The Mistyped Vintage Beer Bottle
Scotch and wine are examples of beverages that improve with age. Others don't. In general, you shouldn't drink beer after it has reached an excessively old age. On the other hand, if it is old enough to be noteworthy historically, its value will rise. In an effort to make some money, someone decided to sell a bottle of beer that was 160 years old on eBay.
One of the world's rarest beer bottles was the Allsopp's Arctic Ale, a collectible item. For $304, it was sold in 2009. Not bad for a bottle of ancient whiskey that you are unable to even sip. However, it wasn't really good.
The vendor typed "Allsopp" incorrectly. If someone was hunting for the rare bottle, they might have missed it because they listed it as "Allsop" without the second "p." And the reason this is so crucial is that the seller who purchased it for $304 then advertised it again and sold it for $503,300 under the proper name.
Did the seller profit from a $500,000 error, then? Not quite. Any significant eBay auction merits close examination. The bidder did not pay because the winning bid was a joke. However, other bidders were into the bottle for up to $78,000 and had legitimate feedback with over 1000 reviews. However, they lost. However, that probably won't console the man who received $304 for it.
- Cost: $502,996
