Is buying a Cask of Whisky an Investment?

Thursday

Sep102009

Thu, September 10, 2009

I think the only time you can really say that buying a cask from a distillery is an investment is if you're a retailer doing independant bottlings.

Otherwise, in my opinion buying a cask of whisky is simply bulk buying to get a reasonable discount!

There are exceptions to this rule, but isn't always the case. For example new distilleries generally will do cask sales to help build equity, but this doesn't always mean it's a good speculative investment. Arran Distillery found that demand for their whisky was high enough to approach original cask holders to buy back backs or do exchanges for other products.

However, it's worth being aware that buying a cask will at the end of the aging period leave you with a big bill for taxes, and the potetial for a lot of bottles of something undrinkable. By a lot of bottle I mean 150- 400+ depending on cask sizes.

What are the Costs Involved?

The cost of buying a cask and differ from Distillery to Distillery, and not all distilleries will sell casks to general public.

(*Updated July 2011*) The following distilleries do have cask buying programs for anyone over the Legal drinking age in Scotland or the country they are based:

Scotland

Bruicladdich

They have a collection of different cask types available in the laddie shop. Prices vary between £1,300 & £2,200 for one of four cask types.

Fresh Bourbon Barrel.
French Oak Wine Cask.
The Rhinns Edition 10th Anniversary Cask Offer. Limited to 200 casks (split between bourbon & wine fill). Approx 195ltrs of 30PPM spirit
The Rhinns Edition 10th Anniversary Cask Offer. Limited to 200 casks (split between bourbon & wine fill). Approx 225ltrs of 30PPM spirit - Never before offered, filled into Sweet Wine Cask.

Isle of Arran

Isle of Barra

Glengoyne

Glenglassaugh

Tullibardine

Kingbarns

Darren | Comments Off |

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References (9)

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Source: Bruichladdich New Fillings - 10th Anniversary Cask

on Jan 1, 2011

With regret we can no longer supply cask or futures sales to the USA or Canada (Existing customers are not affected)
Source: Cask Ownership

We have two different opportunities to be able to purchase a cask of your own Scotch Whisky. In both of these schemes we will fill your cask with our acclaimed new make spirit and store it in our traditional warehouse for a period of not less than 3 years, after which it becomes Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky and can be filled into bottles for you to take away.
Source: Cask Purchase Info

For further information about joining our valued Cask Owners scheme, please email: [email protected]
Source: Our Cask Offer

In celebration of the historic recomissioning of the Tullibardine distillery, we are delighted to announce the launch of a very special cask offer. We’ve laid aside some of the first distillations for those who wish to purchase their own piece of Tullibardine heritage. This new single malt spirit is available (in limited numbers) in three cask sizes: barrel, hogshead and butt.
Source: Glengoyne Cask Sales

Only a limited number of casks will be made available each year. If you are an individual, club, society, or group of friends that enjoy great scotch whisky, the Glengoyne Cask Offer will let you create your own, utterly unique dram, keeping you involved from cask selection to bottling.
Source: Own A Part Of Scotland

Quartercasks.com can assist those who have a passion for Scotland’s favourite export by providing a method of Whisky cask ownership that is safe, secure and fun. This is your chance to buy and own a cask of Scotch Whisky. Quartercasks.com is supported by Duncan Taylor Scotch Whisky Ltd, Merchant Bottlers and Purveyors of the Worlds Finest Single Malt, Single Grain and Rare Blended Whiskies. The company which was established in 1938 owns one of the largest privately held stocks of rare casks age
Source: Cask List

by Martin Armstrong

The best reason is that it is FUN!!! If you don’t think that it will be fun then you definitely shouldn’t do it. If you have the whisky bug you won’t need to be told that tasting, nosing, sampling, discussing, re-tasting and enjoying are the reasons that whisky fans drink whisky in preference to other drinks. To debate the endless complexities of the flavour of a whisky, and compare it’s merits to those of other whiskies are what make it so interesting and exciting.
Source: Buy a Cask

We are planning to build a small distillery on the island and would like to offer a small number of Privately owned casks of our single malt for sale.
Related: Buying Scotch Whisky Casks: Whisky barrels

Purchasing a cask of Scotch Whisky may be the ultimate prize for a Whisky enthusiast; however it has many pitfalls and very few casks of single malt are actually sold by distillers to the general public.