No. 4 Karuizawa 1960 52 Year Old – sold for US$ 435, 273
The rare 52 Year old Karuizawa is one of only 41 bottles ever produced before the distillery closed in 2000, and is the oldest Karuizawa expression ever released. Each of the bottle is identified by an individual netsuke carved from oak cask. The bottle that would later become the world record holder for the most expensive Japanese whisky ever sold comes with a unique rat netsuke. The bottle saw a fierce bidding at Sotheby’s sale in London in March, and was sold eventually for £363,000 or $435,273 to an Asian private collector, far exceeding its pre-sale estimate of £160,000-220,000. A world record for the most valuable single bottle of Japanese whisky was thus set, breaking the previous record held by the 50 Year Old Yamazaki.
The same bottle with a dragon netsuke was sold at Bonhams in Hong Kong for HK$ 2,450,000 (US$ 316,055) just two years ago, proving the feverish demand for rare Japanese drams.
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