There’s only 150 bottles. It will be sold in Travel Retail stores beginning in July for a lofty £2,500.
Details here.
May 27th, 2010
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John,
Just one more bottle of Scotch that’s unattainable for the masses. The good folks at The Balvenie have been jacking up their prices for a while now ($85 for the 17 yr old rum cask finish and $90+ for the sherry cask 17 yr old in my local store). I’m sure this is nice stuff, but these sky-high, boutique bottlings are just maddening. What’s a committed malt fanatic to do?
- Josh
Maybe independent bottlers may be the answer?
They don’t sell Balvenie anymore to independent bottlers..
the 12yr is $30 here and the 15yr is $42. those are some of the most affordable bottles around! $90 for a 17yr, $120 for a 21yr are not out of line at all, IMO.
Patrick, our prices were similar 1.5-2 years ago but they have shot up here in AZ. The 12 DW is still reasonable at $40 and 15 is not too bad at $60, but the 17′s are $110-120 and the 21 portwood is $150-180. The 25yo is also astronomical in price. I did buy the 17′s when they were around the $90 mark but I feel the $20-30 price increase was excessive and the $40-70 increase on the 21 PW was plain nuts.
Goodness, I remember when Balvenie was the brand to drink because it was a bargain to buy the stuff at its price-point. It’s a scotch world gone mad. I no longer drink Balvenie. Not because its bad–simply there are other things at that price point that are better.
Oh no, not again…
Well, with only 150 bottles available, it would be like winning the lottery to snag oneeven if it were 10% of the price ;-(
this price point is not out of line with a lot of other 40 YO’s – That is what make price of The 40 YO Glenfarclas so amazing
Also, watch the video clip of Jason at Highland Park talk about price points of collectible whiskies and how they priced the 15 YO Earl Magnus bottling – Really interesting – URL below
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6kh81dFrUs
The little old bottle looks like a garden variety 375 ml flask. Inflating it for the HP rebottle looks like a garden variety attempt to rationalize price hikes.
Congrats to David Stewart and everyone at The Balvenie on achieving this milestone.
Not sure why but I have not liked any Balvenie’s I have tried, perhaps it’s their choice in wood perhaps something else. I know people who swear by them but I have never liked them. So I won’t be dropping the 2500 on this bottle, but if someone wants to send me a sample, perhaps I may start like Balvenie, you never know. I’ve had the 12yr double wood, 21 yr, Portwood, 10yr, 17 yr rumwood, 15 yr, and one of their new wood expressions so I’ve given it a fair shake.
Hmmm… this bottle might be worth the international trip just to swing by travel retail…
Looks awesome – thanks for the heads up John!
The Balvenie 10 y/o has been sorely missed. For several years I paid $20 a liter/1000ml duty free along the Texas/Mexico border – imported by my own two feet was worth the trouble.
Other super brands, like Macallan for example, could charge you $10,000 or more for a 40 y/o and get away with it.
Oh no, noone gets away with charging more than 300$ when I’m buying
Macdeffe
Have the distilleries heard anything about economic recession?
And i’m from Greece ,also.So go figure…..
Let’s make a distinction here. A $2500 bottle of 40yo is a rich man’s whisky, and as such does not merit the slightest blip on my radar screen. It is, as has been suggested above, the prices of the “everyday” Balvenies that are a matter of concern to most of us. The 12 and 15 have gone up significantly in recent years; I suppose they’re not out of line with what else is going on in the industry, but the size of the hikes has put me off. I don’t even consider the special cask finishes any more. In fact, I haven’t bought a Balvenie in quite a long time, despite the fact that I’ve always considered it an old favorite. I suppose someone is buying the stuff, or they’d drop the price. But I barely give it a look any more.
I’m not sure if I’m getting a review sample of this. If I do, I’ll let those who care know what I think.
I’d be happy to share my thoughts, should you have an ounce to spare…