The Whiskystats Price Update for March 2017

The latest round of auctions saw our database reach some new milestones. The Macallan Boutique Collection 2016 is by far the most traded whisky of this month. Meanwhile Bunnahabhain bottlings continue to gain value!

With 4.916 observed trades, March 2017 was the most active whisky auction month since November 2016. What makes this month special for us is that the number of whiskies we track finally climbed over 20.000! In detail our whisky database now contains 20.433 different scotch and japanese single malt bottlings. In addition we now have over quarter of a million (!) price observations for these whiskies. The exact number of trades we documented in our database is 251.162. This means, that on average we have 12,3 observed trades per whisky.
 
After its four months of constant growth, our Whiskystats Whisky Index (WWI) lost 2,3% and now stands at 317,7 index points. Compared to March 2016, the value of the 300 most traded single malt whiskies increased by 14,5%. Furthermore, since February 2015 the WWI lost value in only 6 months, so on average only every fourth month.
By the way, this month´s price observations didn’t contain any prices from Bonhams. Hence, they solely come from UK-based ScotchWhiskyAuction.com and german-based WhiskyAuction.com.

Bunnahabhain on the Rise

A glance at our monthly updated distillery ranking unveils that Bunnahabhain seems to be one of the winners of this month. The 100 most traded Bunnahabhain bottlings gained 1,7% on their price tag this month.
A look at our Bunnahabhain distillery index shows us that this is the fifth month in a row where these bottlings gained value. Compared to three years ago (March 2014), the prices climbed by almost 27%. In this period these bottlings only really lost value in late 2015 and early 2016.

Most Traded

Another Macallan sets off to become a new auction favourite. The Macallan Boutique Collection 2016 was traded 57 times in March 2017 alone. It first appeared on auctions in January 2017, from where we have one price observations for 524 Euros. The prices in February 2017 ranged from 271 to 355 Euros. The latest 57 prices from March averaged to 244 Euros, which is less than half of the initial price from January 2017. This pattern is nothing new to us at all. There are many bottlings for which we observed ridiculously high trades in the first month of their appearance on auctions.
The other most traded whiskies of the month are used to be seen on this list. The Yamazaki Limited Edition 2016 was traded 43 times. In total we observed 216 trades since June 2016 of this japanese single malt whisky. Thereby, prices fell from around 250 Euros to a little above 150 Euros. A true UK-favourite is the Glenmorangie Midwinters Dram since all the 271 trades we observed come from ScotchWhiskyAuctions.com. The price tag for this Highland scotch single malt now stands at around 50 Euros.

The Macallan/Speyside set-back

Our Indices of the Speyside region and the Macallan distillery are closely related since many of the most traded Speyside bottlings come from Macallan. Hence, it is of no surprise that a set-back of the Macallan index leads to a set-back of the Speyside index. The 100 most traded Macallans lost almost 6,3% in value this month after they constantly gained in value since December 2015.
Simultaneously the 100 most traded Speyside bottlings lost 4,1% in value as the index now resides at 331 index points. Both, the Macallan and the Speyside index. saw their peaks last month in February 2017. We wonder if the Macallan-rally continues after this break or if the party is officially over.
 
As always, do not forget to check the latest value of your personal collections!

	Glenmorangie Spios / Private Edition 9 Highland Whisky
	70cl / 46% / Distillery Bottling - The name Spios, which is Scots Gaelic for 'spice', beautifully evokes this whisky's origins: it has been matured solely in casks that previously held American rye whiskey, a spirit known for its distinctive, spicy characteristics. Spios has a herbal nose and a rich, spicy palate, followed by a long, sweet finish.
Underpriced	75 GBP Shop Price at The Whisky Exchange
	90 GBP Estimated Market Value

	Highland Single Malt 2005 / 16 Year Old / Watt Whisky Single Whisky
	70cl / 57.1% / Watt Whisky - A 2005 Highland single malt from indie bottler Watt Whisky, made at a mystery distillery and matured in a refill sherry butt for 16 years before being bottled in 2021. The palate offers notes of toffee, dried fruit, pear drops, dark chocolate and honey that linger in the finish.
Heavily Underpriced	88 GBP Shop Price at The Whisky Exchange
	135 GBP Estimated Market Value

	Macallan 12 Year Old / Sherry Oak Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
	70cl / 40% / Distillery Bottling - Deliciously smooth, with rich dried fruits and sherry, balanced with woodsmoke and spice. Described by F Paul Pacult, the renowned international whisky writer, in his book Kindred Spirits as 'simply the best 12 Year Old single malt around'.
Heavily Underpriced	60 GBP Shop Price at The Whisky Exchange
	85 GBP Estimated Market Value

Further Readings

The Whiskystats Price Update for April 2020

Ardbeg is the most trade distillery of this month. Prices for Port Ellen soar up again while an old Springbank pushes its own price limit. Here is the Whiskystats Price Update for the very special month of April 2020! 

The Whiskystats Price Update for October 2020

An extra auction draws our attention onto some American whisky. A remarkable number of Caperdonich 1972 bottlings was traded on the same auction while our major indices are all in the greens. Here is the Whiskystats Price Update for October 2020! 

The Whiskystats Credits

You can now earn Credits which you can then use to get a discount on our Insidership. You help us improve our whisky database, and we help you to make the most out of it. Here is how it works!