This Bottle of American Whiskey Is the Most Expensive Ever Sold

A bottle of Old Rip Van Winkle bourbon shattered records Friday to become the most valuable American whiskey ever sold at auction. Sotheby's New York hosted The Great American Whiskey Collection on January 23, featuring 360 bottles obtained from one singular collector.

The collection as a whole garnered $2.5 million in sales, setting the record for the most valuable single-owner American whiskey collection in history. Almost 90% of the bottles sold ended up going for higher than the estimated highs made by Sotheby's prior to the start of the auction. At the centerpiece of the day was the Old Rip Van Winkle 20 Year Old Single Barrel "Sam's," which sold by itself for a total of $162,500.

The incredibly rare whiskey is one of only 60 in existence, signed by Julian Van Winkle III himself and distilled in 1982. It was bottled in 2003 after aging for over 20 years in a single barrel whiskey cask. The bottle, labeled #54 out of 60, was originally intended to be sold at Sam's Wines & Spirits in Chicago.

Like the majority of good American bourbons, Old Rip Van Winkle was distilled in Kentucky, at Stitzel-Weller. This batch also boasts the highest-proof whiskey that Old Rip Van Winkle ever made at 133.4 proof. This particular bottle was expected to auction for anywhere from $70,000 to $100,000, but shattered expectations and set the record for most expensive bottle of American whiskey ever auctioned. The buyer paid the hammer price of $130,000 plus an extra $32,500 for premiums and fees.

"This sale represents a defining moment for American whiskey at auction," said Sotheby's whiskey specialist Zev Glesta, "underscoring the legendary status of the Van Winkle name and the extraordinary significance of the ‘Sam’s’ Old Rip Van Winkle." The auction included other highly sought after Van Winkle expressions, like the Van Winkle 18 Year Old Special Reserve Single Barrel “Binny’s,” which sold for $106,250.

The previous record, which was set in 2007, also belonged to the Old Rip Van Winkle brand. At the time, Sotheby's had auctioned off a unique Old Rip Van Winkle "Van Winkle Selection" for $125,000. New York's 2026 Great American Whiskey Collection marked Sotheby's first ever single-seller auction for American whiskeys.

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