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Prices in Reviews?

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@scribe
scribe started a discussion

What are people's thoughts on discussing value-for-money in reviews? I'm wondering whether to start including a note on how much I paid for a bottle, compared to what I would pay, but maybe it's better to keep the focus on the whisky itself, seeing as prices vary all the time.

I think there's certainly something to be said for including a comment on VFM when it's a pricey or limited bottle. But sometimes it's also nice to discuss such things for when someone has, say, 35 quid to spend and wants to know if they're going to get a decent taste for that.

14 years ago

5 replies

@jdcook
jdcook replied

I only ever comment if I think something is very good value or if it really isn't. But I see no reason not to include value for money in a review. It shouldn't count towards scoring, but a note in the review itself is up to the reviewer.

14 years ago 2Who liked this?

@Beelzebozo
Beelzebozo replied

I agree with @jdcook here (as I frequently do) that a note about the price paid is nice to have in the text but shouldn't affect the score. Not only do prices vary over time, but also widely over space. For instance, I bought a bottle of Stranahan's Colorado for $40 in Louisville, KY. And then a month ago I saw the same bottle in London, England for about twice that. While those two bottles contained the same whiskey, the latter went through much greater hardships to reach its shop than did mine.

14 years ago 0

@PeatAndMeat
PeatAndMeat replied

I think a value for money indicator in reviews is a good idea but its better to keep it separate from the tasting note. Value shouldn't be considered in scoring IMHO

14 years ago 0

@dougwatts
dougwatts replied

I think value is in some way factored into most reviews anyway, even if it isnt explicit. The price you pay for a dram or bottle cannot help but set expectations (and therefore presumably the tone of a review), in the same way that knowing which distillery it came from and how old it is contributes to the same.

14 years ago 1Who liked this?

@WhiskyNotes
WhiskyNotes replied

In theory, blind reviews are better of course, without knowing the distillery, the price or whatever. Otherwise you're always influenced. Prices vary in different countries and they evolve as well, if we take into account the price of a Port Ellen 1st Edition, then it can never get a good review (although it wasn't outrageously expensive at the time). I always mention prices in reviews (certainly for readily available bottles) but I try to leave it out of the evaluation.

14 years ago 3Who liked this?