Is there anything better than a nice Irish whiskey when you need a stiff drink after a hard day? Craft Irish Whiskey Co. agrees with this sentiment. The company is on a mission to restore Ireland’s reputation as a distilling leader in the world. To do that, their aim is to put luxurious Irish whiskey on par with the attention Scotch whisky receives. So, how much would you spend for a rare 30-year-old bottle that also comes with some luxurious items?
The Emerald Isle, an extremely rare bottle, was recently sold to American whiskey collector Mike Daley at auction for $2.8 million. The exorbitant price tag beat out the previous record holder by $100,000. The single malt whiskey is considered the rarest triple-distilled single malt whiskey in existence, according to the Craft Irish Whiskey Co.. Only seven bottles were produced and encased in unique designer boxes. Talk about having expensive tastes.
Daley not only purchased the liquor, but also the luxury items that came with it. Included with the bottle is a decanter, a bespoke Fabergé egg with an emerald gem, custom timepiece, and a pair of Cohiba cigars. It is all contained inside a custom walnut case. The three decade old whiskey was aged in a “variety of casks” to help give it an “unrivalled intensity of flavor,” according to the makers.
The previous record holder for the most expensive whiskey/whisky sold was a bottle of The Macallan 1926. The Scotch sold for $2.7 million at auction in November 2023. Only 40 bottles had been produced, 12 of which featured labels designed by Italian painter Valerio Adami.
Daley is considered one of the world’s most prolific whiskey collectors. He owns several thousand bottles from the Americas, all the way to the British Isles. “The rebirth of Irish whiskey s relatively new, so I feel like I’m getting in on the ground floor,” Daley said. “Luxury scotch, to me is already a crowded type of market. But we’re only just starting to see luxury Irish make a name for itself. I guarantee you that in the years to come, it will get to where scotch is today.”
