Which whiskey is best to invest in?
Mature Whiskies
Generally, irrespective of the brand and quality, older whisky makes a better investment. At auctions, bottles from yesteryear continue to be desirable: Laphroaig 10-year old varieties from the 1970s, as well as Lagavulin 12 and Talisker 8-year olds.
Property adviser Knight Frank's “The Wealth Report 2022” shows that, as of the last quarter, rare whisky is by far its highest-performing luxury investment class, showing a 428 per cent growth over the last 10 years, even more so than cars (164 per cent), wine (137 per cent) and watches (108 per cent).
There are a variety of liquors to invest in, so if you're new to investing in liquid commodities like alcohol, stick to one, such as whiskey, to start. Some more popular high-end investment-grade brands include Glenlivet, Macallan, and Yamazaki.
Macallan Fine and Rare 1926
Distilled 85-years ago and aged for more than 60-years in European oak casks, in 2022, this whisky is considered a prize among collectors and investors alike.
Whisky can be a lucrative investment, with some rare bottles selling for hundreds of thousands of dollars. The market for rare and collectable whisky is growing, with many investors seeing it as a promising alternative to traditional assets like stocks and real estate.
Most collectible bottles are over 10 years old and value usually increases with the age of the whisky. Whisky over 30 years old is the most sought after as it is the rarest. Any whisky bottled at over 50 years old is highly desirable and a very limited number of distilleries have released whisky over 50 years old.
Global whiskey market: leading brands based on sales volume 2021. In 2021, some 30.1 million 9 liter cases of McDowell's No. 1 whiskey were sold worldwide. Imperial Blue was number two that year, selling about 24.1 million cases.
The most obvious way to begin investing in whiskey is to purchase some highly valuable collectible whiskeys. Investors simply store these valuable bottles for several years as their value increases, then they are sold for a profit.
Older whiskies tend to be more expensive, due to the law of supply and demand. Over time, older items go out of circulation and there become fewer bottles intact and available in the market. This reduction in supply coupled with growing demand drives up the price.
One of the most popular ways to invest in whisky is to buy a bottle, wait for it to mature over a few years, and then sell it again. Higher-end whiskies have vintages like wine. So, a whisky from 2020 is likely to be far more valuable in 2040 than in 2025.
What is the next big alcohol trend?
IWSR reports that the total volume of no-alcohol and low-alcohol beverages hitting the global market is expected to grow 31% by 2024. A recent Gallup survey shows that consumers are supporting this trend. In 2019, 65% of adults reported drinking alcoholic beverages. That number was down to only 60% in 2021.
Presenting a return of 40% over a 12-month period, whisky investments have soared whilst gold investments offer a mere 12%.
Redbreast 12-Year-Old is one of the smoothest whiskeys you can find. It's a single-pot, Irish still whiskey that is triple-distilled in copper stills. The producer – Irish Distillers in Dublin, Ireland – ages Redbreast for 12 years in bourbon, American Oak, Oloroso Sherry, and Spanish Oak butts.
Are Whisky Casks Liable for Capital Gains Tax? The good news is that whisky casks are classed as a wasting asset and as such are not subject to capital gains tax.
While whiskey doesn't necessarily expire, it does start to lose flavor and elements after it is opened. An unopened bottle of whiskey will last indefinitely if stored in proper condition. After opening a bottle of whiskey, you have as long as two years or as few as six months or less to drink it before it goes bad.
Rich & Rare Reserve is an impeccable blended whisky, blended by renowned Master Blender, Drew Mayville of the Sazerac Company. Its unique marriage of smooth and spicy flavors make for a great whisky on ice or in mixed drinks. Smooth, yet spicy whisky perfect for any occasion.
Maker's Mark Rating
It's not particularly great, unique, or noteworthy for me, but it's still a solid option if you're looking for something that's available, affordable, and easier to drink neat.
Generally speaking, Crown Royal is a Canadian whiskey that we strongly recommend to anyone out there who's looking for a smooth classic spirit. This whiskey is great for co*cktails and may be used in all those co*cktail recipes that don't specify a certain type of whiskey.
Is Crown Royal top shelf? Crown Royal is a top shelf whisky; their finer varieties are as fine as any other whiskys in the world.
The Macallan Anniversary Malts are better suited to long-term investment as they do not see the jump and subsequent fall in price that most modern bottlings see. Instead, their value rises gradually over time. So, if you are looking for a long-term investment then these bottles are a great place to start.
How much is 50 year old whiskey worth?
Only an infinitesimal number of special barrels have gone the distance of 50 years, and their rarity and longevity always command top dollar. Current offerings of 50 year old scotch, like Dalmore, can cost as much as $60,000 a bottle, making others, like Benromach, look like a veritable bargain at $14,500.
Some alcohol, like wine, gets better in the bottle over time, but this isn't true for all types of booze, including whiskey. Unopened whiskey can last indefinitely, but a bottle that has been opened will eventually expire due to oxidation.
INDOGGO® Gin is the ultimate remix of seven premium botanicals infused with all-natural ingredients including strawberry, no sugar with a slightly sweet and fruity finish.
Martini Madness
We named the martini the Drink of The Year making its presence on this list a shoe-in. 2022 bore witness to a Martini renaissance filled with creative takes on the classic, iconic co*cktail.
Most primary (also called "base") liquors like whiskey, brandy, rum, gin, tequila, and vodka, have an almost infinite shelf life if left unopened. That's because they don't have much sugar and, unopened, aren't at risk of any oxidation.
Buy whisky by the cask
The idea is that investors buy a cask with the aim of watching the spirit inside appreciate in value over time. The older a whisky gets, runs the thinking, the more expensive it becomes – thanks to the taste improving with age, and also because of the increasing rarity factor.
Top Shelf: Bottles on the highest shelves behind a bar. Though there's no hard rule as to cost, these tend to be bottles that would retail for $50 or more in a store. Mid Shelf: Bottles on the lower half of the shelf behind a bartender. With liquor, this would usually be bottles that fall in the $25–50 range.
Generally, a top-shelf whiskey brand is a brand that produces whiskey from high-quality ingredients and is usually rare and expensive. The terminology top-shelf is often used because bar owners display the bottles on the top-shelf behind the bartender.
Top-shelf spirits, or super-premium, aren't dissimilar to premium spirits. In fact, some bars don't even differentiate top-shelf liquors from premium spirits. Generally, top-shelf liquors are the most expensive, most rare, and aged for the longest of any liquor.
The most obvious way to begin investing in whiskey is to purchase some highly valuable collectible whiskeys. Investors simply store these valuable bottles for several years as their value increases, then they are sold for a profit.
How to make money buying whiskey?
One of the most popular ways to invest in whisky is to buy a bottle, wait for it to mature over a few years, and then sell it again. Higher-end whiskies have vintages like wine. So, a whisky from 2020 is likely to be far more valuable in 2040 than in 2025.
The amount of time that whisky has spent in the barrel greatly affects the taste. Then again, a higher age doesn't necessarily mean that one spirit is “better” than a younger one. All the age label denotes is that the flavour of the wooden cask has had more time to impart itself into the whisky.