If Glenfiddich 15 is already your pour, the question you'll have is a simple one: is there anything that does what this does for less money? There is. The Balvenie DoubleWood 12 gives a Glenfiddich 15 drinker about 96% of what their own bottle does, and it does that for 75% of the price. That's the spine of the whole piece, so let's hang everything else off it.
1/What are you actually paying for in a bottle of Glenfiddich 15? Price its age, name, style and sherry the way the rest of the range is priced at Dan Murphy's, and the features come to $176. This week it's $140. About 21% under.
2/That $176 breaks down by feature: age 46%, the name on the label 22%, sherry and dried fruit 17%, being a single malt 9%. Age and the name together are over two-thirds of it.
3/Its own drinker weights it differently: age 51%, sherry and dried fruit 23%, a single malt 17%. Same features as the going rate, just leaning harder on age. That 23% is the cooked plums and sweet dried fruit on the nose.
4/Chasing fuller sherry? The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 is $160 this week, above the $140, yet gives a Glenfiddich 15 drinker about 68% of what the Glenfiddich does. More isn't always more. So: the Glenfiddich at $140, or the Macallan for the sherry?
| slot | 08-13 | 08-20 | 08-27 | 09-03 | 09-10 | 09-17 | 09-24 | 10-01 | 10-08 | 10-15 | 10-22 | 10-29 | 11-05 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list / member | 135.99 observed | 124.90 observed | 124.90 observed | 124.90 observed | 135.99 observed | 139.99 observed | 139.99 observed | 139.99 observed | 139.99 observed | 139.99 observed | 139.99 observed | 139.99 observed | 139.99 observed |
| basis | mean | median | sd | min | max | range | cv | se mean | latest | own-range pctl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list | 135.89 | 139.99 | 6.43 | 124.90 | 139.99 | 15.09 | 4.7% | 1.78 | 139.99 | 100 |
| member | 135.89 | 139.99 | 6.43 | 124.90 | 139.99 | 15.09 | 4.7% | 1.78 | 139.99 | 100 |
| moments | m1 mean | m2 var | m3 skew | m4 ex-kurt | 95% band of the mean |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list | 135.89 | 41.40 | -1.27 | -0.22 | 132.4 – 139.4 |
The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 usually sells around $170. This week it's $160 at Dan Murphy's. In the glass: Christmas cake, jaffa oranges, old leather. Full and smooth, a long finish, a last hint of smoke. Want to know who else it suits? That's in this week's piece.
The Macallan Sherry Oak 12, poured after a long Tuesday: sherry, Christmas cake, old leather, a wisp of smoke. Want that without the full $160? The Macallan 12 Double Cask, $137, gives a Sherry Oak drinker 98% of it for 86% of the price. Fair swap? More in this week's piece.
Hand a Glenfiddich 15 drinker The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 and they'd pay 68% of what their own bottle costs, a generous nod from a neighbour and reason enough to pour one yourself. The rest of the story waits in this week's piece on The Macallan Sherry Oak 12.
Christmas cake and Jaffa oranges, a little old leather, then a last hint of smoke: The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 is one to pour slowly of an evening. This week it is $160 at Dan Murphy's; it usually sells around $170. More on where that price sits in this week's piece.
The odd part: The Balvenie DoubleWood 12, at $105, hands a The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 drinker about 87% of what their own bottle gives, for 66% of its price. Honey, almonds, a touch of nutmeg. The rest of the story on The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 is in this week's piece.
Like The Macallan Sherry Oak 12? Glenfiddich 15 gives you about 74% of what it does, for 87% of the price, at $140. Cooked plums and stewed rhubarb on the nose, then hedgerow fruit and a little grip on the palate. More on The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 in this week's piece.
Glenfiddich 18 opens on oak and fresh apple wound through barley, then settles into fruit cake and Christmas pudding warmed with cinnamon, smooth and easy, a pour that suits anyone easing into a long evening. This week it's $175 at Dan Murphy's. More in this week's piece.
Fond of Glenfiddich 18? A Glenfiddich 18 drinker gets about 95% of what that bottle gives from Glengoyne 15, at 74% of the price, and it's $130 for members this week. Sherry, vanilla, a little ginger. Pour one and see. More in this week's piece on Glenfiddich 18.
Glenfiddich 18 opens on oak and fresh apple, then a smooth palate of fruit cake and cinnamon. Hand it to an Edradour 10 drinker and they'd pay 71% of what their own bottle costs, marking it down for the extra years. More on Glenfiddich 18 in this week's piece.
I noticed the apple and toffee on the Glenfiddich 18 first, then oak, barley and a warm cinnamon spice through the finish. At $175 it works out to $7.92 a pour at home, a touch over a $13 pint at the pub. More on it in this week's piece.
The Glenfiddich 18 is $175 at Dan Murphy's this week, which is right where it usually sells, so I'd call it a steady price rather than a moment to pounce. I've pulled the whole picture together in this week's piece, if you want the neighbours and the pours set out beside it.
The Balvenie DoubleWood 12, $105 at Dan Murphy's this week; it usually sells around $100. Floral and honeyed on the nose, then silky sherry, nutmeg and dried fruit, with a hint of orange drying out the long finish. Robust and elegant at once. More on it in this week's piece.
Handed The Balvenie DoubleWood 12, a Tamdhu 12 drinker would pay 73% of what their own bottle costs for it — close enough that the two sit as near neighbours rather than strangers. A fair hearing, then. Where would you land on it? The full read is in this week's piece.
