News this week
1
Sotheby's auction hits new record of $150 million
2
Luxury spirits continue to grow in the third quarter of 2022
3
Whisky Auctioneer sales exceed £50m
4
Isle of Harris Distillery
to invest £10m to expand global business
5
Beam reveals American Vish Bogey trend
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01
Sotheby's auction sales hit a new record of US$150 million
This year, Sotheby's auction sales reached US$150 million, an increase of 14% compared with last year's US$132 million.
Among them, Asia remains a popular region for Sotheby’s wine and spirits transactions. This year, total auction sales in the region reached $54 million, accounting for more than a third of its total auction sales. According to Sotheby's, buyers from Asia account for 41% of sales in terms of value created.
And driven by strong demand for high-end spirits, U.S. spirits sales increased from $5 million last year to $12 million this year.
This also means that everyone is increasingly interested in wine collecting.
In addition, Sotheby's held a total of 69 wine and spirits auctions throughout the year, including 32 single-owner auctions, with a total turnover of US$99 million.
One of the more representative ones is the Macallan 81 Year Old, which sold for 300,000 pounds in October this year. This is the oldest whiskey auction with the oldest age mark to date.
02
Luxury spirits continue to grow in the third quarter of 2022
Recently, the Distilling Council of the United States (Discus) released sales data for luxury spirits in the third quarter of 2022.
According to the American Distilling Council, this quarter’s Luxury Brand Index (LBI) report analyzes sales of spirits brands that are packaged in 750 ml bottles and retail for $50 or more.
The results pointed out that amid continued economic uncertainty, the spirits industry remained resilient, with luxury spirits sales growing strongly in the third quarter of 2022. Among them, American whiskey and tequila were the categories with the largest growth in the third quarter, increasing by 33% and 29% respectively.
In addition, Japanese whiskey rose 20% after declining in the same period last year; Irish whiskey also performed strongly, growing by 17% in the third quarter after reaching a high growth rate of 19% the previous year.
Over the five-year period to the third quarter of 2022, annual growth rates for all spirits categories included in LBI ranged from 8% to 44%, with an average growth rate of 23%.
03
Whiskey Auctioneer sales exceed £50 million
Not long ago, the Whiskey Auctioneer website released the 2022 report card. It reported sales of more than £50 million for the full year, with more than 10,500 new registered users and bidders placing 2.2 million bids on 115,000 lots.
In addition, bidders come from all over the world, and the whiskey auctioneers ship the lots to 67 countries around the world during the year.
It is worth noting that many whiskeys on the auction site have broken auction records. For example, Ardbeg 1974 Single Cask #2742 became the most expensive single bottle of whiskey ever sold on the platform, with a transaction price of 35,000 pounds ($424,50).
A bottle No. 1 from White Peak Distillery set a new record for British whiskey auctions at a price of 9,900 pounds (approximately US$11,377).
In addition, the Porter Ellen 12-year-old bottled and launched in 1980 for the visit of Queen Elizabeth II successfully sold for 100,000 pounds. There are only about 40 bottles of this legendary Islay whiskey left in the world, making it extremely rare.
This also shows that the whiskey market has a positive sign during the economic downturn.
04
The Isle of Harris Distillery
will invest 10 million pounds to expand its global business
Recently, the Isle of Harris Distillers (Isle of Harris Distillers) located in the northwest of announced that it will invest 10 million pounds for global brand promotion.
It is reported that the funds came from HSBC UK and will be used for the distribution of the distillery’s flagship gin and first single malt whiskey Heacrach. Once launched, the business will expand to more than 20 international markets. The company is currently planning to enter the United States, Canada, France and Germany.
In addition, the funds will also be used for the expansion of the distillery, including two new warehouses that can store 2.75 million bottles of spirits.
The Isle of Harris Distillery was established in 2015 and is one of the largest companies on the island. It won awards in this year’s Gin Master Blind Tasting Competition and Packaging Design Competition, and the distillery is also very confident in promoting their products to more people.
05
Beam reveals American whiskey trends
Beam Suntory North America President Greg Hughes said in an interview that innovation, renovation and high-endization are the main trends in American whiskey in the next year, and are also opportunities for American whiskey to expand globally.
And bourbon ’s versatility and sweeter flavors are driving growth in the industry, as it’s more approachable and easier to mix than scotch when drunk neat, so Hughes said the category will also see increased sales in its home market in the future.
In addition, Hughes, who will take over as Beam Suntory's chief growth and brand officer in the new year, also pointed out that limited editions are still very popular products.
In the future, Beam Suntory will also continue to focus its innovation on premium whiskey.
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