A 1982 bourbon just became the most expensive American Whiskey ever sold

A single bottle of Old Rip Van Winkle from 1982 sold for $162,500, leading a $2.5 million auction that redefined how the world values rare American whiskey. The most expensive bottle of American whiskey ever sold at auction is no longer a dusty pre-Prohibition relic or a museum-grade antique. It’s a 1982 bottle of Old Rip Van Winkle.