Yamazaki 50 year old breaks auction record

A bottle of Yamazaki single malt has broken the auction record for Japanese whisky, selling for  HK$2,337,000 (US $298,850) on January 27.

The single malt, produced by Suntory Whisky, was aged for more than 50 years and just 150, 700ml bottles were released in 2011 at 57% abv.

The record-breaking bottle sold for double its expected value and was auctioned at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong.

The bottle was signed by Shinji Fukuyo, chief blender at Suntory Whisky. Fukuyo is also a judge for the whisky leg of DI’s International Spirits Challenge, which takes place every year in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Yamazaki’s latest release, Mizunara 2017, was launched in Australia at the close of last year, retailing at $1,000.