November 2018 Auction

Clynelish 1965 Whyte and Whyte 28 Year Old 75cl / Spirits Library

An independently bottled Clynelish has become a very rare indeed.

A real gem for any Clynelish enthusiast, produced at the original Clynelish distillery, which has now become recognised as Brora.

Distilled in 1965, two years before the Clynelish distillery opened, and bottled at 28 years old.

This was bottled by Whyte and Whyte for the Spirits Library, a Scotch and Cognac retailer in the US.

Bottled at cask strength.

Caol Ila 15 Year Old Manager's Dram 1990

The Manager’s Dram series of whiskies were bottled exclusively for employees of what is now known as Diageo. These whiskies were selected by the respective distillery managers within Diageo malt distilling and bottled at natural cask strength.

This Caol Ila is hands-down the most sought-after, and is becoming more and more difficult to find. 

Matured in sherry casks, this iconic malt was bottled in 1990 at 63%. 

Coleburn 1969 Samaroli 12 Year Old / Flowers 1981

A 1969 vintage bottling from closed Speyside distillery, Coleburn. Bottled at at 12 years of age.

Samaroli is perhaps Italy's most revered independent bottler of Scotch whisky. With an impeccable taste in single cask whiskies, and an eye for aesthetics (if not English spelling at times!), he is regarded by many as a visionary. Many of his bottles now occupy deserved sports on the pantheon of whisky greats.

This is part of SIlvano's first ever solo series of bottlings, a follow up to his 1979/1980 collaboration with Cadenhead's. It is rather cumbersomely titled 'The Never Bottled Top Quality Whisky' series, however is better known as the Flowers range. The bottlings all have hand drawn labels by Samaroli himself, and a second series was released in 1990 as an homage to them.

Bottle number 27 of 300. 

Caol Ila 1978 Samaroli / 20th Anniversary

A 1978 vintage Caol Ila, bottled in 1988 by R.W. Duthie in 1988 for Samaroli as part of a series celebrating their 20th anniversary.

Samaroli is perhaps Italy's most revered independent bottler of Scotch whisky. With an impeccable taste in single cask whiskies, and an eye for aesthetics (if not English spelling at times!), he is regarded by many as a visionary. Many of his bottles now occupy deserved sports on the pantheon of whisky greats.

The labels on this 20th anniversary series have been lovingly reappropriated from Samaroli's first ever series, his 1979/1980 collaboration with Cadenhead's. The image on this Caol Ila was first used on the 23 year old Mortlach from that set.

Bottle 139 of 540.

Clynelish 1972 Rare Malt 22 Year Old 75cl / 58.95%

The Rare Malt Selection is a historic selection of single malt whiskies from operational and lost distilleries that were released by Diageo between 1995 and 2005.

Released within the Rare Malt Selection. Distilled in 1972 and bottled as a 22 year old at 58.95%. 

Bottle 4873.

Chichibu 2009 Ichiro's Malt Single Cask #2369 / Warrior Series No.1

An exciting release from Ichiro Akuto's Chichibu distillery. 

Distilled in 2009 and aged in French white wine cask #2369 until 2017.

This was the first in what looks to be an eagerly anticipated range of Whiskies.

Weller's Antique Reserve 10 Year Old Original Barrel Proof 1970s / Stitzel-Weller

A fantastic old bottling of Weller's Antique Reserve, aged 10 years and bottled at a barrel proof of 110.

Distilled and then bottled in the early 1970s at the legendary Stizel-Weller distillery, and given the age statement, likely from stock produced by Julian Van Winkle I before his death in the mid-1960s. The distillery was then run by his son, Julian Van Winkle II until its sale in 1972. The leaflet in the box has a note signed off by Julian II as company president, meaning this bottle predates the sale.

Presented in an ornate felt lined box with two glasses.

Coleraine 1959 Limited Edition 34 Year Old Irish Single Malt

A true piece of Irish Whisky heritage. Established in 1820 in Coleraine, Ulster, it was one of only two distilleries on the isle of Ireland to produce malt.

Famously supplying whisky to the Houses of Commons the brand proudly bore \"H.C.\" on the label.

In a tale familiar to lovers of Irish whisk(e)y the 20th century was not kind to Colerane and it spent most of the 1920s silent before being acquired in 1933 by the Boyds of Bushmills.

A Patent still was installed after WWII, malt distillations ceased in 1964 with grain following suit in 1978 and now only a scant few pieces of masonry stand as testament to this once illustrious distillery.

Produced from very limited stocks laid down in 1959 and aged 34 years, only 400 bottles were produced in 1993.

