Slainte! World's 'oldest' whisky discovered in Blair Castle cellar sold to global market

Bottles of what is believed to be the world’s oldest whisky have been sold to buyers around the world for more than £385,000 – an average of £16,000 each.

The spirit was discovered behind a door in a cellar at Blair Castle in Perthshire just before Christmas last year.

A label which was found alongside the bottles read ‘Blair Castle whisky, casked 1833, bottled 1841.’

Documents in the castle archive and laboratory testing supported its claim to be 190 years old, and it’s thought the whisky may have been enjoyed by Queen Victoria when she visited the estate in 1844 with her husband, Prince Albert.

Of the 40 wax-capped bottles found covered in dust and cobwebs, 24 were put up for sale online by the Perth-based Whisky Auctioneer.

Oldest bottles of whisky ever discovered at Blair Castle STV News

The hammer has come down with a total sale price of £385,630 – an average of £16,000 per bottle.

Successful bids were made by whisky enthusiasts in America, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands, Hungary, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

Joe Wilson, head curator and spirits specialist at Whisky Auctioneer, said: “It’s been a privilege to work with Blair Castle and Atholl Estates to bring this incredible discovery to auction.

“It has been a fascinating journey working with Blair Castle and various third-party scientific research institutes to establish as much information as possible regarding these historic bottles and the whisky within.

“This whisky is a monumental find and it’s wonderful that whisky enthusiasts across the world have had the opportunity to now own a time capsule from deep in the history of Scotch whisky.”