The world’s most expensive whisky collection has recently been recognised by Guinness World Records. Viet Nguyen Dinh Tuan, owns 535 of the world’s oldest and rarest Scottish and Japanese whiskies.
The collection has been valued at £10,770,635, with Tuan adding to the prestigious collection for over 20 years.
If you’re a would-be whisky investor and would like to try your hand at generating income from this historic industry, there are a few approaches you can take. Scotch is a booming market. To give some perspective, every second, 41 bottles of Scotch whisky are shipped from Scotland to 175 countries around the world.
The Scotch whisky investment boom
Whisky accounts for 70% of Scottish food and drink exports, and 21% of all UK food and drink exports. In 2018, the export value of Scotch whisky grew by 7.8%, to a record £4.70 billion and the number of 70cl bottles exported reached record levels, growing to the equivalent of 1.28 billion.
Knight Frank recently included whisky in its annual Luxury Investment Index, along with classic cars, wine, diamonds, coins and stamps. In 2018, whisky ranked second in the index, only behind art in terms of sales. This was helped by a new world record price set for a bottle of rare single malt scotch whisky. The Michael Dillon hand-painted bottle of the Macallan 1926 was sold by Christies for $1.5 million USD.
There is money in whisky, but the trick comes in knowing what’s going to increase in value.
How to invest in Scotch whisky
Buying brand names, like the Macallan, will be a safe bet but it’s difficult, and expensive, to get your hands on any rare Macallan bottles. In general, buying bottles of whisky and selling for a profit takes a lot of time and expertise. But there is a way to shortcut some of the research.
Making whisky requires a lot of upfront capital. Casks need to age for at least three years to be called whisky. This is why more and more distilleries are opening their doors to people who want to buy a cask of new make spirit, keep it for a few years and then sell for a profit.
Whisky & Wealth Club is one such alternative investment company that connects private investors with distilleries so they can buy casks of new make or aged whisky. These private investors then own their own casks which they leave to mature and then sell for a substantial profit down the line.
Why whisky brands are important for investing
Brands are still important when you take this approach which is why Whisky & Wealth Club only partners with well-established, mature whisky brands similar to The Macallan. For example, Bladnoch Distillery, a 200-year-old distillery that recently changed ownership. The new owner has rebuilt this historic distillery, restoring it to its former glory and has secured master distiller, Dr. Nick Savage, who was previously master distiller at The Macallan.
“We always believed that buying casks of whisky should be much more accessible than it has been. Not only is investing in casks of whisky a great way for individuals to potentially see healthy returns but it also supports distilleries,” says Jay Bradley, founder of the Whisky & Wealth Club.