Rare single

Aug 13, 2023

There are only 288 bottles of The Macallan-The Reach whisky in the world. The 41.6 proof Scotch single malt is a "war-whisky," distilled in 1940

For a select few, Vancouver is recession-proof. So much so that the city was selected as the only market in Canada to offer for sale a rare, 81-year-old bottle of single-malt whisky. The price: $228,000.

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Plus 15 per cent tax, and a 10-cent bottle deposit, of course.

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There are only 288 bottles of The Macallan-The Reach whisky in the world. The 41.6 proof Scotch single malt is a "war-whisky," distilled in 1940, and left to slumber in a single sherry-seasoned oak cask through the Second World War, the summer of love, the Beatles, the Sex Pistols, Brexit and a global pandemic.

The liquor is presented in a mouth-blown decanter, and held in a bronze sculpture of three hands.

"We have the market for it," said Adele Shaw, a manager with the B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch. "There is already huge buzz."

They buyer will be selected in a draw to be held at the BCLDB's Cambie Street location at 7:15 p.m. on May 25. Whisky enthusiasts, collectors, investors — or their representatives — must enter the draw in person between 4 and 7 p.m. on that date.

"They have to be here," said Shaw, who said it's the most expensive bottle the BCLDB has ever sold — beating out other high-end spirits that have been recently sold, including $110,000 and $150,000 bottles of Bowmore.

"Some buy these bottles to drink, others for investment purposes," said Shaw, who is expecting about 30 prospective buyers to potentially enter from around the globe.

In 2022, Sotheby's sold the first bottle of Macallam-The Reach, a one-of-kind edition, at auction for £240,000 — about $400,000 Canadian, to an anonymous U.K. collector.

The bottle will not be on display at the Cambie store event. Instead a 3D replica will stand in its place. The bottle is in a secure case, under lock and key at an undisclosed warehouse location. Insured, of course.

Whisky enthusiasts, investors, collectors and high-rollers must be on hand at the store for the draw. If you didn't get a ticket to the sold-out Macallan whisky-tasting for May 25 at the store, fear not. You can still show up to enter.

Losers in the draw will have other more affordable selections to choose from, including the Macallan Double-Cask 30-year-old with a "fresh honeycomb" melody at $7,200. There is also the Harmony, a 30-year-old with a "tiramisu" nose, which sells for roughly $240.

"Anyone can enter the draw, except staff, we don't screen," said Shaw. "We assume people have the means to pay, and they would have to pay right away."

They won't, however, be accepting cash.

"This is a whisky from 1941 — think about what's happened in the world since then," said Shaw.

According to The Macallan, The Reach has "notes of dark chocolate, sweet cinnamon, plum, leather, pink grapefruit, and resinous notes on the nose. On the palate, it resonates with hints of treacle toffee, crystallized ginger, nutmeg, roasted pineapple, pecans and woodsmoke, while the finish is intensely sweet and smoky."

Shaw, however, hasn't tasted it herself. "We don't get samples."

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