LOUISVILLE, KY (Sept. 4, 2024) — The Speed Art Museum unveiled a stunning lineup for its live online and in-person Art of Bourbon auction on September 12 featuring some of the rarest, most elusive, and sought-after whiskeys in the world up for bid.
The live auction will be held 7:30pm-9pm EST. The online auction is free to bid but registration is required at artofbourbon.org.
In-person event tickets, which are $350, include a cocktail hour, bourbon tastings and a seated dinner with a bourbon-inspired menu. Seating is limited and guests are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance.
Here are auction highlights served up:
- An Entire Pappy Vertical. Six bottles of Pappy signed exclusively by Julian Van Winkle III for this year’s auction. It’s Pappy. Period. It’s worth up to $30,000.
- A super rare 2017 Michter’s 25-Yr-Old, expected to fetch up to $30,000. Why? Only 317 coveted 25-Yr bottles were ever produced that year.
- A special Old Forester from 1947. A true “dusty.” You’ll never see this gem again. It’s one of the rarest bottles in the auction and bourbon experts expect it to go for $20,000
- The 1976 Bicentennial Commemorative Bourbon (16-Yr-Old), distilled in 1959 at the original Willett Distillery. It’s considered “the bottle that started it all.” This auction darling could see $30,000-$50,000. It’s awesome. It’s elusive.
- A 14-Year-Old Dowling Deluxe from the late 1960s with a fill-level that’s chef’s kiss. It’s tell-tale dripping wax predates Maker’s Mark. IYKYK. Estimate: $5,000
- 1966 bottled Very Old Fitzgerald, distilled in 1958. This 8-year Bottle in Bond marks the period when Pappy Van Winkle was alive and running the distillery. After it was bottled, and he was no longer.
- Considered one of the top bottles in the auction, this bottle of Golden Wedding Whiskey from 1941 is one-of-a-kind item and a chance to own a piece of whiskey history. It’s the sought-after unicorn that brings together the storied co-mingling from George T. Stagg, Schenley Industries and Joseph Finch & Company. Estimate: $10,000
- Maker’s Mark Private Selection Barrel Experience with the Speed Art Museum – Six guests partake in a personal tour of the National Historic Landmark distillery on Star Hill Farm led by a Private Select team member where you will go through the entire Private Selection process, reserved for only the most elite customers of Maker’s Mark. When the barrel matures nine weeks later, the bottle labels will feature the Speed Art Museum’s selection recipe. The winning bidder receives three cases, and the remaining bottles will be given to the museum and used by local artists and students to raise money for the museum.
Among the 35 lots, the auction includes exclusive and elusive experiences that allow winning bidders to get an entire custom barrel straight from the source:
- Bardstown Bourbon Origin Series Single Barrel selection – One of the very first 100 barrels produced in the Origin Series single barrel release. The Origin Series represents the first whiskeys that were entirely distilled, aged and bottled at this distillery and was voted the highest rated bourbon in the world by the International Wine & Spirits Competition. Estimate: $20,000
- The much-anticipated Green River Single Barrel Pick selection experience, one of the hot new bourbons in the industry. Estimate: $15,000- $20,000
Now in its seventh year, the annual bourbon auction draws serious bourbon aficionados and collectors from around the globe, as well as those who view it as a passionate spectator sport.
The curation of this event is led by Wall Street Journal-bestselling author and renowned bourbon critic Fred Minnick. Marc Abrams, a well-known bourbon expert based in Louisville, serves as this year’s event chair.
“Since 2018, I’ve worked closely with the Speed to auction the rarest whiskey bottles and experiences ever, raising millions of dollars for this institution,” said Minnick. All proceeds support education programs and exhibitions at the Speed.
Minnick, widely considered the world’s leading bourbon authority, knows these bids make a difference. “These rare whiskeys can make a huge impact on one of our country’s best art museums. We have the vintage and rare, and the new and unique. These sort of in-the-know bourbons don’t come up very often,” he said.
Prominent collectors show their support by either attending or donating bottles from their stash to this event. “It’s not every day you can get your hands on these. You’re buying a piece of history in a bottle,” said Abrams. “And over the years, our auction followers have come to expect these iconic bourbons at this auction. After all, the Speed Art Museum is in bourbon country.”
Bill Menish will serve as the evening’s auctioneer. To review auction catalogue and purchase event tickets: artofbourbon.org
