Forty-two lots have been donated by some of the biggest names in the business. Expected prices range from as little as £1,000 up to £500,000, and it is hoped that the auction will raise more than £1m, to help establish a new initiative called the
The most eye-catching lot - worth an estimated £350,000-£500,000 - is an entire barrel of 43 year old
The successful bidder will have the option of ageing the barrel for up to five more years, and the opportunity to consult with a master blender about the optimal time to bottle. At that point, it will be transferred into special bottles and wooden presentation boxes, featuring Innes' artwork.
This is not the only barrel on offer as part of the auction, however.
The second cask is noteworthy as it contains the first liquid to come off the stills since
Another return to tradition can be found in the barrel provided by
Bruichladdich. The Islay distillery is B Corp Certified, meaning that it is audited to ensure it meets certain social and environmental standards, and for the first time ever at auction it has put forward a cask of Organic single malt. Though Islay is famed for its peat-smoked whisky, this barrel was distilled in 2011 from unpeated organic barley, harvested the previous year.
A majority of lots, however, are bottles. The most extravagant of these is a prelude set of four Baccarat crystal decanters from Glenfiddich. These oneoff bottlings contain 62, 63, 64, and 66 year old whiskies, distilled between 1955 and 1959. They come in a cabinet, fitted with a high precision thermometer and hygrometer from the renowned instrument makers Fischer, which should enable the successful bidder to maintain the spirits in peak condition.
In an auction with so many exceptional whiskies, there are some lots where the bottles themselves demand attention. For instance, there is a 51 year old Bowmore, which comes in a unique 1.4 litre hand-crafted onyxglass vessel, the shape and colour of which recall the ancient oaks found preserved in the peat that gives this Islay whisky its characteristic smokey flavour. Meanwhile, the offering from Glenturret - which has a good claim to being
Bids are being accepted on Sotheby's website in advance of the auction, and several lots have already met their lower-estimated values. One that appears to have attracted particular attention is the GlenDronach 50 Year Old 1971. Matured in Spanish oak sherry casks, it is the first bottle that the distillery has ever released at that age statement. The first lot to actually exceed its upper-estimate in early bidding was a bottle of 32 Year Old Port Cask Finish from
£ The auction takes place this Friday at
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