62-Year-Old The Dalmore Sets Record at Sotheby’s Auction
Think your whisky collection has some rare gems in it? You haven’t seen anything quite like this. Two bottles of incredibly rare 62-year-old The Dalmore sold at auction yesterday for a record-breaking price of £266,200 each. (That’s roughly $450,000 CAD if you’re keeping track at home.) That’s a huge increase from their estimated sale price of between £75,000 and £100,000, and a record for The Dalmore.
A total of 12 of these rare bottles were created by Dalmore Master Blender Richard Paterson and released in 2002. Each bottle from this exclusive batch was given a unique name reflecting a particular region of the Scottish Highlands. These bottles are No. 2, the Mackenzie, and No. 5, The Cromarty. One bottle from the collection has been consumed, which makes these two even more rare. The whisky comes from reserves dating from 868, 1876, 1926, and 1939, which have been hand-selected and aged in olorosso sherry casks.
“I’ve been fortunate to care for the wealth of rare & aged whiskies at our highland distillery since 1970, and this exceptional expression is very special to me indeed,” Paterson said. “When I took control of these precious casks some 50 years ago, I was aware of their true value, not so much in monetary terms but as a living part of the distillery’s heritage that marks our lifelong commitment to creating whisky like no other. Only 12 bottles of The Dalmore Aged 62 Years were created, each individually named, hand signed and numbered, but all containing whiskies dating from 1868, 1878, 1928 and 1939. Whether these bottle end up enjoyed or collected, I hope that the lucky buyers savour this special piece of history.”
The rare whiskies auction from Sotheby’s took place online earlier this week due to social distancing.
These bottles are just the beginning of a banner year for The Dalmore. Earlier this month, 150 bottles of 1973 Cask #8 were auctioned off in Hong Kong. The whisky is still maturing in-cask, and the winning bidder will have the opportunity to work with Master Blender Richard Paterson to finish the process in Scotland.
Plus, In celebration of the distillery’s 180th anniversary, they’re also releasing a highly limited-edition 60-year-old bottle, filled with spirit first distilled June 7, 1951. We’ll have more on this as the anniversary date nears.
