Asian collectors ‘stripping Scotland of its finest whisky’
SCOTLAND is being “stripped” of its best whisky amid a surge in demand from wealthy Asian collectors, dealers have claimed.
Enthusiasts from countries such as China, Taiwan and Malaysia are driving up the price of whisky by buying up high-end bottles, which are becoming increasingly fashionable in the Far East.
Dealers say the sharp increase in demand has resulted in whisky being viewed as an attractive investment for collectors in the UK.
A 40-year-old bottle of Glendronach, a highland scotch, is now valued at about £2,500 when it cost about £250 in 2011, according to experts.
Bottles of Macallan Private Eye were priced at £37 per bottle in 1996 but can now fetch up to £5,000.
The Speyside-based distillery also produced a series of commemorative bottles to mark royal events in 2011, 2012 and 2013 which have shot up from £1,000 to £9,000.
Matteo Menestrina, owner of the Speyside Whisky Shop in Aberlour, said: “Taiwan is a huge buyer as well, maybe even bigger than China.
“I have been told it is a status thing over there − something to show who is better than who by who has the most expensive whisky. When they do business meetings, they open a big bottle to impress.”
Another dealer, Dale Tate of Fiddichside Whisky Ltd, also in Aberlour, said the demand for sales was being driven up because whisky had become a status symbol. He said: “I’ve seen how in Chinese restaurants they just order old whisky and then don’t even drink it because they don’t like it. There, they wouldn’t touch a 12-year-old whisky which we in the UK would consider to be very good. They will only drink whisky over 18 years old. “They just want to be seen ordering the most expensive and the best of everything.” Mr Tate said British enthusiasts were also making a profit from collecting whisky. “With interest rates at an alltime low, people looking for alternative investments are now flocking to secure bottles of whisky,” he said.