The Balvenie DoubleWood 12 is $105 at Dan Murphy's this week, and from what I've seen it usually sells around $100. Honeyed, with sherry spice and a long orange finish. So this week sits a touch above the usual, a fair guide for where it lands. More on it in this week's piece.
Jammy peaches and marzipan on the nose, polished oak behind. The palate turns creamy: oranges, yellow plums, summer berries, then clove and black pepper. It closes on milk chocolate. Aberlour 14 is $140 for members at Dan Murphy's. Pour one this week; the piece has the rest.
Like Aberlour 14? The Aberlour 12 Double Cask gives an Aberlour 14 drinker about 98% of what it does for 81% of the price, at $113 this week, all orange peel, red apple and a little chocolate as it opens. More on the Aberlour 14 in this week's piece.
A Glenfarclas 15 drinker, handed the Aberlour 14, would pay 64% of what their own bottle costs — marked down mostly for the lighter strength. That's the nearest neighbour's answer. More on where Aberlour 14 sits in this week's piece.
Poured one after dinner and noticed how rounded it sits, no rough edges. Aberlour 14 comes to $6.34 a standard drink, about 22 pours in the bottle. That's a shade over a $13 pint at the pub (around $6.28). One for a slow evening at home. More in this week's piece.
Aberlour 14 sat in front of me this week at $140 for members at Dan Murphy's, and from everything I've seen it usually sells around $140, so take this as a steady guide rather than any sort of surprise. More on where it lands, and who it suits, in this week's piece.
Dry citrus and hazelnut on the nose, then fuller sherry, cinnamon and banoffee; jaffa oranges and hot chocolate to finish. That's Tamdhu 12. For an Aberlour 14 drinker it gives about 91% of the Aberlour 14, at 90% of the price, $126. More on Aberlour 14 this week.
Glencadam 15 and Glenfiddich 15 both sit at $140 a bottle, so Glencadam 15 costs $0 more, yet at 46% against 40% it's the cheaper drink: $5.51 a standard drink against $6.34. Climb in age and strength and the pour climbs too — Glengoyne 15 at $6.82, Glenfiddich 18 at $8.14, the first-fill sherry and marmalade of Glengoyne 18 at $11.62. A pint at the pub runs about $6.28 a standard drink, so the honeyed, floral Glencadam pours for less than that while the others pour for more. Want depth, want strength for the money, want the long sherried finish? There's a yes here for each of you.
Glenfiddich 18 opens on oak and fresh apple woven through barley, then turns to sweet fruit cake and Christmas pudding warmed with cinnamon, extraordinarily smooth. $180 at Dan Murphy's, one for the drinker who wants complexity without fuss. More in this week's piece.
If Glenfiddich 18 is your pour, Glengoyne 15 at $162 will suit you: sherried vanilla, ginger and a spicy, cocoa finish, giving a Glenfiddich 18 drinker about 95% of what they're after for 90% of the price. More on Glenfiddich 18 in this week's piece.
Hand an Aberlour 14 drinker the Glenfiddich 18 and they'd pay about 82% of what their own bottle costs, marked down a touch for the extra years. Who's it for? Anyone content near where they already sit. More on the Glenfiddich 18 in this week's piece — worth a look?
$8.14 — that's one pour of Glenfiddich 18 at home. The bottle runs $180, with about 22 standard drinks in it. Slippers not included. The full piece is up this week: where would you pour yours?
Glenfiddich 18 is $180 at Dan Murphy's this week, in step with where it usually sells, around $175. We've seen it between $170 and $180, so $180 sits near the top of a narrow band. A steady week for a steady bottle. More on the Glenfiddich 18 in this week's piece.
Honey and almonds, then nutmeg and dried fruit on something silky: that's The Balvenie DoubleWood 12. For a Glenfiddich 15 drinker it gives about 96% of the mark at 75% of the price, or $105. The rest on Glenfiddich 15 is in this week's piece.
Hand an Edradour 10 drinker a Glenfiddich 15 and they'd happily part with 79% of what their own bottle costs them, which is a tidy bit of respect to hand a neighbour's dram. More on the Glenfiddich 15 in this week's piece.
Pour a Glenfiddich 15 at the end of the week, cooked plums and a little rhubarb settling in the glass, and you're drinking at $6.34 a standard pour from a bottle of about 22, a touch over a $13 pint's two at the pub. More on it in this week's piece.
Glenfiddich 15 is $140 this week. It usually sells around $140, and we've seen it from $125 to $140. Right where it tends to sit, so nothing to puzzle over. A safe one to reach for. More on it in this week's piece.
| # | candidate | price | CEARP | price − CEARP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aberlour 14 Year Old Scotch Whisky 700mL | $159.99 | $135.31 | +24.68 |
| 2 | The Balvenie DoubleWood 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $99.95 | $135.12 | -35.17 |
| 3 | Aberlour 12 Year Old Double Cask Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $105.00 | $131.58 | -26.58 |
| 4 | Tamdhu 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $98.00 | $128.91 | -30.91 |
| 5 | GLENFIDDICH 12YO SHERRY CASK FINISH 700ML | $136.99 | $128.48 | +8.51 |
| 6 | The Macallan Sherry Oak 12 Years Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $169.99 | $128.37 | +41.62 |
| 7 | The Macallan Double Cask 15 Years Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $377.99 | $127.32 | +250.67 |
| 8 | The Macallan 12 Year Old Double Cask Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $136.99 | $127.18 | +9.81 |
| 9 | Tamdhu 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $201.99 | $125.07 | +76.92 |
| 10 | Mortlach The Wee Witchie 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 750mL | $158.66 | $124.58 | +34.08 |