Bonhams has announced the promotion of Diego Lanza as Head of Whisky in Asia to lead lead all Bonhams whisky business in the region and expand the company’s presence in this competitive market.
Based in Hong Kong, Lanza will also work closely with the wider global team on all sales and projects. The new appointment fills an important role after the departure of Bonhams’ longtime Asia Wine and Whisky Director Daniel Lam.
Lanza joined Bonhams in London as Senior Whisky Specialist in 2021, a role in which he established his international expertise and leadership in Europe and Asia. He has been instrumental in the success of a number of significant sales from Bonhams’ global salerooms, including the sale of: a Black Bowmore Aston Martin DB5-31 year old-1964 in London; a Laphroaig-15 year old-1967-Samaroli in Paris; and most recently: the Yamazaki Junshin in Hong Kong.
Prior to Bonhams, Lanza worked for the internationally-leading online whiskies and spirit retailer – The Whisky Exchange, where he was responsible for curating the company’s private collection, spearheading its private client advisory and advising global spirit auctions.
The first international auction house to sell whisky in Asia in 2008, Bonhams is a worldwide market leader with multiple records set over the past 15 years, including two that are still standing, namely the record for a bottle of Japanese whisky and for a whisky series. Currently, Bonhams hold auction for whisky in four major selling locations: Hong Kong, London, Paris, and Edinburgh, Scotland – the native land of whisky where Bonhams is the only international auction house to hold stand-alone sales.
Bonhams Managing Director Asia Julia Hu said: “I am delighted to welcome Diego in his new capacity as Head of Whisky, Asia. Whisky has always been a star category at Bonhams Asia since we pioneered it in 2008. With Diego’s international experience, we hope to strengthen our leading position in the years to come.”
