A £3.9 MILLION whisky collection built up by a man who initially did not enjoy the drink has gone on sale in an online auction.

The collector, who wishes to be known only as Pat, created what is said to be the world’s largest and most diverse private collection – made up of 9000 bottles – over the course of 15 years.

He bought his first whiskies on a colleague’s recommendation but became “hooked” and went on to source bottles from more than 150 Scottish distilleries; bourbon and rare Scotch releases from independent bottlers in Europe; and whisky from across the globe.

The collection will be sold in an online auction on Perth-based WhiskyAuctioneer.com, running from today until October 5.

Founder Iain McClune said: “The value of the collection lies in its completeness, with many of the most lauded series from some of the finest distilleries in the world featured in their entirety.”