Friday, September 25, 2009

How Times Have Changed


There has been alot of discussion as to how this blog might be affecting the prices of certain whiskeys, and that there have been peaks in the whiskey market at times, and adjustments to prices as supply meets demand. That is after all the real factor for determining the value of anything. Supply and demand. Every generation of collector it seems relates stories of the prices back in the day, and how crazy the prices seem to be today...you know the deal. Just when a bottle sells at a mega price it sends a shock wave through the hobby, until the next monster bottle sells at a super high price. I remember reading the Old Bottle Magazine in the 70s where it was predicted that some day soon a bottle will sell for $10,000!!! I could not afford a $50 whiskey at the time, and some houses were selling for not much more than that back then. In updating my insurance coverage recently, I was in the process of listing some stuff on my policy, and going through notes which showed what I paid for something, or what I sold it for etc. I was photographing one of my Wormser flasks and smiled when I noticed a long forgotten sticker on the base with a price tag of $125! It sure makes one wonder what crazy prices will be paid for good glass in the future. Here is a photo of the flask. Has a bit of olive in it and one of those "half a second" and walk away tops. Not sure what it would sell for today, but likely a tad more than the sticker price...
Posted by at 5:44 PM
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2 comments:

  1. That is so true........ I remember buying my first 5th in 1971, a green Bird Cutter and paying a whopping 75 bucks for it. At that time it was a good week wages, a lot of money back then. For almost 40 years since then I'd see some of the better 5ths selling for what seemed extraordinary amounts and peoples jaws drop, it's nothing new.
    For instance in 1981 a mint hammer whittled extra crude, light amber Gold Dust found its way to the Reno show by a gent who recently dug it under his home in V.C. while putting in a pier block. He was asking an outrageous $1000 and had no takers because at the time they were available and only selling in the 700-800 range. Try even finding a bottle like that now days for anything less than 12k, good luck. Or how about Doc's killer Club House for 3500 at about the same time, he had that bottle for sale for over a year at that price. He sat it on his kitchen table right in front of me and told me to take it home and pay him when I had the money, but I thought ohhhh my god, 3500 there's no way. Even Angelo the Western whiskey king at the time didn't have one and passed because of the price. Or how about Doc's killer two name bear he had a hard time finding a buyer for at 1000 because they were only in the 700 range then.

    Since the down turn in the economy we have seen prices rise at a faster rate than normal on the better items with many setting records. Many folks wanting to invest are looking for non traditional investments because of the stock markets recent past performance & banks pay zip in interest. Rare collectibles have always done well in recessionary times and are the choice of many savvy investors. Face it, this stuff is rare as heck and being what it is in comparison to other types of collectibles good bottles I believe are a still a great bargain. There's no doubt in my mind that rare collectibles are one of the best investments you can possibly make if done wisely. If the trend continues as it has for the past 28 years in value of better bottles like the Gold Dust, Bear & Club House, etc, do the math to see what the next 28 bring.

    http://www.oldwestbottles.com
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  2. Boy howdy! Does that bring back memories, or what? I can recall that not too many of us bottle hounds had two nickels to rub together back in those days. It's been a long time coming, but bottles are finally getting their due.
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