A bottle of The Macallan 1926 will go under the hammer on October 9, at a special auction held at The Macallan Estate in Speyside.
Hosted by Sotheby’s, the sale marks 100 years since the whisky was laid down and is expected to draw some of the world’s most committed collectors. The bottle carries a high estimate of £2.2m ($2.9m). With buyer’s premium added, a hammer price at that level would smash the world record for a single bottle of wine or spirit – £2,187,500 ($2.7m), set by another bottle of the same vintage at Sotheby’s in 2023.
The Macallan 1926 is arguably the most significant Scotch whisky. Cask #263 yielded just 40 bottles in 1986, released over the following years under different labels. Twelve carried artwork by Sir Peter Blake and 12 by Valerio Adami. Fourteen have The Macallan’s Fine & Rare label, and two had no label at all, one of which was later hand-painted by Michael Dillon.
The 1926 last came to auction in 2023, when an Adami bottle became the most valuable bottle of wine or spirit ever sold. Only ten of the 12 Adami bottles are believed to remain: one has been opened and drunk, and another was destroyed in an earthquake in Japan in 2011.
This bottle carries the Fine & Rare label, which last appeared at auction in 2021, selling for £1m ($1.3m) at Whisky Auctioneer. Sotheby’s is expecting considerably more this time, helped by the setting.
Jonny Fowle, global head of spirits at Sotheby’s, said: “The Macallan 1926 stands as one of the most iconic and coveted spirits ever produced, revered not simply for its rarity, but for the extraordinary story it represents. To celebrate its centenary with the first-ever auction held at a Scotch whisky distillery is a landmark moment for the world of whisky collecting. Bringing exceptional examples of The Macallan together at the Estate where their story began offers collectors a truly unique opportunity to engage with one of the most legendary names in spirits.”
Collectors will also have their eyes on a special edition of The Macallan Romantica. Revealed in May, the three-bottle collection marks the centenary of the 1926 vintage. Just 86 sets exist, but this one stands apart as a one-of-two. The Macallan will keep the other in its archive.
Its bottles are at 42.6% ABV, matching The Macallan 1926’s strength exactly, whereas the standard Romantica’s ABV is 48.6%. It also comes in a bespoke cabinet filled with artifacts from the design process, including the artists’ initial sketches.
It carries a high estimate of £100,000 ($132,000), roughly a quarter above the collection’s £78,000 retail price. Romantica has never been to auction, but for a one-off edition, that looks conservative.
The auction also includes The Reach, an 81-year-old whisky, and a complete set of The Macallan in Lalique Six Pillars Collection. All 40 lots are from The Macallan, with a combined low estimate of £2.3m ($3m).
Register for the auction here.
