TOP5 expensive whiskeys purchased in 2025
The year 2025 has already come to an end.
Somehow, in 2025, I purchased 77 bottles of whisky.
In 2025, I think there will be many large releases such as 91 Rough, 96 Nevis, and 30-year-old bottles.
Whether you bought such a large release or not, this time we will introduce you to the top 5 most expensive bottles purchased in 2025.
5th place: Shinanoya Wa Daruin 1997 23 years
This is a Japanese series Daruin released by Shinanoya around the summer of 2024 last year, and is a bottle that was distilled in 1997 and aged for 23 years.
This is a very fruity and delicious bottle with hints of yellow fruits such as pineapple, but the price was a little high at 50,000 yen for 23 years of aging, which was a bit expensive in 2024, which was a problem.
It's delicious, so I was trying to find the right time to buy it someday.
You can accumulate points at Shinanoya's physical stores, and if you accumulate 500 points, you will be issued a shopping coupon worth 500 yen.
I've accumulated about 10,000 yen worth of shopping coupons, and now it's time! So, I made a purchase using them, and was able to actually purchase it for 37,000 yen.
If the price is after the discount, the ranking will change. . It ranks 5th in list price.
It may be difficult to purchase from now on, but if you come across this bottle, you should definitely give it a try.
4th place: The Whiskey Hoop Glencadam 2004 20 years
This bottle was distilled in 2004 and aged for 20 years in Glen Cadam from The Whiskey Hoop.
The price is ranked 4th with a difference of 220 yen from the 5th place at 47,300 yen.
I personally like Glen Cadam's bourbon, but there aren't many released. .
If it's been 10 years or so, there's been a release about once a year, but Chojuku is about once every few years, so I've always wanted to buy it when it comes out, and it finally came out.
And so I bought it.
The Whiskey Hoop sells to members, but we are currently not accepting new members.
However, some products can be purchased even if you are not a member, and this was a bottle that you could purchase even if you were not a member, so I was able to purchase it.
I haven't opened the bottle yet, and I bought it because it's a long-aged bourbon without tasting it, so I don't know how it tastes, but I'm sure it'll be delicious.
3rd place: Cheers Ben Nevis 1998 25 years for Rubin’s-vase
Ben Nevis 1998 is a PB from Rubins Base in Nagoya, released by Kanpaikai.
The price has slightly increased and it is ranked 3rd at 49,400 yen.
96 is said to be Ben Nevis' best year, but it is also said that it starts to look grassy from around 1997.
There is some grassiness in this bottle, but it's not that noticeable, and it has a ripe, jam-like fruit, tropical, and tea leaf-like nuances, and it's very delicious.
I had it before and it was delicious, and when I participated in "Whiskey Talk Fukuoka 2025", there was a bottle for sale, so I thought I would buy it if I could, so I bought it.
If you see this, you should try it.
2nd place: Shinanoya Ben Nevis 1996 27 years for Abyss x AQUA VITAE x SHINANOYA
This is a Ben Nevis distilled in 1996, which is said to have been popular due to its release with Shinanoya, Hong Kong's Abyss, and Taiwan's AQUA VITAE.
The price has increased a little, and it is ranked 2nd at 65,780 yen.
There were a lot of 96 Nevis releases in 2025.
Especially “Whiskey Talk Fukuoka 2025'', and I drank 3 bottles of 96 Nevis during the event, and out of all of them, this one had the most fruit and peach flavor, so I bought it.
Overall 96 Nevis released this year. I think it's top class in terms of fruit and peach flavor, and even if it's not number one in terms of overall taste, I personally think it's a bottle that would rank high there.
If you see this one, please give it a try.
1st place: KFWS×Rudder Jura 1991 33 years
This is a 1991 distilled Jura released by KFWS and Rudder.
The price is 66,000 yen, which is quite close to the second place 65,780 yen, but it ranks first.
I bought it at KFWS's tasting event, and although it had a sweet, cotton candy-like sweetness, tropical flavor, acidity, and tannins, it had a light overall impression, but I thought it was a good Jura, so I bought it.
Not only Jura but overall, there were a lot of releases from 1991 and 1993 this year.
I was born in 1992, and there were very few releases in 1992. .
I try to buy at least one birthday vintage bottle a year. .
I think the number of releases from the first half of the 90s will decrease from now on, so from now on I'm going to buy 1991 and 1993, and the year before and after, as birthday vintage.
If you see it, give it a try.
Closing Thoughts
2025 was a year with many major releases.
91 Rough, 96 Nevis, and other 30 year class releases such as Jura were released every month.
As expected, I can't buy as many bottles as I want, so I've been very selective in my purchases.
If I have a slight regret, it's that I didn't purchase long-ripened Islays such as 91 rough. .
There was a bottle of Chojuku Islay that I thought would be good to buy, but I lost it by pressing it too early. .
I tried the other bottles and thought they were delicious, but I didn't think they were worth buying, so I ended up not buying them. .
When it comes to the 30-year class, I doubt whether there will be a next release, and I'm afraid that by the time the next one is released, the price will probably be one step higher. .
Talking about the amount, we released the year before last in 2023 and last year we also released "2024 version", and the first place price in both cases was about 55,000 yen, but this year in 2025, it was 66,000 yen, an increase of about 10,000 yen.
As the price has increased, the lineup has become stricter with 96 Nevis and 91 Jura.
In 2025, rather than raising prices, the market seemed to be calming down, but I have the impression that the prices were generally high because there were many large-scale releases.
I don't think the price for bottlers will go up or down significantly in 2026, so I'd like to buy something while watching the situation.
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