Buying a NI whiskey cask an investment with a difference
Ever considered an alternative investment in whiskey casks?
Whiskey doesn’t readily come to mind as potentially rewarding vehicle for spare cash.
Buying a whiskey cask isn’t cheap - a cask could cost around £5,000 - and it can be prove risky punt. However, global investors are increasingly backing both Irish and Scotch single malts.
The strength of interest, especially from investors seeking something really different, has encouraged Echlinville Distillery, based near Kircubbin in Co Down, a respected producer of multi-award-winning brands such as Dunville’s, Old Comber and Echlinville.
The independently-owned distillery recently collected five awards at the big San Francisco Wine Spirits competition including a double gold medal for its Dunville’s Three Crowns.
Echlinville has just launched The Aird Cask Collective that offers the opportunity to buy a cask of whiskey that they’ll store for a number of years until the owner decides to sell….or drink!
Investors, according to Echlinville director Jarlath Watson, can choose from three distinctive and unique new make spirits – Single Malt, Old Comber Pot Still or Old Comber Heritage Mash Bill. Old Comber is one of the oldest local whiskeys.
“Every drop will be distilled in our state-of-the-art stillhouse, from barley grown, harvested and malted on our distillery farm near Strangford Lough. The name Aird is taken from the old Irish for Ards Peninsula.
“Each step of the production process – from mashing and fermenting the grains, to casking and maturing the spirit, to filling and labelling the bottles – is completed at our distillery,” adds Jarlath.
“The field-to-glass journey of our whiskey makes Echlinville unique among Irish distilleries,” he explains.
While investing in whiskey, experts admit, has been unpredictable, it is an asset that’s free from Capital Gains Tax which means investors keep more of their money. Whiskey increases in value as it matures, and is not shaped by the stock market, meaning that casks will be not affected by market fluctuations…and could prove Trump-proof!