SOMEWHERE out there is an individual who is surely regretting the fact that he once was thirsty for a dram.

For yesterday a rare bottle of whisky – one of only 12 ever made – sold for a world record £848,750 at an auction in Edinburgh, where auctioneers Bonhams told of how another of the dozen had been drunk.

Described by experts as “the Holy Grail of whisky”, the bottle of the 1926 Macallan Valerio Adami attracted attention from some of the world’s most serious collectors.

It fetched a hammer price of £700,000 plus a buyer’s premium of £148,750 in the auction.

The whisky is officially described as a 60-year-old, having been created in 1926 and bottled in 1986.

It is hugely collectable because of the label, an original artwork by the renowned artist Valerio Adami.

Martin Green, Bonhams whisky specialist in Edinburgh, said: “I am delighted at this exceptional result. It is a great honour to have established a new world record, and particularly exciting to have done so here in Scotland, the home of whisky.

“The Macallan 1926 60-year-old has been described as the Holy Grail of whisky. Its exceptional rarity and quality puts it in a league of its own.”