Macallan M auction expected to break world record
A six-litre imperial version of The Macallan M is expected to break the world record for the most expensive whisky sold at auction when it is auctioned in Hong Kong later this month.
The Macallan M Constantine is expected to gain a Guinness World RecordFour six-litre decanters designed by Lalique, which weigh 16.8kg each when filled with the Scotch whisky, were created to commemorate the global launch of The Macallan M in Hong Kong in October 2013.
Two have been retained for The Macallan archive, while the third has been promised to a private collector in Asia.
The fourth – named Constantine after the Roman emperor – is the only one to feature the engraved autographs of M’s three creators – Fabien Baron, founder and creative director of Baron & Baron, Silvio Denz, president and CEO of Lalique, and Bob Dalgarno, whisky maker at The Macallan.
The Macallan M decanter – the largest produced by The Macallan – will be auctioned by Sotheby’s Hong Kong on 18 January, with expectations the edition will reach up to £314,000 (HK$4m). If it does, it will break the Guinness World record for the most expensive whisky ever sold at auction, beating The Macallan 64 Years Old in Lalique Cire Perdue, which sold for ££291,125 (US$460,000) in 2012.
David Cox of The Macallan, said: “This auction offers the successful bidder an opportunity to acquire something very special, drawing on the combined talents of one of the world’s great designers, the finest of crystal makers and makers of one the world’s great spirits, The Macallan. Hopefully the auction will realise an outstanding bid, worthy of this great piece.”
The proceeds from the auction, which is being auctioned without a reserve, will be donated to several Hong Kong charities.
Scotch dominates the prestige spirits category, and with prices for rare and precious releases soaring, is there a limit to how much consumers are willing to pay for a bottle of Scotch?
