General knowledge

Question 1

How much gross value does Scotch whisky add to the UK economy?

Answer 1

5.5bn in Gross Value Added to the UK economy, with exports worth more than £3.8bn.

Question 2

How many many bottles of Scotch Whisky are shipped from Scotland each second and year?

Answer 2

36 per second, 1.14bn per year

(Laid end to end those bottles would stretch about
342,000kms - that’s 90% of the distance to the
moon!)

Question 3

How many markets is Scotch exported to?

Answer 3

166

Question 4

What percentage of UK and Scottish food and drink exports did Scotch Whiksy account for in 2020?

Answer 4

75% of Scotland
21% of UK

1.4% of all UK goods exports

Question 5

What percentage of a whisky’s characteristics come from the cask?

Answer 5

UP TO - 80% -

The longer the whisky is held in a cask, the greater the extraction of components from the oak, which all add to the taste, aroma and colour.

Question 6

Describe Fresh / First Fill Casks

Answer 6

When whisky is put into a fresh / first fill cask,
the cask will still hold approximately 10% of the former contents (bourbon, sherry, etc.) absorbed within the oak. These casks add the most amount of character to the spirit and the transfer can be really quite substantial.

Question 7

Describe Refill / Second Fill Casks

Answer 7

Refill / second fill casks become slightly less influential, but add more subtle characteristics whilst allowing the flavours in the spirit to dominate.

Question 8

Does size matter?

Answer 8

The larger the cask, generally the longer the maturation period. Your buying requirements may have a bearing on which size cask you choose, we will discuss this with you before you make your choice.

Question 9

What are the six regions for Whisky distilleries in Scotland?

Answer 9

Campbeltown, Highland, Islands, Lowland, Speyside, Islay

Question 10

Describe Campbeltown distilleries

Answer 10

Campbeltown whiskies are varied and full of flavour. Hints of salt, smoke, fruit, vanilla and toffee mingle in whiskies of robust and rich
character.

Question 11

Describe Highland distilleries

Answer 11

This region, which also takes in the Islands,
has a huge diversity of flavours and characters.

From lighter whiskies all the way through salty
coastal malts, the Highlands offers a Scotch for all palates.

Question 12

Describe Islands distilleries

Answer 12

The whiskies produced on the Islands are extremely varied and have few similarities, though can often be distinguished from other whisky regions by generally having a smokier flavour with peaty undertones.

Question 13

Describe Lowland distilleries

Answer 13

Soft and smooth malts are characteristics of this region, offering a gentle, elegant palate reminiscent of grass, honeysuckle, cream, ginger, toffee, toast and cinnamon. The whiskies are often lighter in character and perfect for predinner drinks.

Question 14

Describe Speyside distilleries

Answer 14

The most densely populated Whisky region
in the world, famous for fertile glens and, of
course, the River Spey. Speyside whiskies are
known for being frugal with peat and full of fruit.
Apple, pear, honey, vanilla and spice all have a
role in expressions from this region, which are
commonly matured in sherry casks.

Question 15

Describe Islay distilleries

Answer 15

Islay (pronounced ‘eye-luh’) is a magical island where the majority of its population are involved
in whisky production.
Famous for fiery, heavily
peated whiskies.

Question 16

What is ABV?

Answer 16

ABV stands for ‘Alcohol By Volume’ which is the
standard measure of how much alcohol is contained
in any given volume.

Question 17

WHY IS CASK WHISKY CAPITAL GAINS TAX FREE?

Answer 17

Whisky casks are classed by HMRC as a ‘wasting
asset’ and are not subject to Capital Gains Tax.

Wooden whisky casks are naturally porous, meaning
a very small amount of whisky evaporates each year and some is absorbed by the wood, normally no
more than 2% (the angel’s share). A wasting asset is
an asset with a predictable life of 50 years or less and
due to the evaporation, it is highly unlikely the life
expectancy of your cask will exceed 50 years.

Question 18

What percentage is the angels share usually?

Answer 18

Normally no more than 2% a year

Question 19

WHAT IS THE ANGEL’S SHARE?

Answer 19

One of the terms you’ll often hear in whisky
distilleries is “the angel’s share”. When whisky
is slowly maturing in its cask, a small amount of
whisky evaporates through the wood and into the
atmosphere. This can be as much as 2% per year, but
it’s rarely as much as this.

Question 20

WHAT DOES OLA/RLA MEAN?

Answer 20

OLA stands for ‘Original Litres of Alcohol’ and RLA
stands for ‘Regauged Litres of Alcohol’. OLA refers
to the number of litres of pure alcohol which were
initially placed into the cask and RLA represents the
litres of pure alcohol remaining in the cask after a regauge has been implemented, checking the health, contents and value of your cask.

