Hawaiian Macallan Fetches £45,000 At Auction

A rare bottle of 1928 Macallan 50 Year Old Anniversary Malt has sold for £45,000 at auction at our Glasgow galleries.

Originally purchased in 1986 by a collector from Hawaii, the iconic spirit travelled almost 7,000 miles to star in McTear’s The Magic of Macallan whisky auction. 

Following fierce bidding, the rare bottle was purchased by a collector from the United States, with the winning bid believed to be the highest for a bottle of the 1928 50 year old this year. 

The single malt was purchased nearly 40 years ago by David Baba, a whisky enthusiast from Hawaii, who won it at a Christie’s auction in Edinburgh.

In a remarkable tale of dedication, Baba asked his friend and fellow whisky aficionado, Glen Young, to travel to Scotland to bid on his behalf on the oldest and finest bottle of Macallan on the market at the time. Young successfully secured the Macallan 50 Year Old for a then-record price of £1,100.  Since that time, the bottle has been carefully stored in Baba’s collection in Hawaii.

Following his passing, the Baba family has decided to bring this remarkable whisky back to Scotland to sell it at McTear’s.

Commenting on the bottle’s extraordinary journey, our whisky specialist, Ewan Thomson, said: “It’s not every day that a whisky as rare as the Macallan 50 Year Old makes its way back to Scotland from halfway around the world. This bottle’s journey from Hawaii to McTear’s is a testament to the auction house’s international reputation for selling the world’s finest whisky.  The auction attracted bidders from across the globe, and we are delighted to see the iconic bottle secure such an impressive amount.”

The Macallan 50 Year Old Anniversary Malt was originally released in 1983 as part of a limited run of 500 bottles, with a price tag of just £50. The bottle has since become a highly coveted prize in the whisky world, with its value increasing dramatically over the years. Its first sale in 1986 set a record for the most expensive bottle of whisky at auction at the time.

In addition to the 50 Year Old Macallan, the auction included over 240 lots of rare whisky from a number of Scotland’s leading distilleries, including Lagavulin, Springbank, Bowmore, Ardbeg and Tomatin, amongst others.   

Prices quoted above include hammer plus buyer's commission.

McTear’s is the longest-established auctioneer of whisky in the world. Entries are invited for our regular international whisky auctions. For a complimentary, no-obligation valuation, visit our Glasgow Galleries or contact our specialist on 0141 810 2880 or whisky@mctears.co.uk.