Auction Radar: Clase Azul Enters the Big Leagues at Sotheby’s

June 2026 may go down as the month tequila finally announced itself in the collectible arena.

A bottle of Clase Azul became the most expensive agave spirit ever sold at auction, selling for $35,000 at Sotheby’s New York. The Día de Muertos Edition 1 was released in 2017 and limited to just 300 bottles, only available at the brand’s location in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, for $250. 

While the bottle tripled its presale estimate of $8,000-$12,000, it’s not that surprising to see it break the record held by a Jose Cuervo ‘Rolling Stones Edition’ 250th-anniversary Extra Añejo Tequila, at $24,265. 

Clase Azul is performing well at auction across the board. The Clase Azul Pink NV 2018 Release doubled its estimate in the same sale, selling for $16,250, and the 2021 Sabores release of the Día de los Muertos sold on June 13^th for $7,500.

Likewise, the 2024 Musica release almost doubled its estimate, selling for $3,000 on June 12th. This marks a sea change from the earlier sales of these bottles in terms of collectability. It lines up with Clase Azul’s decision to end its Día de los Muertos series with the 2025 Recuerdos bottle. 

Jonny Fowle, Sotheby’s global head of spirits, said: “This is a very interesting time for tequila. Tequila and mezcal have seen huge growth in recent years, and anecdotally I have noticed many whiskey drinkers in America turning to agave spirits. However, tequila’s secondary market activity is very much in its infancy. This is the first big result for one of the industry’s most iconic brands, which could mark the dawn of a new boom.”

There’s also the current wave of Japanese whiskies coming to auction, with some big sales occurring this month. The Yamazaki Single Cask #2J6001 Suntory Whisky Meeting 63.0 abv 1960 sold at Sotheby’s for $350,625, doubling the estimate. Likewise, the mythic distillery Karuizawa continues to sell well at auction: one of 41 bottles, the 1960 52 Year Old The Poet sold on June 22^nd for $267,094.  

Overall, though, Japanese whisky has been on a downturn this year. As Whiskystats report, Q2 closed out with Japanese whisky declining a total of 10.6% in market value. Yamazaki, previously breaking the record for most expensive Japanese whisky, had a 55 Year Old sell at Christie’s for $250,000.  

A respectable price, until one realizes these bottles sold for $525,000 and $600,000 in 2021 and 2022, respectively. Another bottle of Yamazaki 55 Year Old went under the hammer at Whisky Auctioneer, but failed to meet its reserve, seeing a highest bid of £270,000 ($360,576). 

Scotch saw a 3.3% rise in June, driven by Port Ellen’s 10.5% surge. That puts the Islay distillery second in Whiskystats’ auction index, behind the omnipresent Macallan (up 0.7% throughout the year). This was led by bottles such as the Port Ellen 15^th Release. In 2025, auction buyer prices dipped to $1700, an all-time low. Since then, prices have made a comeback, with the two latest sales breaching the $2,000 threshold.

The Macallan Tree of Life in Lalique 46 Year Old 46.2 abv 1979 was seen at auction for the first time at Sotheby’s, with the #2 bottle (out of 112) selling for £47,500 ($63,400). An interesting whisky coming with its own stained-glass artwork, this is a strong price for a relatively new release.  

The Macallan also saw a fascinating sale on June 4^th: 44 5cl Fine & Rare miniatures ranging from 1937-1990. Sold for $159,375, just above the low-end estimate, this is a rare selection of vintages, each in their own wooden box. Another rare sale would be The Macallan Red Collection, sold together as an eight-bottle set. 

Spanning from 40 to 78 years old, the set sold for $382,500. This marks the first sale of a Red Collection set in a while, with the previous auction having been the Exclusive Label edition, with illustrations by Javi Aznarez. This was one of two existing sets, the other permanently in The Macallan’s archive, and sold for $1,009,615 on October 31, 2020.  

Highest Auction Prices in June 2026  

1. Yamazaki, 1960 41yo – $350,625
2. Karuizawa, Single Cask 1960 (Japanese Paper Label) – $297,094
3. Yamazaki, 55 Year Old – $250,000
4. Ichiro’s Malt Hanyu, 1991 Jack of Clubs – $69,992 
5. The Macallan, Lalique 72 Year Old – $63,884 
6. The Macallan, The Tree Of Life 1979  – $63,400
7. Ichiro’s Malt Hanyu, Ace of Spades 1985 – $50,205 
8. The Macallan, Lalique 55 Year Old – $50,200
9. The Macallan, 50 Year Old – $43,925 
10. Karuizawa, Aqua of Life 1968 – $43,925 
11. Highland Park, Sterling Silver Frame 50 Year Old – $39,061 
12. Hibiki, 40 Year Old (Washi Box Label by Eriko Horiki) – $37,223 
13. Ichiro’s Malt Hanyu, King of Diamonds 1988 – $37,223
14. Clase Azul, Día de Muertos Edition 1 – $35,000
15. The Balvenie, 50 Year Old (Batch 01, Marriage 0962) – $31,377 
16. The Macallan, 67 Year Old – $30,000
17. Karuizawa, Single Cask 1965 50yo – $29,812 
18. Karuizawa, 1969  – $29,812 
19. Ichiro’s Malt Hanyu, Joker Monochrome 1985 – $29,778 
20. Ichiro’s Malt Hanyu, Ace of Spades 1985 – $26,798