By Scott Wright

LIFE as we know it may have changed beyond all recognition in recent months, but one thing that has remained constant has been the desirability of rare and collectible Scotch whisky.

That much has been in ample evidence at Whisky Hammer, the online auction site dedicated to Scotland’s national drink.

The business, set up in 2016 by brothers Daniel and Craig Milne, runs monthly auctions for everyday drams to rarer, highly sought-after varieties. Its November auction was its biggest yet, with more than 4,000 lots at a combined value of more than £1.2 million put under the hammer.

“We have now got around 10 staff, and we are expecting that number to continue to grow in 2021, if things keep going the way they have been going,” said Daniel Milne, speaking from the company’s new, custom-built premises in Udny, Aberdeenshire.

“It’s been a helluva journey over the last five years, and exciting.”

Neither of the Milne brothers come from a professional background in the whisky industry. Daniel is a chartered accountant who worked in the oil and gas industry, while Craig is a former skipper of a North Sea trawler. Both, however, share a passion for Scotch whisky.

“We were born in Macduff, right near the Speyside region, so [we were] surrounded by whisky from a young age,” Daniel said. “We had our own collections prior to the start of the auction. Part of the drive for us to do this [was] one day when we went to value our own collections online and we discovered that people were doing these auctions, and we just felt we could do it a little bit better.”

Daniel said the brothers’ respective skillsets and experience are being united to good effect at Whisky Hammer. “The two combine,” he explained. “Our experience gels quite well because his mind is always on operations and making sure the thing runs as smoothly and efficiently as it can, and my mindset is more on the business side and the finance. It is quite a good combination.”

Whisky Hammer runs live auctions once a month. Each runs for a nine-day period, from Friday to Sunday, and allows members around the world to log in and bid.

The lots are sold on behalf of private sellers, be it whisky traders or people who inherit collections. The company receives the whisky at its Aberdeenshire headquarters, where it is valued, photographed, and prepared for sale. Then, after the auction takes place, Whisky Hammer distributes the spirits to successful bidders, and transfers the funds to the sellers.

Daniel said the team draws on a range of sources to inform the valuation process, from its “humungous” database of auction prices to its own experience.

“Every day we are learning more, and adding to our database and our knowledge, so valuation is certainly something we can do, and we do quite confidently,” Daniel said. “Generally speaking, we do get very good feedback on our valuation ranges.”

Asked whether he has detected any changes in buying trends throughout the pandemic, he replied that despite his initial fears it has been the company’s busiest year yet. Part of this is because online businesses generally have been performing well. It may also be because some people have used the extra time they have had at home during lockdown to assess and sell their whisky collections.

Whisky Hammer has fetched some of the highest prices it has ever seen during the last six months.

“There are a number of reasons why that could be the case,” Daniel said. “Is it people sitting at home with nothing else to do but bid on whisky, or is it traditional investments maybe becoming less appealing, and moving money from one thing to another?

“The auction market really is diverse, in the sense the bottles on there are everything from everyday drinkable whiskies at £20, £30, £40, £50 a bottle, all the way up to real investment-grade whiskies. The highest-value bottle we have sold was a couple of months ago at £92,500.”

The bottle in question was a 78-year-old Macallan from a series called the Red Collection. “It marked the oldest whisky we have ever sold, as well as the highest value bottle we have ever sold,” Daniel said.

“In terms of the highest value lot we have sold, we have sold a cask of Macallan – a 1990 vintage hogshead – and it sold for £217,500.”

Alongside rare whiskies from the Macallan, Daniel said whiskies from Japanese distillers, and from closed Scottish distilleries such as Brora (in the process of being reopened by Diageo) are holding strong appeal from an investment standpoint.

As for future plans, Whisky Hammer plans to welcome more Scotch lovers to its new retail shop, Still Spirit, and tasting room in Aberdeenshire. The premises were part-funded by a crowdfunding drive in October 2019, which raised just over £200,000.

“We just wanted to give our auction customers something else, a different side to the business where they are able to buy bottles directly, as opposed to just having the auction route,” Daniel said. “We get a lot of footfall here in our building with customers locally, either dropping off whisky to sell in the auction, or collecting bottles that they have won in the auction. It made a lot of sense to put the shop in there to expand the offering.”

He added: “It is actually a lovely setting we have got up here. We can do some really special tasting events here, whether it be whisky, gin, [or] rum. Obviously, that side of the business has been slowed. Because of Covid, we can’t do tasting events at the minute, but we are looking forward to getting them going in 2021.”

Six Questions

What countries have you most enjoyed travelling to, for business or leisure, and why? 

For leisure, a fly-drive trip to California a few years ago was fantastic. My wife and I drove from Vegas to LA to San Francisco and enjoyed every minute – being somewhere different every day kept the trip interesting and exciting. 

When you were a child, what was your ideal job? Why did it appeal? 
As a child I wanted to be an airline pilot. I guess the appeal was coming from my adventurous side and being able to view the world from the skies!

What was your biggest break in business?
Successfully ‘selling-out’ our crowdfunding offering in 2019 in under four hours to existing members of Whisky Hammer.

What was your worst moment in business?
Having to furlough a large proportion of our staff as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Thankfully we have since re-employed all of those on furlough.

Who do you most admire and why? 
My wife and family – for supporting the business when required (which might be as simple as dealing with me in stressed mode), and bringing up our two amazing sons.

What book are you reading and what music are you listening to? 
It’s hard to find time to read, but I do enjoy The Gruffalo at bedtime for my eldest. 
I’ve also enjoyed Liar’s Poker by Michael Lewis recently.  Music – Oasis, LG, Red Hot Chili Peppers.