Over the last two decades, there has been a significant appreciation in the value of many whiskies. This phenomenon has been particularly true of Scotch and Japanese whiskies and, to a lesser extent, American whiskeys.
Concurrent with this price appreciation, and often intertwined with it, has been a second trend towards the “premiumization” of many whiskies.
Premiumization refers to the release of expensive ultra-aged whisky expressions, single malts and blends, and non-age statement whiskies that incorporate rare malts of undisclosed age. These whiskies can retail for thousands, sometimes tens of thousands, of dollars a bottle. These whisky expressions are highly collectible due to their small numbers. Many have a history of significant value appreciation after their release.
Between 2011 and 2021, for example, the Knight Frank Luxury Investment Index had Scotch whisky as the best-performing asset class, with an appreciation of 428% among “luxury collectibles.” Classic cars, by comparison, appreciated 164% over that same period. Andrew Shirley, Editor of Knight Frank’s The Wealth report, dubs these asset classes “investments of passion.” Source Forbes 03/11/22
