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Sotheby’s To Host An Historic & Rare American Whiskey Auction

All images courtesy of Sotheby’s Sotheby’s New York is set to host an auction featuring never-before-seen American whiskeys this December.  The 700+ lot auction will feature bottles dating back to the early 20th century through to the early 2000s. Brands such as A.H. Hirsch, Red Hook Rye, and Van Winkle will appear in the auction, […]
Beth Squires is Editor-in-Chief of The Whiskey Wash and a whisky writer.
All images courtesy of Sotheby’s

Sotheby’s New York is set to host an auction featuring never-before-seen American whiskeys this December. 

The 700+ lot auction will feature bottles dating back to the early 20th century through to the early 2000s. Brands such as A.H. Hirsch, Red Hook Rye, and Van Winkle will appear in the auction, some bottles of which have never been offered publicly in the United States. 

Many of the bottles in the collection have made their way back over from Asia and Europe, having been initially exported for other markets. As such, these American whiskeys are extremely difficult to find on the American market, making this auction truly historic.

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Some of the auction highlights include: 

Van Winkle Special Reserve 19 Year Old Corti Brothers 90.4 proof

Estimate: $20,000-$30,000 

D.H. Cromwell 15 Year Black 1999-2000

Estimate: $15,000-$20,000

Old Rip Van Winkle 25 Year Old Decanter 50% ABV 

Estimate: $20,000-$30,000

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Rathskeller Rye 136 Proof

$18,000-$24,000

Also included in the auction will be Scotch and Japanese whiskies from distilleries such as Macallan and Karuizawa, as well as rare cognacs from Louis XIII. 

The Whisky & Whiskey | Festive Spirits and American Classics auction will take place at Sotheby’s New York on  Saturday 9th December 2023. Read more about this historic event and view all of the lots on the Sotheby’s website.

Beth Squires

Beth Squires joined Mark Littler Ltd in 2020 and has developed extensive knowledge of the whisky industry through research, reporting and the creation of specialist educational content. As Editor-in-Chief of The Whiskey Wash, Beth oversees coverage spanning whisky history, production, innovation, new releases and the secondary bottle market. She is particularly passionate about making complex areas of the industry accessible to whisky drinkers, collectors and buyers. Beth holds a degree in English Literature and was selected as a mentee for the OurWhisky Foundation’s Atonia Programme in 2025.