Thousands bid on Scotch whisky thought to be oldest in the world

Bottles of Scotch whisky thought to be the oldest in the world - and once sipped by the young Queen Victoria - are attracting bids worth thousands of pounds each from collectors globally after they were discovered in a Scottish castle.

The 24 dusty bottles were among a cache of around 40 found hidden behind a cellar door in 750-year-old Blair Castle in Perthshire, the ancestral home of the Dukes of Atholl. According to a plaque found with the stash, the Scotch was distilled 190 years ago in 1833 and matured for eight years before being bottled, making the whisky the oldest vintage in existence.

The bottles have gone up for sale in Perth-based Whisky Auctioneer's current online sale, where they are expected to fetch a total of over £240,000. Several of the bottles hit their £10,000 reserve price within hours of the sale opening on Friday evening, over a week before the sale closes next Monday. By yesterday, the leading lot had attracted 27 bids with up to £13,000.

The remaining bottles of the "remarkably well-preserved Scotch" will be exhibited as part of the Blair Castle visitor experience.

Whisky Auctioneer, which has partnered with Blair Castle and the Atholl Estates to host the auction, said it marked an "historic moment". They added: "When discovered, the bottles were found with a plaque that stated the distillation year of 1833, the bottling year of 1841, and a subsequent rebottling year of 1932.

"Should these dates be accurate, this would mean the bottles contain the oldest known, by vintage, Scotch whisky left in existence. To have been found in such numbers has provided a rare, if not unique opportunity to own and potentially even sample a whisky that could indeed be older than any other currently known to still exist. These are unquestionably important artefactual items from the history not just of the Atholl Estates, but of Scotch whisky and distilling in Scotland."

Joe Wilson, Head Curator and Spirits Specialist said: "Offering the world’s oldest scotch whisky at auction is truly a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence. I’m fortunate to be well acquainted with old and rare liquid, as Whisky Auctioneer handles some of the world’s rarest whisky bottlings. This, however, is a transcendent discovery that is sure to capture not just the imagination of the whisky industry but also those well beyond.

"Distilled in the 1830s, the whisky was made during a fascinating period when whisky production was experiencing massive change following the 1823 Excise Act, making it a particularly exciting find for those interested in the history and heritage of the Scotch whisky industry."

The whisky is also thought "highly likely" to be the same sampled by Queen Victoria and her consort, Prince Albert, during their three-week stay at Blair Castle in 1844.

The Blair Castle Household Book lists that Whisky was consumed during the visit, while local newspapers at the time reported Queen Victoria’s liking for Atholl Brose - a local drink of whisky with honey. The bottles were rediscovered late last year by Blair Castle's resident trustee, Bertie Troughton. It is thought the bottles were secreted away and later forgotten about.