The gloriously named Dutchman, Bay van der Bunt, owner of the world's largest collection of vintage spirits has announced that his cache is on the market, for an eye-watering $8 million.

Van der Bunt has spent decades adding to his stash, which includes gems such as cognacs dating back to the French Revolution of 1789, but has always abstained from enjoying them himself. He said of his mission, 'Over the last 35 years, I frequented worldwide auctions like Christie's and Sotheby's. I bought from famous restaurants like Maxim's and La Tour d'Argent in Paris and Le Cirque in New York when they thinned-out their cellars. Some cognacs even belonged to the estate of the Duke of Windsor,' he added. 'My grandfather had hundreds of bottles which my father passed on to me, so collecting is something I have grown up with.'

He is looking for one lucky customer to take the lot and continue his mission, rather than splitting and selling it off, bottle-by-bottle. Should you have that spare $8 million knocking around, van der Bunt is positive you won't regret the spending spree: 'Collecting cognacs and old liquors was very time consuming and cost a fortune, but it proves to be the best financial investment I have ever made.'

News item from Imbibe.com, 17-02-2012