Too Rich for my Glencairn?

@Nozinan Do you mean over-priced (for what they are)?

@jeanluc It could be overpriced for what they are, or simply, more than you're willing to pay even if the quality is there...

Almost anything Ardbeg at the LCBO prices. $99 for the 10 year, $175 for Uigeadail, and $192 for Corryvreckan. Not to mention they want $186 for the Perpetuum.

I love Ardbeg juice, but I will never ever buy it here in Ontario.

If I were choosing an approach to whisky-buying as a new entrant to the hobby, at today's prices I'd be inclined more to buy a very few bottles to drink right away, and to rotate stock as the bottles are emptied. I observe this appears to be the most common approach among our members. With a large cabinet containing a lot of both opened and unopened bottles the incentive to buy currently higher-priced products is small. Under these circumstances opening a newly purchased bottle just adds to the litany of bottles open and slowly gaining air influence, even when decanted or gassed. Leaving the newly purchased bottle unopen is ok for preservation purposes, but it just adds one more to the 150 unopened bottles to choose from for the future. Only an exceptional taste experience or an exceptional bargain has much appeal under those circumstances. At this point it takes a lot for me to want to buy a whole bottle of something new. But an accumulation of whiskies does afford excellent opportunities for swapping samples. And sample-swaps are the best most affordable path to get the experience of trying many whiskies.

Hard to argue with anything @Victor says here.

I've had a stash of unopened bottles for a while now, and it sure does change your buying habits. Sure, Tomatin 12 is cheap and fine, but why buy one when it'll never claim my attention when I'm picking a new bottle to open?

I'm still a semi-regular buyer, though—mostly when I get some sort of little windfall that I happily devote to the hobby. And Laphroaig 10 CS continues to be my yardstick when I consider a purchase. I can get that for $60 and I love it, so the question is always "does Whisky X offer enough intrique or interest to warrant choosing it over another Laphroaig 10 CS?" Many many many whiskies fail that test. Writers Tears CS at $180 wouldn't stand a chance.

I'll add that since I became president of my local whisky club, I've had the happy job of buying the group's new bottle each month, and that gives me the opportunity (the obligation, really) to buy novel & interesting bottles that folks otherwise might not try. Really, that means that my own personal buying no longer includes stuff that I feel like I "ought" to try even if it's not really up my alley. (Glendronach would be an example.) That really makes the Laphroaig 10 CS test useful—I can zero in on peaty goodness and largely ignore stuff that I'm only somewhat interested in.

And buying for the club introduces a different perception of what's "too rich for my glencairn." For example, I might never buy Highland Park 18 or Talisker 18 for myself, but I know those whiskies would over well with the club and they're just within reach of our budget depending on the bargains I find for other months, so I can happily splurge on their ilk every so often.

@Ol_Jas Funny you should mention those two 18 year olds. The most expensive bottle I've ever bought was $136 US for my favorite to date, The Talisker 18. I have another bottle squirreled away. The HP I have not purchased yet and its at about the same price point near me. One day I will splurge but right now I have my eye on the Bunnahabhain 18 which I can get for $109. One thing I wish I could afford would be the Macallan 18 but that will not happen. Neither will my wet dream of a old Brora or Port Ellen. Sadness.................

For me personally, I find the Pappy 15/21/23 to probably qualify, at least from an open market purchase price. From a fixed price viewpoint, for the purpose of consumption only (and not considering to flip), I most likely would still pass on purchasing, especially if given the opportunity to purchase something else, perhaps along the lines of William Larue Weller, George T. Stagg, Thomas Handy 18yo, etc.

@Ol_Jas A 'Yardstick', that's sort of my approch at the moment. I think I have a realistic view of the costs and the quality they can produce for the price they ask. On the whole € 30,- to € 99,- for a good quality bottle. A 'bottem' price and a 'top' price. I've got Bourbon oak Whisky's, Sherry oak Whisky's an Peated Whisky's. Every group for me has a yardstick with a range. Bourbon oak € 30,- to € 60,- (Deanston 12, Nadurra 16) Sherry oak € 40,- to € 80,- (Benromach 10, Glengoyne 18, Bushmills 21) and Peated € 40,- to € 99,- (To many to mention, it starts with Ardbeg 10 and ends with Octomore).

@Bilbo 161. I think you will like the Bunny 18. An excellent dram at an affordable price.

@Bilbo 161. I think you will like the Bunny 18. An excellent dram at an affordable price.

@mscottydunc Ditto on the Ardbegs in BC.

@Nozinan. I can't see one decent Macallan that is worth the money these days, nor is there an affordable HP other than the 12. The 18 is now over $200 and won't be seeing the inside of my Glencairn until I can get it at a sensible price. I'd love to try Kavalan Solist, but not at something over $250 US. Springbanks beyond the 15 are unaffordable and I am content to keep my Glencairn topped up with the 10. A'bunadh, IMO, is no longer worth the money and excellent, cheaper alternatives are available (Glendronach cask strength, GF 105). I could go on.

Cheers.

While there are many whiskies I cannot afford, sometimes quality is worth paying for.

During my trip to Hong Kong a couple of years ago, I sampled a Macallan 18 that was quite excellent. On my way through the duty free shop in the airport, I saw a bottle of the same--but I decided it was too rich for my taste, and purchased a bottle of Auchentoshin Heartwood and a bottle of White Oak Akashi instead. I chose volume over quality, and I regret not buying that Macallan (which, while expensive, was not something I could find at that price here at home--and I paid nearly as much for the two other bottles as it was).