Question 21

WHAT ARE BULK LITRES?

Answer 21

Bulk litres refer to the entire litres of liquid in a cask, the combined total of pure alcohol and liquid.

A cask filled with 200 bulk litres at 64% ABV would
have 128 litres of pure alcohol (64% of 200)

Question 22

WHAT IS DUTY SUSPENSION?

Answer 22

When your cask is being stored or transported
between bonded warehouses, it is held and
transported under duty suspension. This means
you don’t have to pay duty on your cask, which
is the tax levied by HMRC on alcohol (currently
£28.74 per litre of pure alcohol) until the cask is
removed from bond.

Question 23

WHAT IS A BONDED
WAREHOUSE?

Answer 23

A bonded warehouse is a HMRC controlled
warehouse where the goods stored and held are
free from duty and VAT. Bonded warehouses
are those which HMRC have granted an official
WOWGR licence (Warehousekeepers and
Owners of Warehoused Goods Regulations). This
authorises a business to store and move goods
with the payment of duty suspended from one
bonded warehouse to another.

Question 24

What does WOWGR licence stand for?

Answer 24

Warehousekeepers and
Owners of Warehoused Goods Regulations

Question 25

WHAT IS A WOWGR?

Answer 25

A WOWGR licence (Warehousekeepers and
Owners of Warehoused Goods Regulations)
is a strictly governed certificate awarded to
companies who have met HMRC’s stringent
requirements to store spiritous beverages and
intermediate products, duty suspended in excise
warehouses.

This licence is not available to the public, but we have passed the strict checks and have been awarded one and although the cask is legally yours, we will be your duty representative/
custodian of the cask(s) in the eyes of HMRC.

Question 26

What are the 6 flexible options for exit?

Answer 26

1: We will offer to purchase the cask directly.
2: We can add your cask to our live inventory for our
global clients to view.
3: Auction your cask.
4: Sell to an independant bottler.
5: Bottle your whisky and share with family, friends and colleagues.
6: Depending on how rare your cask is, there may be an option to sell back to the distiller

Question 27

HOW LONG SHOULD I HOLD MY
CASK?

Answer 27

How long you hold your cask is entirely up to you. We will discuss this with you in detail before
your purchase so we can tailor everything to your needs, but usually we say a minimum of 5-10
years. However, the longer you hold, the more the whisky improves, the rarer it becomes and larger are the potential returns.

Question 28

WHAT HAPPENS IF I DIE?

Answer 28

The certificate of title and associated paperwork you receive from Vintage Acquisitions confirms legal ownership of your cask(s).

If you die your whisky casks will be added to your total estate and assessed by HMRC. If you have
made a will, you will be able to determine who the beneficiaries of your estate will be and by how much they will benefit. Vintage Acquisitions recommends that you seek professional independent financial advice in this regard.

Question 29

IS THERE A MINIMUM PURCHASE
PRICE?

Answer 29

No. Depending on the stock held at the time, the minimum investment is the price of the lowest value cask at the time the inquiry is made. This price could vary on a daily basis but has no minimum.

Question 30

IS CASK WHISKY REGULATED?

Answer 30

No. Cask whisky comes under the control and
regulation of HMRC. Cask whisky is classed by
HMRC as a ‘wasting asset’ and is not regulated
by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) who
govern ‘regulated’ financial investments. Vintage Acquisitions always recommend that you seek independent legal and financial advice in advance of any purchase.

Question 31

WHAT HAPPENS IF SCOTLAND
GAINS INDEPENDENCE?

Answer 31

Scotland has been part of the United Kingdom
since 1st May 1707. The Scottish people voted
against independence on 18th September 2014.

Given that Whisky makes up 70% of Scottish food and drink exports the consensus of opinion is that post-independence they will be keener than ever to do trade deals wherever they possibly can which would clearly include the UK. Britain also maintains a very special relationship with the US, by far the biggest importer of Scotch in the world.

Question 32

HOW DO I KNOW MY CASK
EXISTS?

Answer 32

Once the purchase of your cask(s) has been
completed, you will have received an invoice,
a paid receipt and a certificate of title (wet
signed and stamped by the founding director)
or a Delivery Order (DO) to your own private
account, if you have one.

All these corresponding documents include the cask’s unique number and recent regauge or filling data (OLA/RLA, AYS, ABV, etc.). On becoming an owner you can visit your cask (warehouse dependant), draw samples and you will receive documentation and correspondence confirming the recommended ongoing care of your cask.

