Over 100 bottles of Laphroaig appear in Whisky Auctioneer’s August auction, with legendary bottles including the Laphroaig 1967 Cadenhead's 15 Year Old Sherry Wood. The slightly polarising Islay distillery, considered too ‘richly flavoured’ by some yet loved by many, has some amazing releases in its history, with early official bottlings standing alongside legendary independent bottlings such as the Laphroaig 1970 Samaroli 14 Year Old / Osteria Apostoli, bottled by Samaroli for the restaurant and now incredibly rare and sought-after.

Samaroli Handwritten Labels

A beautiful collection of Samaroli Handwritten Labels appears in this month’s Whisky Auctioneer auction. Visually appealing bottles with, as their name suggests, labels handwritten by Silvano Samaroli himself, these are some of the most sought-after Italian independent bottlings on the secondary market. A highlight includes the Port Ellen 1981 Samaroli / Handwritten Labels, marrying the lost Islay gem with one of the icons of independent bottling. Astonishingly, three bottles of the Scapa 1958 Samaroli 46% / Handwritten Labels appear in the auction, two of which are Signed by Silvano Samaroli.

Glen Albyn 1965 Scotch Malt Sales / Tir Nan Og

A bottle rarely seen at Whisky Auctioneer, the Glen Albyn 1965 Scotch Malt Sales / Tir Nan Og is a visually beautiful bottle with Celtic motifs from the lost distillery in Inverness. Bottled by Japanese importer and independent bottler Scotch Malt Sales at cask strength, this is a rare opportunity to acquire whisky from the distillery, which was mostly used for blending prior to its closure exactly 50 years ago, in 1983.

Glen Garioch pre- 1968

This month’s auction contains a rare collection of single cask bottlings from the Aberdeenshire gem, Glen Garioch. Situated in the rich farmland of Aberdeenshire, it is perhaps no surprise that this is one of Scotland’s oldest distilleries, founded all the way back in the late 18^th century. Since then, the distillery has taken a winding journey to the modern day with various owners, a change to its water source in the 1970s to address supply issues and switching to a more heavily peated style in the 1970s before moving away from it again in the 1990s. These bottles come from last DCL era vintage before the temporary closure of the distillery, back when the original water source, in-house malting facility, and a more lightly peated style was used. 

This article is sponsored by Whisky Auctioneer and is created in partnership with the team at Whisky Magazine. This sponsorship does not influence Whisky Magazine's coverage of auctions and Whisky Auctioneer do not have input on editorial decisions.

About Whisky Auctioneer

Whisky Auctioneer is one of the global market leaders and trusted authorities on the buying and selling of whisky and spirits at auction. Founded in 2013 and located in Perth, Whisky Auctioneer utilises its expertise and knowledge combined with its auction platform, to increase interest and passion in the whisky and spirits community.
Whisky Auctioneer endeavours to make the market more accessible for buyers and sellers of any background and geography. Its monthly global auctions feature some of the most comprehensive selections of old, rare and collectible whiskies and spirits available online.

Whisky Auctioneer became the first online auction house to sell a million-pound bottle and outperformed the nearest traditional auction house by 200 per cent in value from spirits sales in 2020, showcasing the move that whisky collectors, investors and drinkers have already made online and firmly establishing their leading position within the modern secondary whisky market.