Whiskey budget

Brockagh · 12-02-2008 8:23am #1

How much would you spend on a really good bottle of whisk(e)y?

TestTransmission · 12-02-2008 8:29am

Brockagh wrote: »

How much would you spend on a really good bottle of whisk(e)y?

Depends what you're after but this might give a rough estimate

http://www.drinklink.ie/index.php/Irish-Whiskey/View-all-products.html

Brockagh · 12-02-2008 8:41am

Well, that's not what I mean, really. I mean, personally, how much would you be prepared to spend on a bottle of whisk(e)y?

When you think about it, you could spend a few hundred on beers that would last the same time as a cask strength bottle of whisky...

It's interesting that the link you posted had Three Stills under the Irish whiskey section - it's not a whiskey at all. This is just an aside, though.

rubadub · 12-02-2008 10:58am

Brockagh wrote: »

When you think about it, you could spend a few hundred on beers that would last the same time as a cask strength bottle of whisky...

Depends on how you drink. The majority of people I know drink for one main reason, to get to a certain blood alchol level. In which case a 700ml bottle of whiskey has the same "potential" as about 12 cans.

Ginger · 12-02-2008 12:22pm

I spent €320 on the Jameson reserve

Yup its expensive, but I am hanging on to it. I am currently looking for a bottle of 30yr old Irish whiskey as a present.. expecting to pay in the region of 500 for it I think

Brockagh · 13-02-2008 12:22am

Ginger wrote: »

I spent €320 on the Jameson reserve

Yup its expensive, but I am hanging on to it. I am currently looking for a bottle of 30yr old Irish whiskey as a present.. expecting to pay in the region of 500 for it I think

Is that the Dungourney 1964? A 'magic' cask. It's said to be a cask they found by accident. It's yielded about 900 bottles thusfar, which must be some kind of record...

Ginger · 13-02-2008 7:53am

Must be... I dunno what to look for yet, but its kinda a present for me, for my 30th birthday.

But then again my usual thing is to buy a jameson 18 on my way through duty free. Because I live in Norway, we do actually get duty free so a bottle of that is about 72€

Brockagh · 13-02-2008 10:06am

The Dungourney is nice, but over-priced. I prefer Irish to scotch, but I love them both. You do get much better value in scotch in that price range, though - especially in independent bottlings.

Ginger · 13-02-2008 10:23am

I just dont like Scottish whiskey.. i dont like the smokey taste. It just doesnt appeal to me. I suppose its why I prefer bourbon or Irish stuff

Brockagh · 13-02-2008 11:20am

That's fair enough. I woundn't try to change your mind. There are some scotches that aren't peated, though, like Glengoyne and Arran. Caol Isla also make a non-peated version of their whisky. Also, if you buy a very old scotch, like a 30 year old, the peat fades.

Anyway, there are plenty of Irish and American whiskeys to be getting on with, I suppose.

Ginger · 13-02-2008 12:05pm

My mate got a free bottle of Johnny Walker Blue label, might have a swig of that and see if it changes my perception of Scottish Whiskey..

brow_601 · 13-02-2008 12:43pm

Ginger wrote: »

My mate got a free bottle of Johnny Walker Blue label, might have a swig of that and see if it changes my perception of Scottish Whiskey..

it won't:D

Brockagh · 13-02-2008 1:50pm

Yeah, it is a smokey whisky, but I think it's very good. Over-priced for a blend, though. The Gold Label is much cheaper and just as good. Of course, your friend got it for free. Green is also very good.

Ponster · 13-02-2008 8:17pm

The most I've spent was €110 for a 21 year-old Port Ellen (Islay).

I don't see the need as such to aspend more than€60 and sill have a nice collection but I guess spending €150 once a year on something special doesn't shock me all that much.

A Jameson 18 at €81 here in France is about as much I'd go forthe type of bottel that I'd get every 3 months or so.

Sleepy · 13-02-2008 9:19pm

I'm a demon for the whisky store in Gatwick. Would tend to be more a Scotch than Irish but I do like Bushmills Malt every now and then.

I'd rarely spend more than €50 or so on a bottle though. Currently working my way through a Glenmorangie Cellar 13 which is a nice ten year old.

Brockagh · 14-02-2008 12:49am

Ponster wrote: »

The most I've spent was €110 for a 21 year-old Port Ellen (Islay).

I don't see the need as such to aspend more than€60 and sill have a nice collection but I guess spending €150 once a year on something special doesn't shock me all that much.

A Jameson 18 at €81 here in France is about as much I'd go forthe type of bottel that I'd get every 3 months or so.

That's not bad vaue for a Port Ellen. It's going up in price too, as it's a closed distillery. Lots of it about so far, though.

davros · 14-02-2008 10:06pm

€90. I only buy Irish by the bottle and there are plenty of nice whiskeys at that price or below. I could get the Redbreast 15yo, Tyrconnell 15yo, various Bushmills and Cooley wood finishes...

Midleton is not worth €125 or so, IMO, and €400 for Rarest Vintage Reserve is laughable.

I have had a glass of Dungourney though, so that would be the most expensive I've paid for on a per ml basis.

I'm not saying that €90 is an acceptable price for a bottle of whiskey, by the way, just that I am resigned to paying it. I resent paying duty and I don't see what social or revenue advantages accrue to having high taxes on high-end Irish products.

Brockagh · 15-02-2008 9:17am

Midleton VR is not worth 125 euro, and it won't be worth the 150 euro you'll have to pay for it in a few months.

I had the Dungourney in the Porterhouse. It was 26 euro a shot, but I had to try it.

