S otheby's July spirits auction in London is made up by a number of iconic vintages from The Macallan Distillery. Headlining the sale is the world's oldest whisky, The Macallan The Reach 81 Year Old, offered alongside the Macallan The Red Collection 77 Year Old and the extremely rare The Macallan 50 Year Old Anniversary Malt 1928, the first time this bottle has been seen at auction in well over two years. The sale also includes a vertical of The Macallan from 1955 to 1986 as well as rare Japanese whisky from the closed Karuizawa Distillery, Cognac from Louis XIII and Baijiu from Kweichow Moutai.
The Macallan The Reach 81 Year Old is a precious whisky encased in a decanter created from mouth-blown, hot glass, cradled on a bronze sculpture of three hands. Sculptor Saskia Robinson created the timeless sculpture featuring three hands, representing characters in The Macallan’s history to house the decanter. One commemorates the Distillery workers of 1940 who crafted the spirit into existence, and another is the hand of one-time chairman, Allan Shiach, whose grandfather headed the company when the spirit was consigned to its cask. The third is that of today’s Master Whisky Maker, Kirsteen Campbell, who carefully selected the 1940 cask used to create The Reach.
An exceptional cabinet crafted using wood from a fallen elm tree which is thought to have been on The Macallan Estate in 1940, the year the spirit was distilled, houses the decanter. Reflecting its rarity and significance, the handcrafted quartet of liquid, glass, bronze and wood was brought together by Scottish artisan craftspeople as a fitting tribute to this very special whisky.
Whisky Maker’s Notes – The Macallan The Reach 81 Year Old
Colour: Deep Auburn
Nose: Dark chocolate, sweet cinnamon, aromatic peat, plums, leather, pink grapefruit, redcurrant jelly and a rich resinous note
Palate: Treacle toffee, bramble jam, liquorice, crystalised ginger, nutmeg, charred pineapple, pecans, woodsmoke
Finish: Intensely rich, sweet and smoky
The 7th instalment in The Macallan The Red Collection, this 77 year old whisky was bottled in 2022 and is the first high-aged guest release to join the collection since the range's introduction.
Whisky Maker’s Notes – The Macallan The Red 77 Year Old
Colour: Golden Oak
Nose: A beautifully balanced blend of citrus fruits with hints of woodsmoke and antique oak open on the nose, perfectly paired with sweet notes of raisin and plump, chewy dates
Palate: Extremely rich and resinous, sumptuous baked custard, crystalised ginger, marmalade, and sticky treacle open on the palate, before moving into a medley of dried fruit
Finish: Long with sweet woodsmoke, with the traditional flavour of Cherry Bakewell and the linger of tropical fruits
Tales of The Macallan Volume I pays tribute to Captain John Grant, Laird of Easter Elchies. The story of Captain John Grant, The Macallan’s first true custodian, tells the tale of a realisation of a dream, the transformation of a landscape and a new beginning. Living and working on Easter Elchies Estate, he paved the way for The Macallan and cultivated the influence of nature and community spirit. This is the first edition in a remarkable series of single malt whiskies that pay tribute to The Macallan Pioneers and their stories. Encased in a Lalique crystal decanter, the rare whisky distilled in 1950 and bottled in 2021 is concealed within an extraordinary 800-page almanac. The book tells the story of Captain John Grant and features beautiful illustrations by renowned illustrator and artist, Andrew Davidson.
Whisky Maker’s Notes – The Macallan Tales of The Macallan Volume I 71 Year Old
Colour: Golden Aiguillette
Nose: Grapefruit zest, antique oak, vanilla, melon, wood smoke, nutmeg, ripe plum and almond
Palate: Peach and apple, wood spice with ginger and hints of clove, sweet wood smoke and Yuzu
Finish: A medium finish with citrus and sweet oak
This Macallan hails from one of the oldest known vintages of Macallan to date, 1928, and was bottled in 1983 at 50 years of age, suggesting that there is 54 Year Old and possibly even 55 Year Old whisky in the bottle. A vatting of three casks, the oldest of which is said to have been distilled in 1926, this whisky was bottled at a natural cask strength of 38.6% abv and thus would be considered under minimum strength in today’s market. Only 500 bottles of this incredibly rare Macallan were ever produced with only a handful ever having come to auction, with this being the first in well over two years. An extraordinary whisky, and certainly one of the most coveted bottles ever released by The Macallan Distillery.
The iconic The Macallan 18 Year Old Sherry Oak series is amongst the most well-known and iconic produced by the distillery. The pre-cursor to the series, The Macallan 80 Proof (bottled at roughly 15 years of age), began with the 1946 vintage and ran through to 1963, where for a few years it was replaced by The Macallan Special Selection, bottled with both 17 and 18 Year Old age statements. The first true 18 Year Old appeared in 1967 and continues through to this day, albeit the vintage statements have been replaced by release years in more recent times. This sale includes 20 different vintages from this series, beginning in 1955 and running all the way through to 1986.
Away from the Macallan the sale also includes rarities from Japan such as the Karuizawa Noh Cask #4333 31 Year Old 1981. Part of the iconic Noh series, this Karuizawa was distilled in 1981 and aged in sherry butt #4333 for 31 years before bottling at an impressive 66.3% abv. Released as an exclusive just for Belgium in 2013, this was one of only 94 bottles, making it one of the rarest in the series.
View Lot
Non-whisky highlights come in the form of Cognac and moutai, including the sublime Remy Martin Louis XIII Black Pearl. Drawn from a single tiercon containing over 1200 eaux-de-vie, some of which are over 100 years old, this exquisite Louis XIII is presented in a majestic 1.5 litre baccarat decanter, one of only 358 produced. The Black Pearl decanter itself has been treated with a unique plating technique which requires repeatedly layering thin coatings of titanium, carbon, and gold one upon the other to give the stunning finished result.
