From the Bunnahabhain desk · Thread · Value pick · 2026-10-22

Bunnahabhain 12: the everyday stand-in for Tamdhu 15

mergedmay_publish truequality passsite_publish falseprices: 2 price claim(s) verified live

1/I keep a bottle of Tamdhu 15 about, around $202, and I love it. Here's the thing I tell mates who do too: a Bunnahabhain 12 gives me about 87% of what the Tamdhu pours, for 63% of the price.

2/Bunnahabhain 12, $128 at Dan's. Twelve years, bottled at 46.3%. The nose is all sea salt and tangerines, a wisp of smoke behind. The palate turns oily and warm: vanilla, sultanas, hazelnuts, a hint of sherry. Salt and a dry smoke see out the finish.

3/What I give up stepping across from the Tamdhu is mostly some of the sherry and dried fruit, and three years of age. So: Tamdhu 15 stays the one its fans reach for. And the Bunnahabhain? That's what I'm pouring on every other night.

Sources

Prices at Dan Murphy's as of 2026-10-22 (22 October 2026); vintage 2026-10-22.1; bottles: Bunnahabhain 12 Year Old Scotch Whisky 700mL, Tamdhu 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL.
Bunnahabhain 12 for a Tamdhu 15 drinker (share of what the Tamdhu 15 gives): 87% (stand_ins.alternatives.share_of_ref)
Bunnahabhain 12 price as a share of the Tamdhu 15's, this week: 63% (stand_ins.alternatives.share_of_price)
Bunnahabhain 12 price this week: $128 (price.ticket)
Tamdhu 15 price this week: $202 (price.ticket)
Bunnahabhain 12 per standard drink: $5.01 (price.ticket / standard drinks)
a pint at the pub, per standard drink (about $13 a pint, 2 standard drinks): $6.28 (PUB_PINT)
a pint at the pub: $13 (PUB_PINT)
Tamdhu 15 per standard drink: $7.95 (price.ticket / standard drinks)
Bunnahabhain 12 ABV: 46.3% (identity.abv)
WHAT IT GIVES UP (fixed: keep its meaning; never give another reason): What a Tamdhu 15 drinker gives up with the Bunnahabhain 12 is mostly some of the sherry and dried fruit and three years of age.

Omissions

None recorded.

Notes for reviewer

None recorded.

Frontmatter as merged

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premium over CE 360° · shared scale 0% to +70% across the eleven

Bunnahabhain 12

$127.99list 11-05

CE 360° $103.15 · 19.4% over · #15 of 16 in Islay

per standard drink $3.87 · #6 of 16 in Islay

18 pieces · observed

Tamdhu 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

$201.99list 11-05

CE 360° $170.63 · 15.5% over · #68 of 79 in Speyside

per standard drink $7.95 · #58 of 75 in Speyside

46 pieces · observed

source file: drafts/2026-10-22-n378-value-pick-bunnahabhain-12-the-everyday-stand-in-for-tamdhu-15.md