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WHAT PRICE PER DRAM? £16,000 SCOTCH GOES UNDER HAMMER AT BONHAMS
Johnnie Walker 1805 blend to sell with proceeds to National Trust
One of the most rare and sought-after whiskies in the world is to go under the hammer at Bonhams in London this week. A bottle of Johnnie Walker 1805 – one of only 200 in existence – is expected to fetch between £12,000 – 16,000 at Bonhams’ Sale of Fine Wine and Spirits at 101 New Bond Street on 25 April 2007.
Proceeds from the sale – which is particularly significant since the 1805 blend has never been available for retail sale – will be donated to The National Trusts for England, Wales and, Scotland.
Johnnie Walker, the world’s no.1 premium whisky brand, created the special edition 1805 blend from whiskies that are at least 45 years old and are predominantly from distilleries that no longer exist. It was made in 2005 to celebrate the birth of John Walker on 25 July 1805, and Johnnie Walker released just 200 bottles to present as gifts to high-profile individuals renowned for making a significant contribution to modern life. The vendor of the bottle to be sold at Bonhams, the maker of Johnnie Walker whiskies, is keen that the National Trust for England, Scotland and Wales benefit from this exceptional sale.
“The emergence of one bottle on the auction market is historic in its importance for the Wine and Spirit worlds,” commented Richard Harvey MW, European Director of Wine at Bonhams. “Bonhams is delighted to have the opportunity to present the 1805 blend on the auction market and we are confident it will invite extremely competitive bidding.”
The tasting notes for the whisky read:
Nose this whisky, even at bottle strength, and it is soft and welcoming with ripe fruitness and vanilla sweetness. Add a little water and individual fruits reveal themselves: ripe cherries, apples, pears and peaches. Taste, and the impression is of early autumn: ripe fruits, plums, hints of moss and fallen leaves with light smoke gently threading its way through the fruits. All the flavours are held within a smooth and amazingly mature texture which lingers after the last drop has been swallowed. A truly exceptional whisky.
Each bottle was presented in a handmade Victorian-style writing case together with an antique nib pen to echo the era in which John Walker blended the whiskies himself. In addition, 200 replicas of the original handwritten recipe book of Alexander Walker – John Walker’s grandson – had been printed and included in the commemorative set.
The bottle itself features a gold bust of John Walker and a ‘handwritten’ etching reading, “The inventory of the stocks and effects of John Walker, November 1819” – the oldest surviving handwritten document held in the Johnnie Walker archives.
Further information and images: Frances Godden on 020 7468 8331 or press@bonhams.com
NOTES FOR EDITORS
Bonhams, founded in 1793, is the world's oldest and largest auctioneer of fine art and antiques remaining with British ownership. The present company was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son and Neale UK. In August 2002, the company acquired Butterfields, the principal firm of auctioneers on the West Coast of America and in August 2003, Goodmans, a leading Australian fine art and antiques auctioneer with salerooms in Sydney, joined the Bonhams Group of Companies. Today, Bonhams is the fastest growing auction house in the world, offering more sales than any of its rivals, through two major salerooms in London: New Bond Street, and Knightsbridge, and a further 8 throughout the UK. Sales are also held in Switzerland, Monaco, Germany, Australia and the USA (New York) and with the acquisition of Butterfields in California, has salerooms in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Bonhams also has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives offering sales advice and valuation services in 25 countries. For a full listing of upcoming sales, plus details of more than 50 Bonhams specialist departments, go to www.bonhams.com.
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