Yamazaki 50 Reaches Around €684,744: Sotheby's Top Three Record Japanese Whiskies

Two Records in One Year

Sotheby's Wine & Spirits has looked back on a strong year on Instagram: in 2026 its own record for a bottle of Japanese whisky fell twice. To mark it, the auction house has revisited what it calls its top three record-breaking Japanese whiskies.

These are Sotheby's records, not the world record. That has stood since May 2026 with a Yamazaki 50 made for Club Natsume, which reached around €941,243 (HK$8,250,000) at Bonhams in Hong Kong.

First: Yamazaki 50 Year Old 2005 First Release

Sotheby's gives a price of around €684,744 ($765,000) for this bottle. It led the Finest & Rarest Spirits sale in Hong Kong on 28 October 2026, alongside the later releases from 2007 and 2011. The estimate was HK$2,600,000 to HK$4,000,000.

The 2005 First Release is bottled at 54% ABV and, according to Sotheby's, was limited to 50 bottles, most of which stayed in Japan. The whisky was distilled in the 1950s and matured entirely in Japanese mizunara oak. The later releases are listed on Spiritory: Yamazaki 50 Years Old 2nd Release and Yamazaki 50 Years Old 3rd Release.

Second: Karuizawa 1960 The Prototype

On 18 September 2026 the Karuizawa 52 Years Old 1960 The Prototype Cask Nr.5627 made around €559,431 ($625,000) in New York, above its estimate of $400,000 to $600,000. The hammer price was $500,000.

The whisky was distilled on 1 February 1960 and is bottled at 58.3% ABV. Osami Uchibori, Karuizawa's former master distiller, filled it by hand on 20 December 2012. It is one of only two bottles drawn from the cask before its commercial release.

Third: Karuizawa 52 Year Old Zodiac Rat

The same distillery and the same cask also take third place. In March 2020 the Karuizawa 52 Year Old Zodiac Rat from Cask 5627 made around €435,346 (£363,000) at Sotheby's in London, against an estimate of £160,000 to £220,000. At the time, that was the auction record for Japanese whisky.

The commercial release from this cask was 41 bottles at 51.8% ABV, each with its own netsuke figure carved from the oak cask head. On Spiritory this whisky is listed as Karuizawa 52 Years Old 1960 Single Cask Nr.5627.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most expensive Japanese whisky sold at Sotheby's?

The Yamazaki 50 Year Old 2005 First Release. Sotheby's gives a price of around €684,744 ($765,000) for the sale in Hong Kong at the end of October 2026.

Is that the world record for Japanese whisky?

No. Since May 2026 the world record has been around €941,243 (HK$8,250,000), set by a Yamazaki 50 made for Club Natsume at Bonhams in Hong Kong.

What is the Karuizawa 1960 The Prototype?

One of only two bottles drawn from Cask 5627 before its commercial release, filled by hand by Osami Uchibori at 58.3% ABV. It made around €559,431 ($625,000) in New York in September 2026.

How many bottles of the Yamazaki 50 First Release were there?

According to Sotheby's, 50 bottles, most of which stayed in Japan.