Presented in an attractive wooden box and includes a numbered certificate of authenticity and 

Cardow 1962 Cadenhead's 16 Year Old / Cardhu

As Scotland’s oldest independent bottler, Cadenhead’s have long been known for releasing stunning whiskies but none more so than those from their famous ‘dumpy’ series, which features some incredible 1950s and 60s vintages. Whisky from this bygone era of production have become increasingly elusive in recent years, making them exceptionally desirable. 

This Cardhu was bottled under one of the distilleries lesser known names 'Cardow'.

Distilled in September 1962 and bottled in February 1985. 

Imported to the US by Vino Nobile, Illinois.

Caol Ila 1966 Gordon and MacPhail Centenary Reserve

Distilled in 1966, prior to the distillery's expansion and renovation in the early 1970s.

Bottled by Gordon and MacPhail in 1995 to Celebrate the company's centenary.

Compass Box The General

From Compass Box:

\"It’s been a good year for sourcing ridiculously rare parcels of extraordinary whisky.

Two different companies approached us recently with similar stories: they each had several casks of Blended Scotch that had been blended at quite young ages, then not required and put back into cask and left to age. One parcel was 33 years-old and the other was…well, I’m afraid I can’t tell you. (By telling you the age of the other parcel, some might argue we are in violation of the UK’s Scotch Whisky Regulations - citation 2009 No. 2890. But that’s another story.)

We know little of the component whiskies, only that, being Blended Scotch Whisky, they were blends of both single malt and single grain whiskies.

We could tell by tasting that some were aged in former American whisky casks and some in sherry casks. But the provenance wasn’t really important, because each parcel had matured into something extraordinary in flavour, and to us, as blenders, they each represented distinct and complementary flavour profiles.

And this is where things got interesting for us. While each parcel was compelling in its own right, we had the feeling that by combining them in the right proportions, we could make something even more interesting. So we experimented for many weeks, blending the two together at different proportions before landing on the recipe in this bottle.

The result is a whisky with the “antique” character lovers of old whiskies seek out.\"

We don't know about you, but we're intrigued!!!

Willett Family Estate 23 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon #B58 / Wheated

An exclusive release from cask #B58, which means that it was produced at Bernheim distillery and will have a high wheat content mashbill. At 23 years old, this barrel pre-dates the Heaven Hill purchase of Bernheim, although Kentucky Bourbon Distillers still procure much of their bottling stock from there while their renewed distilling operation at Willett is still in its infancy.

Matured in a single white oak barrel and bottled for exclusive retail in the Willett distillery gift shop.

One of just 108 bottles.

Willett Family Estate 22 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon #324​

A well-aged bourbon from Kentucky Bourbon Distillers' Willet Family Estate series.

Released on the 30th May 2015 at the Willet distillery gift shop, this was matured in barrel #324.

Bottle number 41 of 109 bottles.

Courvoisier L'Essence Cognac

This spectacularly decadent cognac is blended from over 100 ancient eaux-de-vies from Grande Champagne and Borderies, the vintages of which date back to the early 1900s. 

Presented in a teardrop Baccarat decanter, with a stopper inspired by the imperial signet rings bestowed by Napoleon Bonaparte to the most courageous commanders in his army.  

Caroni 1967 Moon Import 20 Year Old / The Birds I

Moon Import was founded by Pepi Mongiardino in 1980 and he bottled his first whisky in 1982. Always beautifully labelled, Pepi is acclaimed for designing the packaging for Moon Import bottles himself, often using images found in old books. These iconic designs, coupled with the quality of the liquid saw Moon Import steadily grow in popularity. The company is still going strong, and their early releases are some of the brightest gems in any whisky collection.

This is a very rare 1967 vintage Caroni rum from the now lost distillery, bottled in the 1987 as part of the first Moon Import Birds series in 1987. The whisky in that series is legendary, and this is a rum worthy of the company.

Bottle number 176 of only 900 bottles.

Clynelish 17 Year Old Manager's Dram 1998

The Manager’s Dram series of whiskies were bottled exclusively for employees of what is now known as Diageo.  These whiskies were selected by the respective distillery managers within Diageo malt distilling and bottled at natural cask strength.

This 17 year old Clynelish was matured in sherry casks and selected by the distillery manager.

Bottled 23rd November 1998, this is bottle number 1098. 

