The World's Largest Bottle of Scotch Is Going Up for Auction
Courtesy of Fah Mai Holdings Inc.
Over the past half-decade, whiskey records have been broken left and right: world's most expensive cask, world's oldest single malt, world's most valuable collection, etc. And next month, one of the most coveted titles might be toppled: the most expensive bottle of whiskey ever sold. However, scoring this distinction requires a big leap: Whereas the current most expensive bottle is a standard 700-milliliters, the bottle that will be trying to break the record already holds a record of its own as the world's largest bottle of whiskey!
Back in September, a trio of whiskey-related companies — investment firm Fah Mai Holdings Group, alternative assets firm Rosewin Holdings, and independent bottler Duncan Taylor Scotch Whisky — filled a 5-foot, 11-inch, 311-liter bottle with prized 32-year-old Scotch from The Macallan. Guinness World Records was on site to certify the event and happily named the end result as the "Largest Bottle of Scotch," besting the previous record by 83 liters.
At the time, the trio speculated that the results could also potentially best the record for most valuable bottle — which stands at £1,452,000 (or currently about $1,825,000 thanks to a weakened exchange rate) — based on a bit of math. They estimated that independent bottlings of 30-year-old Macallan usually sell for around £3,000, and their bottle contains over 444 bottle's worth of Scotch, putting them above at the £1.3 million mark. Tack in the novelty of the bottle being the largest ever, and a record is certainly in their sights.
Next month, we'll find out the answer. The auction house Lyon & Turnbull has announced that the bottle — known as The Intrepid — will go up for auction on May 25, an event billed as offering "pioneering collectors a once in a lifetime opportunity to take their place in the whisky hall of fame."
"I'm sure there will be significant global interest in the auction of The Intrepid," Colin Fraser, who will lead the auction for Lyon & Turnbull, stated in the announcement. "Bidders will have the chance to buy a piece of Scotch whisky history. They will become the owners of an exclusive 32-year-old single-malt Scotch from what is widely regarded as one of the world's best distilleries, The Macallan."
In regard to the record breaking price, the announcement stated, "It is hoped The Intrepid will smash through the $1.9 million (£1.5 million) mark and become the most expensive ever sold." But as far as a pre-auction estimate, Lyon & Turnbull's website only says, "Estimate Upon Request."
