 1971 Rip Van Winkle Porcelain Decanter 4/5 Quart

Next up we have a bottle which is the very definition of quirky, this fantastic little oddball is the Old Fitzgerald Prime 1971 Rip Van Winkle Porcelain Decanter.  As any bourbon aficionado will attest, Old Fitzgerald is a supremely well-balanced bourbon and as such is held in high regard for the exceptional craftsmanship evident in its production.  And what’s better than a vintage Old Fitz?  An Old Fitz in a porcelain representation of Old Rip Van Winkle himself that’s what, calmly snoozing off the effects of some mightily strong liquor.

Springbank 1969 40 Year Old Signatory

It wouldn’t be a highlight reel without something delicious and well-aged from Scotland too, so here is a mighty fine Springbank 1969 40 Year Old Signatory.  Distilled in the same year Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, this unctuous dram has spent 4 decades ageing to perfection in a refill sherry butt and is one of only 356 bottles produced.  Springbank’s of this age and vintage are notoriously hard to find so this bottling is as rare as it is enticing.

Karuizawa 35 Year Old Emerald Geisha Cask #8518

We opened with a Japanese rarity from a silent distillery so let’s close with one too, this beauty is the Karuizawa 35 Year Old Emerald Geisha Cask #8518.  Bottled by Elixir Distillers exclusively for The Whisky Exchange, this is one of two bottlings, it’s counterpart being a single cask 33 year old Sherry aged single malt, suitably crowned the Golden Cask which you can also find here in this month’s auction.  The Geisha series of Karuizawas combine rare well-aged Japanese whisky with classy design and have been commanding a premium on the secondary market since their first appearance on the scene.

As always, we have a tremendous lineup of top-shelf drams on offer, but we also have a wide range available from more modest drinkers to these more salubrious tipples, so now is the time to delve into this month’s offerings and start building that watchlist.  Best of luck to everyone in the auction, and as always………..don’t lose your bottle.

EXCEPTIONAL 100% NO RESERVE SINGLE-OWNER WHISKY SALES AT BONHAMS

Independent Spirits: A Single Owner Collection – No Reserve

4 – 23 April | Paris

Left: Akashi 2016 Single Tawny Port Cask 4 Year Old #61966 50cl Ghost Series #15. Estimate: €200-300. Right: Shizuoka 3 Year Old Ghost series #20, 2019 (1x 70cl). Estimate: €400-600

The 311-lot sale includes 700 bottles, all offered with no reserve, assembled by a passionate French collector over fifteen years. Most of the collection was assembled at La Maison du Whisky, at auction, and abroad during his travels in Europe and Asia.

A collectable Springbank 26 Year Old 1996 Sponge Special Edition whisky stars the curation. Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland’s most revered distilleries. Bottled in 2023, this much sought-after bottle is one of 365 ever produced. It is offered with an estimate of €900-1,200. 

Many independent bottlings of Scotch whisky and whiskies produced by young Japanese distilleries such as Chichibu, Mars, Kanosuke and Shizuoka will be offered at auction. The collection also includes Irish whiskies and whiskies from around the world (Taiwan, India, Wales, England, Australia).

The collection also offers a strong selection by independent bottlers from the UK (particularly Decadent Drinks) as well as France, Belgium and Germany.

Other highlights in the sale include:

• Glenrothes 44 Year Old Gordon & MacPhail Private Collection, 1974 (1x 70cl). Estimate: €1,500-2,000

• Chichibu Paris Edition 2022 (2). Estimate: €600-800

• Kanosuke Single Malt 2021 First Edition and Kanosuke Single Malt 2021 Second Edition. Estimate: €400-600

Catalogue

About The Bonhams Network

Bonhams is a global network of auction houses, with the largest number of international salerooms, offering the widest range of collecting categories and selling at all price points. Bonhams is recognised for its bespoke service, and a dedication to local market relationships, enhanced by a global platform. With 14 salerooms, Bonhams presents over 1,000 sales annually, across more than 60 specialist categories, including fine art, collectables, luxury, wine & spirits, and collector cars.

Founded in 1793, Bonhams has representatives in more than 30 countries and operates flagship salerooms in London, New York, Paris, Los Angeles, and Hong Kong. In 2022, Bonhams added four international auction houses to its network: Bukowskis, Stockholm; Bruun Rasmussen, Copenhagen; Cornette de Saint Cyr, Paris and Brussels; and Skinner, Massachusetts. The success of Bonhams’ global strategy is a result of recognising the shift in growing intercontinental buying and increased digital engagement.

More information and highlights can be found HERE