Whiskey Bottle Sells For $ 488,000! Who Is The Eccentric Buyer
A rare bottle of whisky on offer at a duty-free store in Istanbul Airport has been sold for the incredible amount of $488,000.
Described as a very limited 55-year-old Yamazaki whiskey, the bottle had been on sale at one of the airport's Unifree Duty Free outlets since December 2021.
According to Forbes, Shinjiro Torii—Yamazaki’s founder, distilled the first stream in the dawn of the ’60s and partially aged it in mizunara oak, a deciduous oak strain endemic to Northeast Asia. The second and third streams were distilled in 1961 and 1964 under the supervision of Suntory’s second master blender Keizo Saji and they were aged in American white oak. These three expressions were then picked and blended by chief blender Shinji Fukuyo in collaboration with Shinjiro Torri’s grandson—the third-generation master blender Shingo Torii.
After launching 100 bottles in 2020 in Japan through a lottery system, Suntory expanded on the release in 2021, offering a very limited batch of another 100 bottles to the rest of the world, with a number of bottles allocated to key partners in the field.
Described as a very limited 55-year-old Yamazaki whiskey, the bottle had been on sale at one of the airport's Unifree Duty Free outlets since December 2021.
According to airport-world.com, considering the exceptionally limited nature of this kind of whisky, customers have been invited to bid to have the chance to purchase the precious liquor. Eight interested customers made a valid offer, the bottle being bought by a Chinese.
"We are thrilled that this record-breaking sale has taken place at our store," Ali Şenher, CEO of Unifree Duty Free, said."It provides further evidence that special products can help to achieve amazing results for airport retail and that Istanbul Airport is the perfect site to offer rarities like the Yamazaki 55-Year-Old to a particularly discerning international clientele," he added.
The 55-Year-Old Yamazaki Whiskey - A Very Special Liquor
The oldest single malt whiskey in the history of Suntory House is a blend of three exceptional single malts from the 1960s, featuring components distilled under the supervision of Suntory founder Shinjiro Torii.According to Forbes, Shinjiro Torii—Yamazaki’s founder, distilled the first stream in the dawn of the ’60s and partially aged it in mizunara oak, a deciduous oak strain endemic to Northeast Asia. The second and third streams were distilled in 1961 and 1964 under the supervision of Suntory’s second master blender Keizo Saji and they were aged in American white oak. These three expressions were then picked and blended by chief blender Shinji Fukuyo in collaboration with Shinjiro Torri’s grandson—the third-generation master blender Shingo Torii.
After launching 100 bottles in 2020 in Japan through a lottery system, Suntory expanded on the release in 2021, offering a very limited batch of another 100 bottles to the rest of the world, with a number of bottles allocated to key partners in the field.
