THE WORLD'S MOST EXPENSIVE & RAREST JAPANESE WHISKEY COLLECTION GOES TO AUCTION

Hanyu Ichiro's Full Card Series Returns to Bonhams Hong Kong Fine and Rare Wine and Whisky Sale ...

Bonhams, the international auction house, presents a rare opportunity to avid whisky aficionados to acquire the most coveted and rarest collection of Japanese Whisky with the sale of the Hanyu Ichiro's Full Card Series in its forthcoming Fine & Rare Wine and Whisky auction on 16 August 2019 in Hong Kong.

The celebrated collection comprises 54 bottles representing each of the playing card in a full pack. Each 'card' was bottled from a single cask of premium whisky ranging in production years from 1985 to 2014 from the acclaimed closed distillery of Hanyu. 

In 2015, Bonhams was the first auction house to sell the Full Card series, which set the world record for the most expensive Japanese whisky collection at HK$3,797,500 – a record that Bonhams still holds to date and anticipates to surpass with the current lot.

Daniel Lam, Bonhams' Director of Wine & Spirits, Asia, comments, "Four years since the Hanyu Ichiro's Full Card Series set the world auction record at Bonhams, the current market demand is at its strongest for Japanese Whisky. It is believed that no more than four sets of Full Card Series exist in the world. Over the years, moreover, many bottles have either been consumed or strictly kept in private, making it harder than ever to assemble a complete – and with such trusted provenance – series."

Founded in 1941 by Isouji Akuto, a 19th generation descendant of a long line of sake brewers to produce Scotch-style malt whisky, the Hanyu distillery ceased production in 2000. But not before Ichiro Akuto, grandson of Isouji, stepped in to secure the 400 premium whisky casks left from the distillery. An avid whisky lover like his grandfather, Ichiro personally selected the prized amber liquid to be bottled for each 'card' released between 2005 and 2014, ensuring that the Hanyu legend lives on

The Hanyu Ichiro’s Full Card Series is expected to sell between $576,158-$768,210 USD.