A New Whisky Experience: Buying a Cask

A New Whisky Experience: Buying a Cask

It is every whisky lovers dream to have their own cask of whisky; whether buying a new make or an already mature cask it is the next step up from bottles and the peak for whisky collectors.

It is rarely possible to purchase mature casks from distilleries as they are valuable assets, used to put into future releases and official distillery bottlings. Cask88 has access to casks from over 40 distilleries which come from a close network of private collectors on the secondary market; we offer these casks to clients who would like to create their very own exclusive product.

You are able to buy a bottle of Macallan 1990, for example, in most whisky retail shops but through us you are able to buy an entire cask of 1990 Macallan. We also have access to Bowmore, Laphroaig, Caol Ila, Glenfiddich, Dalmore and many more of the famous distilleries. The huge advantage of buying your own cask is that you can then either bottle it straight away and create your own label (strict rules and regulations apply when using a distilleries brand name) or hold onto the cask and age it further. Casks can also be re racked into different wood, can be finished in sherry for 3 – 6 months or part bottled – once yours everything is up to you and we are available to assist you every step of the way.

If you have the demand for a large quantity of bottles then purchasing a cask can prove to be a good investment; the cost per bottle tends to be much more economical than purchasing large numbers of individual bottles. You also have the added bonus of having the bottles, decanters and boxes with your design on them. The major costs in private own label casks are the duties and taxes and Cask88 will endeavour to help you in the import and export of your bottles.

Any whisky buyer will notice now that Non Age Statements are increasingly more common and if you are hunting around for a new, rare and unique whisky product then going down the cask route could be for you. If you are wary of casks being faked (the topic of rare and vintage bottles being counterfeited is a hot topic at the moment, you can read more here and here) then you can be sure that due to strict legal and fiscal regulation by the SWA and Scottish Government it is next to impossible to fake a cask. Every cask, from its birth date, is registered and given provenance by each distillery, the certificates are then handed down to each new owner.

Having purchased a cask from us you are invited to visit your cask as well as tour the distillery where your cask originated from – from there you can see the whole process, from grain to bottle.

If the idea of purchasing a cask, whether as an investment, as a group of friends or for a significant event in your life (wedding, graduation or birth of a child) sounds like a new experience worth exploring then please get in touch via our website.

Patrick Costello