Curator's Corner: Whiskies to Watch from Joe Wilson

Somehow, September’s Auction is already heading into its final days! It’s that time of year in Scotland that always divides opinion: half of us are embracing the cosy nights, golden leaves and drawing evenings, while the other half are wistfully clinging to the last memories of summer sunshine.

Autumn has a way of changing what we reach for on the drinks shelf, and we see the same patterns in the secondary market, with bidding activity often picking up as collectors prepare their shelves for the season ahead.

If, like me, you’re eyeing up your collection and thinking it could use a little seasonal refresh, or simply need some new inspiration, our Auction Curator, Joe Wilson, has picked out three bottles that have truly caught his attention this month. We set him a really difficult task to choose just three from over 6,000 bottles but trust me, when Joe recommends a special whisky, I always listen.

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Springbank 1919 50 Year Old

The first highlight is this legendary 50 year old Springbank, distilled in 1919. The oldest vintage of single malt ever bottled in the modern era, it is a piece of whisky history and remains one of the most sought-after expressions among Springbank collectors worldwide. These distinctive pear-shaped bottles are always a privilege to feature at auction, but this example truly stands apart as the holy grail of Springbank releases.

Chichibu 2009 9 Year Old - Ghost Series #12 Advance Sample

Next up is an incredibly rare and intriguing Chichibu single cask. We’re fortunate to have the complete Yoshitoshi Ghost Series (1 through 23) in this auction, a set that is already iconic among modern Japanese whisky releases. This particular bottle, is particularly special. Although this has the same label as release number 12, it is in fact an advance cask sample, drawn and bottled nine months earlier at a slightly different ABV. Only two bottles of this exist, making it an extraordinarily scarce item for collectors of Chichibu or Japanese whisky more broadly. 

Glenmorangie 1975 Tain L'Hermitage

Finally, I'd recommend everyone to have a look at the wealth of options from Glenmorangie in this auction. This is a distillery that had a really pioneering approach to its wood policy, experimenting boldly with a wide variety of cask types, from wine to brandy and different cognacs. This particular bottling is an outstanding example of that pioneering spirit: a 1975 vintage, finished for four years in premium red wine casks from the famous Hermitage appellation in Rhône. A real gem for collectors, particularly those who follow Glenmorangie’s early experiments with wine cask maturation.