Question 33

WHAT ABOUT SCAMS?

Answer 33

Unfortunately, scams are rife in any industry
where success is prevalent. Vintage Acquisitions has been trading for 10 years and urge all clients looking into cask whisky purchase to undertake as much due diligence as possible. In generic terms potential clients should seek independent advice and ensure that full and accurate checks are made when investigating who to deal with.

The sale of cask whisky is not regulated by the
FCA and therefore purchases are not covered under the FSCS*. Cask whisky purchase
is however regulated by HMRC. In simple terms clients should avoid firms advertising spectacularly high returns, offering any claims of
‘guaranteed returns’, firms not on the WOWGR trading register and any firm reluctant or unwilling to provide a written delivery order.

*Financial Services Compensation Scheme

Question 34

WHAT DOES ABV STAND FOR?

Answer 34

ABV stands for ‘Alcohol By Volume’ which is
the standard measure of how much alcohol is
contained in any given volume.

Question 35

WHAT IS THE ANGEL’S SHARE?

Answer 35

One of the terms you’ll often hear in whisky
distilleries is “the angel’s share”. When whisky
is slowly maturing in its cask, a small amount of
whisky evaporates through the wood and into
the atmosphere. This can be as much as 2% per
year, but it’s rarely as much as this.

Question 36

OLA/RLA

Answer 36

OLA stands for ‘Original Litres of Alcohol’ and
RLA stands for ‘Regauged Litres of Alcohol’.
OLA refers to the number of litres of pure
alcohol which were initially placed into the cask
and RLA represents the litres of pure alcohol
remaining in the cask after a regauge has been
implemented, checking the health, contents and value of your cask.

Question 37

BULK LITRES

Answer 37

Bulk litres refer to the entire litres of liquid in
a cask, the combined total of pure alcohol and
liquid. A cask filled with 200 bulk litres at 64%
ABV would have 128 litres of pure alcohol (64%
of 200).

Question 38

WHAT IS DUTY SUSPENSION

Answer 38

When your cask is being stored or transported
between bonded warehouses, it is held and
transported under duty suspension. This means you don’t have to pay duty on your cask, which is the tax levied by HMRC on alcohol (currently £28.74 per litre of pure alcohol) until the cask is removed from bond.

Question 39

WHAT IS A WOWGR?

Answer 39

A WOWGR licence (Warehousekeepers and
Owners of Warehoused Goods Regulations)
is a strictly governed certificate awarded to
companies who have met HMRC’s stringent
requirements to store spiritous beverages and
intermediate products, duty suspended in excise warehouses. This licence is not available to the public, but we were awarded one in 2017 and although the cask is is legally yours, we will be your duty representative.

Question 40

WHAT IS A BONDED
WAREHOUSE?

Answer 40

A bonded warehouse is a HMRC controlled warehouse where the goods stored and held are
free from duty and VAT. Bonded warehouses are those which HMRC have granted an official
WOWGR licence (Warehousekeepers and
Owners of Warehoused Goods Regulations). This authorises a business to store and move goods with the payment of duty suspended from one bonded warehouse to another.

Question 41

ARE THERE ANY GUARANTEES?

Answer 41

The purchase of cask whisky does not come with any guarantees. Offering any type of guarantee would be misleading as there are so many factors
that influence markets.

Historically purchasing
then holding on to whisky casks over the medium to long term has been lucrative however past
performance is no guide to the future. Vintage Acquisitions work on the very simple principle that if you purchase whisky casks and are prepared to hold on to them the whisky you purchased will be older, in shorter supply and therefore more desirable than when you first made the purchase.

Question 42

WHAT HAPPENS IF VINTAGE
ACQUISITIONS GETS TAKEN
OVER OR COLLAPSES?

Answer 42

In either scenario the bottom line is that you own
and can evidence the fact that you own specific individually numbered whisky casks held under bond at HMRC regulated warehouses.

The casks
are yours and form part of the inventory of Vintage Acquisitions. They are not ours to sell.

In the unlikely event that Vintage Acquisitions collapsed your cask cannot be sold to satisfy receivers or creditors.

The cask remains your
property.

Question 43

HOW IS MY CASK INSURED?

Answer 43

The full value of your cask is insured for fire, theft
and accidental damages.

Any excess on the policy
will be met by Vintage Acquisitions so in the
unlikely event of a claim you would be entitled to
the full market value of the cask at the time of the
claim.

Question 44

WHAT HAPPENS IF MY CASK
BREAKS?

Answer 44

If your cask breaks you would be insured under the ‘accidental damage’ section of your insurance policy to the full value of your cask at the time of the claim.