The Top 6 Most Expensive Balvenie Whiskies Ever Sold at Auction
Balvenie is located in the Convals of Dufftown. William Grant built the distillery just below Glenfiddich in 1892, and it shares the same water source, the Robbie Dhu springs, as its famous neighbour. Despite having the same distiller, Balvenie has a very different character. It is one of the few Scotch distilleries with in-house floor maltings, which use locally hand-cut peat. The floor maltings at Balvenie also supply nearby Glenfiddich.
It wasn’t until 1990, when Kininvie distillery was able to take on some of the responsibility for blending stock production, that Balvenie was truly able to thrive as a single malt. The distillery quickly distinguished itself by using innovative maturation processes, and it was a pioneer of cask “finishing” when it introduced its Doublewood expression in 1993. Balvenie is also one of the few distilleries that still uses onsite maltings, though this only meets a small portion of its needs.
Balvenie 1962 56 Year Old DCS Compendium Chapter 5
DCS Compendium is a five-part collection of 25 whiskies and a book commemorating the life’s work of malt master David Charles Stewart.
The Compendium is divided into five ‘Chapters’, each containing five single cask whiskies from five different decades.
Between now and 2019, a new chapter will be released each year, reflecting a different chapter in the accompanying book, which was written by Balvenie global brand ambassador Dr Sam Simmons.
Winning Bid: £36,000
Bottle Count: 90
Age: 56 Years Old
European Oak / Oloroso Sherry Hogshead
Balvenie Original Bottling 50 Year Old
Distilled in 1937 and bottled in 1987 by William Grant & Sons Ltd. of Dufftown, the label and capsule are very slightly worn, and it is packed in the original wooden box.
The Milroy brothers purchased the entire limited release of 500 bottles, which were bottled by William Grant in 1987. Although Balvenie was not a well-known distillery at the time, the quality of this release spoke for itself, and the Milroys were able to sell every bottle with little effort. Only a few remain.
Winning Bid: £32,000
Bottle Count: 500
Age: 50 Years Old
Balvenie 1952 Single Cask 50 Year Old #191
Balvenie introduced the 12-year-old “DoubleWood,” which is credited with pioneering the use of cask-finishing, and it has since become a key motif in the distillery’s output.
This incredible malt was distilled on January 26, 1952, and laid to rest for 50 years. It was bottled on September 5, 2002, from a single sherry cask number 191.
Winning Bid: £25,000
Bottle Count: 83
Age: 50 Years Old
The Balvenie 50 Year Old 1963
Known for its syrupy toffee sweetness, balanced with honey, vanilla oak, and a hint of spice. Presented in a beautifully hand-carved wooden case by Sam Chinnery.
Bottled in 2014, cask number 4570, bottle number 41/128, u.ts, engraved bottle, certificate scroll in case, and Italian strip label.
Winning Bid: £24,000
Bottle Count: 128
Age: 50 Years Old
Balvenie 1952 Cask 19150 Year Old
A bottle of Balvenie 1952. At 50 years old, this is one of the oldest Balvenies ever produced.
This was bottled in 2002 at a natural strength of 45.1% ABV and comes in a carved wooden case that perfectly fits the bottle.
The label reads, “The last cask of The Balvenie Single Malt Scotch Whisky from the nineteen fifties is unique and unrepeatable.”
This is bottle 26 of 83 from the sherry cask 191.
Winning Bid: £23,300
Bottle Count: 83
Age: 50 Years Old
Balvenie 1952 50 Year Old Single Cask #191
At the time of bottling, this was the oldest whisky Balvenie had ever released. This whisky, drawn from a single Sherry cask and bottled at a still healthy cask strength of 45.1%, is something most of us can only dream of tasting.
Winning Bid: £23,000
Bottle Count: 83
Age: 50 Years Old
Balvenie 1963 Single Cask 50 Year Old #4567
This is an absolutely stunning single cask from Balvenie.
This is the first time David C Stewart has crafted a fifty-year-old marriage using some of Balvenie’s oldest and rarest casks. Marrying casks over 50 years old, with varying tastes and liquid strengths, necessitates the application of all of David’s skill and expertise gained during his 55-year tenure as The Balvenie Malt Master.
This incredible malt was distilled on May 28, 1963, and rested in cask #4567 before being bottled on March 20, 2014.
Winning Bid: £22,000
Bottle Count: 131
Balvenie Original Bottling 50 Year Old 1937
Distilled in 1937, bottled in 1987; distilled and bottled by William Grant & Sons Ltd. of Dufftown; label and capsule very slightly worn; front label faded and very slightly marked; packed in original wooden box
The Milroy brothers purchased the entire limited release of 500 bottles, which were bottled by William Grant in 1987. Although Balvenie was not a well-known distillery at the time, the quality of this release spoke for itself, and the Milroys were able to sell every bottle with little effort. Only a few remain.
Winning Bid: £22,000
Bottle Count: 500
Balvenie 1937 Pure Malt 50 Year Old
“When Peter Grant Gordon invited us to visit the Glenfiddich and Balvenie distilleries, we noticed four casks of Balvenie 50 Years Old gathering dust in a corner of the warehouse. After a few drams, Peter agreed to bottle them and sell the majority to us exclusively.”
John and Wallace paid a total of £62,100 for 360 bottles (£163,577 in 2018), which were sold through the brothers’ famous bottle shop on Greek Street in London and partially to the Japanese market via the Seven Importers Group.
This extremely rare malt was distilled in 1937 and bottled in 1987 at 42%. The bottle comes in a classic wooden box.
Wrapping Up
Balvenie’s auctioned whiskies from the vintage 1962 DCS to the classic 1937 Pure Malt have enchanted enthusiasts worldwide.
Each bottle encapsulates a legacy of Speyside craftsmanship.
Here’s to Balvenie — a true icon in the world of Scotch whisky 🍂👆🥃
Committed to democratising access to premium whisky knowledge and investment opportunities, we invite you to connect with the vibrant whisky community and stay updated by following us on X or visiting our web portal at https://stakespirits.co 🥃
