A bottle of the world’s oldest and rarest Japanese whisky is going under the hammer for the first time in Australia.

The legendary Yamazaki 55 by House of Suntory will be auctioned by Dan Murphy’s in partnership with Langton’s. 

Although the rare whisky has a recommended retail price of $90,000, in 2020 a bottle of a Yamazaki 55 sold for over $1 million at an auction in Hong Kong – which is more than $45,000 per dram (35ml).

“At Dan Murphy’s, we pride ourselves in offering customers the widest range of drinks to discover, and we are thrilled to have managed to secure one of the rarest and most coveted whiskies in the world,” said Dan Murphy’s Managing Director Alex Freudmann. 

“We want to offer Australian collectors the fairest shot – pardon the pun – of acquiring this release of a lifetime which is why we have decided to host an online auction. The market can decide what the price should be!” he added. 

The House of Suntory first released 100 bottles of the Yamizaki 55 in 2020, strictly only available to whisky enthusiasts in Japan. The bottles were made available through a lottery, and ‘winners’ got the chance to buy the bottle for $37,000. It was one of these bottles that sold in Hong Kong for over $1 million.

This year, 100 bottles of the legendary Yamazaki 55 by House of Suntory have been released across the world – there will be no further releases of this super premium whisky. 

Yamazaki 55 is a blend of three ulta rare single malts from the 1960s, crafted by Suntory’s third Master Blender Shingo Torii and is the oldest single malt from Japan. The bottle itself is all craftsmanship, and features real lacquer and gold dust-engraved calligraphy.

This will be the first time Dan Murphy’s has hosted an auction, and the drinks retailer has partnered with auctioneer Langton’s to host the online auction, which opens on Friday October 29th.

In 2020, Dan Murphy’s sold a bottle of The Macallan 72 Years Old in Lalique whisky for $150,000 from its Double Bay store, which is the most expensive bottle of spirits sold in the drinks retailer’s 69-year-old history.

“Overall, we are seeing Aussies drinking less but drinking better, and they keep going higher and higher up the shelf when it comes to their whiskies in particular – which is why I expect there to be a bidding war over the Yamazaki 55,” Mr Freudmann explained.  

In addition to the Yamazaki 55, there will be 30 whisky bottles from House of Suntory available in the Dan Murphy’s and Langton’s auction, with recommended prices ranging between $200 to $9800. The whiskies will go to the highest bidder when the hammer falls, on Monday November 15. 

To view the products and register your interest in the auction, head to http://www.langtons.com.au/auctions/suntory 

Whisky enthusiasts who want to view the whisky masterpiece, the Yamazaki 55 will be on display in Dan Murphy’s Cellar in Prahran, Melbourne, from Friday October 22.