Whatever your drink of choice, always go with the winning combination of quality and rarity for the best investment potential
“Scarcity is everything,” says Robert Sleigh, managing director of operations at Sotheby’s Hong Kong. “That’s where the stratospheric prices come from, and you see that throughout all markets we deal with, whether that’s Chinese works of art, contemporary painting, jewellery, watches, everything we sell. Rarity is always a leading factor in price.”
It has certainly proved to be the case when it comes to wine and whisky. At a Sotheby’s auction late last year, a bottle of Domaine de la Romanée Conti hit a hammer price of US$558,000, setting a world record not just for a 750ml bottle of Burgundy but for any bottle of wine at auction. Similarly, a single bottle of The Macallan 60 Year Old single malt whisky set a world auction record after selling for £1.2 million at Christie’s in London in November 2018. The ultra-rare elixir was presented in a one-of-a-kind bottle hand-painted by Irish artist Michael Dillon.
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Storied spirits
Whiskies have huge potential for scarcity. And that scarcity can come in different forms, whether through age, which often leads to limited availability, or with bottles that have a one-of-a-kind tale to tell.
Take the Port Ellen 39 Year Old, one of Diageo’s most interesting bottlings currently available. “Port Ellen is one of our most special and most loved liquids,” says Drew Mills, marketing director of Diageo Brands, Moët Hennessy Diageo Hong Kong. “The distillery closed in the early ’80s and, as such, very little liquid remains. This is of huge appeal to collectors, who know they are buying a piece of history that cannot be replicated.”
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Releases can also be deliberately limited. This applies particularly to the spirits market, where one-off or limited editions are often created. “Limited editions are highly sought after by collectors around the world. And that’s definitely an area for investors to target,” says Sleigh.