W.G. O'Doherty Matured Old Irish Whiskey circa 1880s

An incredible old bottle of Irish whiskey bottled by W.G. O'Doherty Ltd. Tea, Wine and Spirit Merchant of Bishop Street, Londonderry which was established in 1871 as a grocery and public house. It's thought that this bottle would have been produced when bottling took place below the shop between 1873 and 1883. More information can be found out about the company by clicking the following links:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-21951320

https://www.nmni.com/our-museums/ulster-american-folk-park/Things-to-see/WG-O-Doherty-Licensed-Grocer.aspx

No measurements present but the bottle is full sized. Please note this very old bottle is particularly fragile, Whisky Auctioneer Ltd cannot be held liable for any leakage/damage caused whilst the bottle is in transit.

Craigellachie 1962 Cadenhead's 16 Year Old

As Scotland’s oldest independent bottler, Cadenhead’s have long been known for releasing stunning whiskies but none more so than those from their famous ‘dumpy’ series, which features some incredible 1950s and 60s vintages. Whisky from this bygone era of production have become increasingly elusive in recent years, making them exceptionally desirable. 

This Craigellachie was distilled in December 1962 and bottled in June 1979. 

Cognac Napoleon 1811 Grand Fine Champagne

A particularly old bottling of 1811 vintage Napoleon Cognac.

W. L. Weller 10 Year Old Centennial Single Barrel / Whitehouse Liquor

Originally produced at the old Stitzel-Weller distiller, the 10 year old Centennial brand was revived by Buffalo Trace as part of their Bourbon Heritage Collection.

This particular bottling is from barrel #1, which was specially selected by Ben Faubel for Whitehouse Liquor, NY.

Craigellachie 31 Year Old

Originally released for Travel Retail in 2014, the 31 year old forms the high end of the now extensive range of Craigellachie.

In 2017 this whisky was awarded World's Best Single Malt at the World Whiskies Awards.

Limited batch number 04-6137.

Bottled at cask strength.

Chichibu 2011 Ichiro's Malt Single Madeira Cask #1371 / LMDW

Distilled 2011 and bottled 2015 from a Madeira hogshead.

Selected by La Maison du Whisky. The label features the artwork And the Clouds Parted by Tay Bak Chiang, 2009.

Cask #1371.

Chichibu Ichiro's Malt London Edition 2018

Ichiro Akuto's Chichibu distillery has be producing malts for a while now, this was released in 2018 and appears to be the first instalment in an annual London Edition series.

Bottle 127 of 929.

Chichibu 2009 Single Cask #641

This is from the relatively new Japanese distillery Chichibu.  Distilled in 2009 and matured in a single first fill bourbon barrel #641 until bottling in 2014.

Exclusively bottled for La Maison Du Whisky, Paris.

Caol Ila 20 Year Old 150th Anniversary

A stunning bottle of Caol Ila released in 1996 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Caol Ila, which opened in 1846.

A very rare bottling only ever originally released to employees within Diageo.

Willett Family Estate 8 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon #494 / Binnys Beverage Depot

A single barrel bourbon, bottled by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers at Willett distillery. Barrel #494 was bottled in 2012 for Binny's Beverage Depot.

One of 124 bottles.

Chichibu Ichiro's Malt Paris Edition

Ichiro Akuto's Chichibu distillery has be producing malts for a while now, this was released in 2018 alongside a London Edition.

Bottle 177 of 1357.

Clynelish 1976 Murray McDavid 28 Year Old

Distilled in 1976 and matured for 28 years.

One of 600 bottles.

Chichibu 2013 Ichiro's Malt Single Cask #2588 / Velier 70th Anniversary​

A single cask Chichibu, distilled in 2013 and matured in a single first fill sherry hogshead. Bottled in 2017 for the 70th anniversary of Italian import company, Velier.

The label features artwork The Red Point by Jun Inoue.

Willett Family Estate 16 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon #1597

A single White Oak barrel bourbon, distilled and bottled at Willett by Kentucky Bourbon Distillers. KBD have barrels from nearly every major distillery in their warehouses, but the majority were sourced from neighbours, Heaven Hill.

Cask #1597 was bottled at 16 years old and 123 US proof.

Chichibu 2010 Ichiro's Malt / Whisky Talk 2015 Fukuoka

The now seemingly annual Ichiro's malt release for the Whisky Talk festival. This is the 2015 Fukuoka release, distilled in 2010 and matured first in a bourbon barrel before finishing in a third fill puncheon.

One of 593 bottles.

Caroni 1998 Wild Parrot Full Proof Single Cask Rum 2 x 70cl / #WP98626 & #WP98635

Two single cask rums distilled at the long lost Caroni distillery in 1998.

They were bottled from single casks #WP98626 (62.6%) and #WP98635 (63.5%) by Hidden Spirits and Stefano Cremaschi for their Wild Parrot brand in 2018. 

The casks produced 280 and 282 bottles, respectively.

This lot has a 2 bottle shipping fee.