On May 30, a 700-milliliter bottle of set a new world record for Japanese whisky when it sold for HK$8,250,000 (approx. $1.05 million or ?168 million).

The extremely rare whisky was the crowning item in a Hong Kong sale held by United Kingdom-based auction house Bonhams. The final price was nearly double its high estimate of HK$2.8 million to HK$4.2 million. According to Bonhams, an intense bidding war unfolded between three collectors before the record-breaking sale went under the hammer.

In a statement, Bonhams said the sale highlighted the ¡°strong demand for ultrarare Japanese whiskies.¡±

One of the rarest Japanese whiskies in the world, the Yamazaki 50 Year Old is the distillery¡¯s second-oldest expression, with bottles released only in 2005, 2007 and 2011. The whisky, which is adorned with a label made from traditional washi paper and a signature by Suntory¡¯s chief blender Shinji Fukuyo, was bottled exclusively for the 50th anniversary of Club Natsume, a members-only bar in Nagoya.

The sale of the Yamazaki 50 Year Old eclipsed the previous record of HK$6.2 million for a bottle of Yamazaki 55 Year Old in 2020.

Amayes Aouli, global head of wine and spirits at Bonhams, said breaking the world auction record for a Japanese whisky is ¡°an important milestone.¡±

Japanese whiskies first began headlining auctions in 2015, when a complete 54-bottle set of Ichiro¡¯s Card Series sold for HK$3.79 million ¡ª a then-record price for a Japanese whisky lot. In 2018, a bottle of Yamazaki 50 Year Old sold for what was then a record-breaking HK$2.3 million at Sotheby¡¯s Hong Kong, a feat that was eclipsed the following August by Bonham¡¯s HK$2.69 million sale of the same Yamazaki.

The secondary market for Japanese whisky before hitting a slump that continued till 2025. The latest sale at Bonhams is a fillip to the downward trend.

Last weekend¡¯s Japanese whisky-themed auction at Bonhams also saw a 700 ml bottle dubbed ¡°Karuizawa 52 Year Old Cask #5627, 1960 Treasure Ship¡± sold for HK$6.25 million.