In this interview I chat with @rolexwhisky who has one of the most popular whisky accounts on Instagram. Not only does he invest in premium whisky but also drinks it and enjoys collecting Rolex watches. A man of my own heart!
Here is what we chatted about :-
Q. You mention on your website that the end goal is to sell you whisky and Rolex to put your son through college. Is that still the case or might you send him over to Scotland to study and with the money you save but more whisky whilst visiting?
A. I have a 6 year old son and 4 year old daughter, so I have 12 years left on my plan, the plan is to sell the whisky for their college funds, the rolexes will be kept in the family 😉
Q.Which is your most prized Rolex and did it take a long time to find?
A. They each have a great story from me working 3 jobs to get my first one at 25, to my Batman that took a little bit to find since it was becoming popular already. The Panda was my first big spend, so that took a minute to digest, but my goal is to have a unique Rolex in each series within region, I don’t foresee anything full gold or diamonds in my future.
Q. What do you look for in a whisky for investment?
A. Rarity, hence why I love the older Suntory whisky, they just were making them for themselves and never about money,, older @the_macallan within region, like my blue box Macallan 30 from the late 90’s, my older Michters Whiskey 10 years and the 25 year bourbon and rye, and of course the celebration, the Macallan no 1’s I have 5 of them, those have done pretty well so far, older The Dalmore, the older Compassbox Whisky Co whiskys continue to go up in value. Bottom line I look for limited whisky pre 2015 if possible.
Q. What proportion of whisky gets opened and enjoying in your collection?
A. I open most stuff under $400, the rest is worth too much money, and my investment.
Q. How many bottles do you have and did you have to buy a special cabinet to store them?
A. I did create a special whisky wall for some of my stuff, then our spare bedroom closet has a bar shelf inside full of whisky.
Q. What whisky distillery are you looking at next to start collecting?
A. I am really liking the independent bottlers like Black Adder, and Murray McDavid, super whisky that have no marketing money, so you can get a deal
Q. What do you think made your Instagram page get so popular?
A. I think it’s because I just do me, I have fun, I really never cared about Instagram at all, I am a whisky collector and about a return on my investment, the Instagram thing just happened and its been so fun. I get to educate people on whisky that do not have huge marketing budgets, and plus I get to drink some amazing whisky 😉
Q.What is your most memorable whisky moment?
A. Sitting at Michters drinking the Michters 25 year rye whiskey from 2014
Q. Do you have a particular whisky you are searching for at the moment?
A. I am about to embark on a hunt for more Ichiros malt, the state of the market is going to offer up some deals, their single cask are phenomenal.
Q. Which 5 people outside of family and friends would you like to share a dram with and why?
A. Ichiro Akuto – Ichiros Malt – I want to get to know some of the older single casks and see his excitement when making whisky
Joseph Magliocco – Michters – because he has been a supporter since day 1 of me, and any time to drink Michters is a great time
Shinjiro Torii – Suntory Whisky – his older whisky is just so, so good, I want to hear what inspires him
Rebecca Jago – Last Drop Distillers – Â I know she has some whisky that has not been released, and would love to go on a whisky hunt with her at some point
Kristin Martha-Britt Kulsveen – Willet – I want to hear all about the history of the product and try some of their older expression
I am fascinated by older juice, the whisky distilled 20 plus years ago was just way better in my opinion and getting to try and learn more about brands is so important to me