Six of the Rarest Scottish Whiskies in Living Color

Black Book (bbook.com) offers up some mouthwatering photography of six exceptionally rare Scotch whisky expressions.

Five of the six are single malts and one is a blend. All but one show age statements of 40 years old or older.

Terse tasting notes of the “rarest whiskies” give a tantalizing hint at what a price tag in the thousands could lead to for the discerning palate.

The lone no age statement single malt being Macallan’s M, from the 1824 Series, which was produced in 2013 from casks stretching back into the 1940s. Part of its high price comes from the Lalique crystal bottle, which is dwarfed by the auction price of a six-litre crystal decanter of the same stuff. The “normal” 750ml version can still be had in the U.S., for about $5,000 after taxes.

The list includes expressions from some of my all-time favorites, Highland Park, Ledaig, Balvenie, and Glenfarclas.

Most of my nose-on experience with high-end whisky tops out at 25 year age statements, but there have been some exceptions.

While I have yet to publish my review of the serenity in a whisky glass that is Balvenie 30, the most indulgent review I have published was for a most indulgent whisky, yet to be surpassed in my estimation, the Highland Park 30 from the 2013 bottling.

However, it comes nowhere near the prices of the whisky in the article, which you can check out HERE.

Broader Perspectives

And if you would like to read about more about some exceptionally rare and expensive whisky, this run down at moneyinc.com, which includes both whiskies in ultra-expensive decanters, and those costing a king’s ransom simply because of their rarity.

And here is a quick and easy list from winesearcher.com of “the most expensive whiskey” even if everything on the list is a whisky, and almost all of it comes from the extinct distillery of Port Ellen, on the Isle of Islay, or Brora, which existed in the town of the same name on the northeast coast of Scotland.

But another way to look at it is in terms of whisky as an investment tool. If that sounds interesting, you may want to give this article a read over at Australia’s ExecutiveStyle.com, which includes some relatively affordable malt whisky bottles, expected to rise high as their numbers dwindle.

Cheers!