I have had plenty of drinks that sell for a lot, but which I got very cheaply.

The nicest Irish whiskey I've had is the Cadenhead Bow Street (Jameson) from 1964. The Cadenhead Tullamores are also very nice - bought a good few miniatures.

davros · 15-02-2008 11:12am

Brockagh wrote: »

I had the Dungourney in the Porterhouse. It was 26 euro a shot, but I had to try it.

Yup, same here

The nicest Irish whiskey I've had is the Cadenhead Bow Street (Jameson) from 1964. The Cadenhead Tullamores are also very nice - bought a good few miniatures.

I've never tried a whiskey from the old Bow Street distillery. Is there much similarity to anything in today's Jameson range?

Brockagh · 15-02-2008 10:28pm

davros wrote: »

Yup, same here

I've never tried a whiskey from the old Bow Street distillery. Is there much similarity to anything in today's Jameson range?

No, it's completely different. I have a good few bottles from the old distilery - 7 yr old pure pot stills and a couple of 12 year olds. The only ones that are aged significantly are the Cadenhead and the Old Irish Gold (if that's from the Bow St Distillery - nobody knows for sure.

rubadub · 17-02-2008 9:16pm

Ginger wrote: »

But then again my usual thing is to buy a jameson 18 on my way through duty free. Because I live in Norway, we do actually get duty free so a bottle of that is about 72€

What sort of a saving is that?

I always find duty free pricing odd, you should really just be saving the duty, which is a low percentage of an expensive bottle. i.e. the bottles should all really have the same saving of around €10 compared to an offie but usually it is a lot more.

Ginger · 17-02-2008 10:20pm

Well I dunno.. Norway is not EU so I am guessing Tax and duty free.. Normally its just duty free for EU and Tax and Duty free for non EU or is it tax and then tax and duty free??

The Jameson vintage reserve was 320 Duty free which would be VAT and Duty off

Someone wiser in these matters will be able to figure it out. I know that I definately get it cheaper than most going through Dublin

Brockagh · 18-02-2008 12:16am

I'm not sure, but I think in Ireland, the vat it caluclated on top of the duty. So in effect, they duty is also taxed. something like that anyway.

davros · 18-02-2008 12:52pm

Brockagh wrote: »

I'm not sure, but I think in Ireland, the vat it caluclated on top of the duty.

That's right.

We can calculate the cost of a bottle of Vintage Reserve without VAT and duty.

The bottle (0.7l, 46%) costs €400. That includes 21% VAT so if we remove that, we get €330.58.

Duty depends only on alcohol content and is €39.25 per litre of alcohol. Our bottle contains 0.7 x .46 = 0.322l of alcohol so the duty content is €12.64.

The price before duty and VAT is therefore 330.58 - 12.64 = €318

Ginger · 18-02-2008 1:12pm

rubadub wrote: »

What sort of a saving is that?

I always find duty free pricing odd, you should really just be saving the duty, which is a low percentage of an expensive bottle. i.e. the bottles should all really have the same saving of around €10 compared to an offie but usually it is a lot more.

Someone just explained it

rubadub · 19-02-2008 2:09pm

Aha! I wasnt considering the VAT at all. I was always thinking I can get a bottle for vodka for €15 in tesco so how could I save so much on expensive spirits.

So if you went within the EU to a country with low VAT you could still pick up a bargain in the duty free shop, probably cheaper to get it in a supermarket in that country though, which is often the case- most duty free shops are expensive when you add on the duty & VAT.

Ponster · 19-02-2008 3:31pm

True.

€16:90 for a 70cl bottle of Jameson here in France.

€18:50 for the same bottle in duty free CDG.

Ginger · 19-02-2008 9:42pm

Or in my case 560 NOK for a bottle of Jameson and 199NOK in Duty free...

Yup strong alcohol is really expensive!

1carrot2 · 20-02-2008 3:24pm

If you are thinking of buying a bottle of premium whiskey locally, buy it sooner rather than later.
Irish Distillers, who market Jameson, Power, Paddy, Redbreast, Greenspot, Dungourney, Midleton, etc, are increasing their prices from March 10th.
Biggest increases are on Redbreast 12 +15%; Jameson 18 +25%; Midleton VR +20%.
The super premium whiskeys on their newest list are Midleton 26 @ €460; Midleton 1973 @ €4000; Midleton 20th Anniversary @ €5000; Dungourney @ €500; Jameson RVR @ €400.
That's a lot of money for 700 millilitres of whiskey!

Brockagh · 20-02-2008 4:17pm

Yeah, I heard that. Midleton VR is already way overpriced, but it's just for the gift market anyway. People buying presents are just as likely to pay 120 as 150.

Brockagh · 20-02-2008 4:20pm

1carrot2 wrote: »

If you are thinking of buying a bottle of premium whiskey locally, buy it sooner rather than later.
Irish Distillers, who market Jameson, Power, Paddy, Redbreast, Greenspot, Dungourney, Midleton, etc, are increasing their prices from March 10th.
Biggest increases are on Redbreast 12 +15%; Jameson 18 +25%; Midleton VR +20%.
The super premium whiskeys on their newest list are Midleton 26 @ €460; Midleton 1973 @ €4000; Midleton 20th Anniversary @ €5000; Dungourney @ €500; Jameson RVR @ €400.
That's a lot of money for 700 millilitres of whiskey!

PS, where can you get Midleton 26 for €460?

Midleton bottle from 1973 - €4000
Glen Grant single cask 1974 - €120.

How do they explain the €3,880 difference. They cost the same to produce. I know one is in a fancy box, but that's jsut rediculous.

Whiskey budget

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