Whiskey is harder to value than wine, but its longevity makes it a worthy option for collectors.
If you have savored a rare Courvoisier that was already old when Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo in 1815, then you’ll know that like Princess Aurora, this sleeping beauty is still in great shape. The reason? Spirits may not mature in the bottle like wine, but they don’t deteriorate either. The brandy – or whisky – that pleased an emperor two centuries ago would do the same today.
The following five bottles will provide some solid returns if you hang onto them – or some liquid ones should you prefer to drink them.
1. Rosebank
12 years old; Flora & Fauna Series Distillery Release
$74
Rosebank is a “lost” (defunct) distillery, and stocks are dwindling fast. This very sensible price can only go up.
2. Port Ellen
Annual distillery release; any of the seven releases
$253 to $673
Port Ellen has two things going for it: It’s from the island of Islay, currently whisky’s hottest region, and it has a big following. It is also a lost distillery. The price for this whisky seems to go up with every new bottling released.
3. Brora
30 years old; annual distillery release; any of the six releases
$329 to $396
Another lost distillery, discovered by collectors only a few years ago. Demand has been phenomenal.
4. Glenfarclas
50 years old
$2,021
Most 50-year-old whiskies released nowadays are between $6,000 and $12,000 a bottle, so this Speyside gem, matured in sherry casks, is a steal.
5. Black Bowmore
1964; 42 years old
$3,539
Now a cult whisky but still undervalued. This is from one of the distillery’s last few oloroso sherry casks of the 1964 vintage. Lots of upside potential.
