DISTILLED: SAMAROLI, DALMORE 62 & THE WORLD'S OLDEST COGNAC
Comprising 216 lots, Sotheby’s Distilled is estimated to bring a combined total in the region of £1.1 million, open for Bidding from 14 - 28 May 2020. Please see the highlights below and please click here to follow.
The Provenance of the “Big Brother” Gautier Cognac 1762
As the oldest vintage Cognac ever to be sold at auction, this lot was originally part of a "trio" of 1762 vintage Gautier Cognacs preserved since the end of the 19th century. The owner recalls that as a child, his grandfather prevented him from playing in the cellar which contained his oldest bottles of Cognac. It was only many years later he learned the history of the treasure that had been carefully preserved by his family.
Jonny Fowle, Sotheby’s Spirits Specialist, said: “The Gautier 1762 is renowned and revered across the world as a Cognac that transcends the world of spirits collecting. This bottle represents not only an example of pre-phylloxera viticulture, but also of early cask maturation from the dawn of Gautier’s production and even precedes the French Revolution. This bottle contains a distillation not only of superb brandy, but also of Cognac’s history.”
Samaroli Collection
Samaroli Collection - An important Italian collection of Samaroli of a magnitude that is truly rare
Silvano Samaroli’s bottles are widely regarded as the greatest whiskies ever produced. The most valued bottles, such as the Bowmore Bouquet and Laphroaig 67, are rarely seen more than once a year at auction. With 55 bottles, the collection includes three bottles of Bowmore Bouquet 1966 (est £40,000 - 55,000 per bottle). This is considered by many to be the greatest whisky ever bottled (#1 on Whiskybase.com’s list of the Top 1,000 Whiskies).
Also: Laphroaig 1967 (est. £24,000 - 30,000) and Ardbeg 1976 (est. £5,000 - 7,000).
The Dalmore 62 Year Old
The Dalmore 62 Year Old, Bottle #2 “The Mackenzie” and Bottle #5 “The Cromarty”
The Dalmore 62 Year Old is one of the oldest whiskies to have been released from the Dalmore Distillery, with only 12 bottles made available. The sale will present Bottles #2, “The Mackenzie” and Bottle #5, “The Cromarty”, estimated at £75,000 - 100,000 per bottle.
Cask of Dictador Rum 1980
Dictador Casks. This is Sotheby’s first ever collaboration with a rum distillery
A cask of Dictador’s 1980 single vintage rum will be offered without reserve, with bidding starting at £50. The proceeds will be donated to the Dictador Art Masters Charity Fund, to develop an art gallery within the Colombian Jungle - an anchor point for conservation of the area. The liquid in this cask provides enough content for around 300 bottles and spent 20 years in an American Oak Cask, then a further 20 in a sherry cask. With an ABV of 62.7%, this is a “big spirit” with “notes of dark roasted cold-brew coffee with a dash of almond milk, chocolate raisins and toffee popcorn”.
Macallan Highlights
Macallan Fine & Rare Miniature vertical, est. £85,000-120,000
Macallan Fine & Rare Miniature vertical, 1937 – 1974 (est. £85,000 - 120,000)
Macallan 50 Year Old 1928 (est. £70,000 - 100,000)
Macallan in Lalique Six Pillars 60 Year Old (est. £40,000 - 70,000)
Macallan Millennium Decanter (est. £20,000 - 30,000)
Macallan 1946 Select Reserve 52 Year Old (est. £10,000 - 14,000)
Springbank Highlights
Springbank 1964, est. £5,000 - 7,500
A cask of Springbank Organic from 1992 (est. £40,000 - 60,000)
Three bottles of Springbank 1964 (est. £5,000 - 7,500 per bottle), illustrated left
Five bottles of Springbank Adelphi 1965 (est. £1,600 - 2,200 per bottle)
Nine bottles of Springbank 30 (est. £1,000 - 1,500 per bottle)
Further Highlights
White Horse 1900, est. £4,000-5,000
Rémy Martin Louis XIII Rare Cask Cognac NV (est. £9,000 - 12,000)
Bowmore Black Second Release 1964 (est. £9,000 - 14,000)
Bruichladdich Samaroli 10 Year Old 1965 (est. £2,000 - 2,600)
Ord Samaroli Bouquet 22 Year Old 58.0 abv 1962 (est. £5,500 - 8,000)
White Horse 40.0 abv 1900 (est. £4,000 - 5,000)
Springbank 30 Year Old NV (est. £1,000 - 1,500)
Highland Park 40 Year Old 1958 (est. £3,000 - 3,800)
Bowmore Bicentenary 1779 to 1979 Fecchio and Frassa (est. £2,200 - 2,800)
Lagavulin White Horse 12 Year Old 43.0 abv NV (est. £900 - 1,200)
Glendronach Cadenhead's Cask Strength 1970 (est. £600 - 800)
32 bottles from Gordon & MacPhail sold as separate lots with a combined estimate of £37,000 - 52,000
