The Demeter Collection Auction
NEARLY £50K RAISED IN FIRST AUCTION RECOGNISING WOMEN IN WHISKY
This article was distributed as a press release in May 2024
The inaugural Demeter Collection hosted by the leading global whisky auction platform Whisky Auctioneer, achieved a final hammer price of £43,614 from 19 specially curated lots. Alongside waiving their auction seller fees, Whisky Auctioneer's buyer's commission was donated to the OurWhisky Foundation, bringing the total to £49,065.75.
Winning bids came from the UK, USA, Ireland, Latvia and Belgium. The prestigious top bid was claimed by a rare 44-year-old Dalmore, created to honour Margaret Nicol's remarkable five decades of dedication to the whisky industry as a blend controller at Whyte & Mackay. This exclusive bottle achieved a hammer price of £12,500, marking a fitting tribute to Nicol's illustrious career.
Funds raised will be donated to the OurWhisky Foundation to help further its work providing initiatives and projects that support women working in whisky. Ongoing projects include its widely acclaimed mentorship programme, which by the end of this year will have directly supported 200 women in their careers; a new, enhanced series of trade and consumer networking and tasting events; and the development of its online magazine, The Cut, into a valuable educational resource. Applications for the next mentorship intake have opened this week.
The OurWhisky Foundation is the world’s first non-profit organisation dedicated to supporting, recognising and empowering professional women in whisky across the globe, while advocating for a more inclusive and diverse industry.
Joe Wilson, Head Curator and Spirits Specialist at Whisky Auctioneer, said:
"It has been a privilege for us to support the OurWhisky Foundation in providing not just a platform for this ground-breaking sale, but also to promote the contributions of women to the industry as a whole. From the distilleries and independent bottlers who generously donated to the bidders from across the world, it is incredible to see whisky lovers come together to make a real difference."
Becky Paskin, founder of the OurWhisky Foundation, added:
“We’re blown away by the fantastic amount raised from the inaugural Demeter Collection. The OurWhisky Foundation provides much-needed support and guidance for women in whisky as well as the wider industry, but we are in desperate need of funding if we’re to continue providing our services. Thanks to Whisky Auctioneer, all our lot donors and the hundreds of bidders coming together over a shared love of a dram, the fantastic amount raised will help us continue making whisky an inclusive space for everyone.”
Full lot listing:
Aberfeldy 40 Year Old
Arbeg Twenty
Arbikie Farm Experience + Hand-filled Rye Whisky
Atonia’s Legacy: The Sarah Burgess Edition
Cooper King Cask No. 1: Inaugural Release
Cotswolds Distillery One of One
CRN57
House of Hazelwood: The Long View
JJ Corry x Tipperary: The Founders Bottles #1
Laphroaig 25 Year Old: The Bessie Williamson Story
Loch Lomond Sonata Collection
Nc’nean Aon 17-302
SMWS Christmas on the Beach
Strathearn Single Malt Scotch Whisky
The Borders Distillery IWD Quarter Cask
The Dalmore 44 Years Old
The GlenDronach 30 Year Old Single Cask
Wire Works Love, Sweat & Tears
About The OurWhisky Foundation:
The OurWhisky Foundation is the world’s first non-profit organisation dedicated to supporting, recognising and empowering professional women in whisky across the globe, while advocating for a more inclusive and diverse industry.
Founded in 2022 by drinks journalist Becky Paskin, the UK-based organisation works with the global drinks industry to provide diversity and inclusion consultancy, as well as surveys, reports, events and initiatives that inspire change.
Its ground-breaking mentorship programme, which pairs mentees with some of the biggest names in whisky while providing free workshops and networking opportunities, has so far guided 175 women and non-binary individuals toward reaching their goals, with many securing new jobs and promotions as a result.
In 2023 the Foundation introduced the Modern Face of Whisky stock image library, an evolving, free-to-use collection of professional photography enabling the media and wider industry to more accurately represent the diversity of today’s whisky drinker beyond the masculine stereotype. Within its first eight months, the library received 10 million views and 100,000 downloads with the images featured across global print and digital media.
In the same year, the Foundation surveyed over 600 women for its Do You Even Like Whisky? report – the world’s first survey of women in whisky, which revealed the extent of sexism and unconscious bias prevalent in the industry. The report has since led to policy changes within many whisky organisations.
Explore further:
Read more about OurWhisky Foundation.