Decades-Old Pappy Van Winkle, Blanton’s and Much More Up for Sale in Sprawling Rare Spirits Auction
(Photos: Bonhams Skinner)
Auction house Bonhams Skinner is presenting over 300 lots of rare whiskey in its “Pre-Prohibition to Today” whiskey auction collection. Open until Oct. 16, the auction will allow buyers to find vintages dating back to the 1910s alongside modern favorites from household names like Elijah Craig and Pappy Van Winkle.
In lieu of an exhaustive rundown, we’ll shout out a few highlights that are sure to pique the interest of die-hard collectors:
So far as age and rarity, the crown jewel of the auction is undoubtedly a bottle of Glenlivet Generations 80 Year Old. Distilled in 1940 before aging eight decades in an ex-sherry barrel ominously named “Cask 340,” the expression was first unveiled in 2021 with a decanter designed by Ghanaian-British architect Sir David Adjaye. Bonhams Skinner will be auctioning off bottle 249 of 250.
The auction house estimates its value between $44,000 to $55,000. Rare spirits sellers dotted throughout Europe, meanwhile, price bottles at a minimum of $100,000. The truth may lie somewhere in between.
Digging even deeper into spirits history, Skinner is offering a trio of Thomas Moore whiskeys distilled between 1914 and 1918. These make up the titular pre-prohibition era of the auction. Though Moore is perhaps best known nowadays as the founder of the Barton 1792 distillery in Kentucky, this trio was bottled under the “Possum Hollow Pure Rye Whiskey” imprint produced in early 20th century Pennsylvania.
From their tattered labels to their degraded corks, these whiskeys definitely show their age. Bidding has begun at $950 each.
The expected array of rare Buffalo Trace products also makes an appearance. You’ll find bottles of Van Winkle Special Reserve Lot “B” 12 Years Old, Old Rip Van Winkle 10 Years Old, WL Weller 1983, Stagg Jr. Batch 8 2017 and 13 different offerings of Blanton’s Bourbon. The most coveted (and expensive) of the bunch is a bottle of Colonel E.H. Taylor that survived a 2006 tornado.
Other highlights include a Bowmore Black Bowmore, 1964 estimated at $10,000 – $15,000, an AH Hirsch 16 Years Old Blue Wax, 1974 estimated at $6,000-$8,000 and a Macallan El Celler De Can Roca Distil Your World New York Edition estimated at $8,000-$10,000.
For a full rundown of the Barrels of History auction, find the Bonhams Skinner website here.
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