Scotch pricing question

[Spike]

For those outside of WA state and who know or can look up liquor prices for nearby stores I have a question... What does it cost for a bottle of Balvenie 21 year Portwood? Here in WA is $213 so I want to know if it's worth it to grab a bottle here or wait until I travel through other states.

And before someone comments on it yes, I'm sure it's worth it to me. Everyone's tastes are different and this happens to be one of my favorite single malts.

Thanks!

 

[sjwaste]

I'm not sure if this helps you at all, but it's normally $165 and on sale for $159 in NH right now.

 

[sjwaste]

By the way, if you want a great Port cask finished Scotch at a fraction of that price, Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban is about $60 in most places. I think it's 10 yr + 2 yr in port casks, but it's my absolute favorite Scotch in existence right now. It's really, really good.

 

[Spike]

By the way, if you want a great Port cask finished Scotch at a fraction of that price, Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban is about $60 in most places. I think it's 10 yr + 2 yr in port casks, but it's my absolute favorite Scotch in existence right now. It's really, really good.

I love Quinta Ruban but find the Balvenie better. 4x the price better ($50 for quinta ruban in WA)? No way, but it's still better. I plan to keep Quinta Ruban and Nectar D'or on hand as much as possible, the 21 year Portwood is more for special occasions

I'm not sure if this helps you at all, but it's normally $165 and on sale for $159 in NH right now.

Dang, wish we had it that cheap. OR is $199 and ID is $196 so the best I can save is $17 from my neighboring states. And don't even get me started on BC, they make WA look cheap for liquor...

 

[nick1985]

Some rich people in this thread.

 

[sjwaste]

I'll try the Portwood sometime then. I've been meaning to try a new bottle anyway - wasn't planning on dropping $150, but if you like QR and think this is better, I want to taste it.

Quinta Ruban's on sale for $47 here too. I just moved here, $60 was what I paid in VA for that.

No wonder all those Masshole legislators hate the NH liquor outlets so much. There's one on every border!

 

[brblx]

can i use this scotch stuff to fortify my wine?

 

[lxskllr]

can i use this scotch stuff to fortify my wine?

You can distill the wine and fortify it. That improves wine tremendously imo.

 

[Spike]

I'll try the Portwood sometime then. I've been meaning to try a new bottle anyway - wasn't planning on dropping $150, but if you like QR and think this is better, I want to taste it.

Quinta Ruban's on sale for $47 here too. I just moved here, $60 was what I paid in VA for that.

No wonder all those Masshole legislators hate the NH liquor outlets so much. There's one on every border!

One thing to look for is the Balvenie 3 pack. We have them right now in the state and they have 3 50mls, 1 each of the 12 year Doublewood, the 15 year single barrel, and the 21 year Portwood. They cost $17 here so they would probably be cheaper over there and they are a much more economical way of trying an expensive scotch.

I've even been tempted to buy 15 of the packs and fill my own bottles with each. That would give me those 3 bottles for ~$85 less than it would cost me to buy each separately in WA.

Some rich people in this thread.

It's a matter of priorities. I have a crappy old 32" 720P LCD and drive a '95 civic but I have a somewhat decent selection of single malts on hand. I like to keep my money in "liquid assets"

 

[Spike]

You can distill the wine and fortify it. That improves wine tremendously imo.

I have a friend here that does that. He ran some nasty white zinfandel through his still and came up with something close to sherry that was actually quite good.

 

[child of wonder]

The local liquor store had it clearanced out for $69.99. 2 weeks later they went out of business and I never got a bottle.

 

[nick1985]

It's a matter of priorities. I have a crappy old 32" 720P LCD and drive a '95 civic but I have a somewhat decent selection of single malts on hand. I like to keep my money in "liquid assets"

:awe:

 

[Spike]

The local liquor store had it clearanced out for $69.99. 2 weeks later they went out of business and I never got a bottle.

Holy mother... I would have bought at least 2, probably more. They would have made great gifts.

 

[brblx]

You can distill the wine and fortify it. That improves wine tremendously imo.

...'twer a joke.

so what's the difference between distilling wine and normal, uh....'mash?' i think they call it. i though sugar was sugar as far as distillation was concerned.

 

[lxskllr]

...'twer a joke.

so what's the difference between distilling wine and normal, uh....'mash?' i think they call it. i though sugar was sugar as far as distillation was concerned.

With distillation, you're cooking off the alcohol, and concentrating it. Scotch starts it's life as beer. Cognac starts it's life as wine.

 

[linuxboy]

Buy online and ship it in.

http://www.stirlingfinewine.com/r/products/balvenie-port-wood-single-malt-scotch-whisky-21-year-old

 

[brblx]

With distillation, you're cooking off the alcohol, and concentrating it. Scotch starts it's life as beer. Cognac starts it's life as wine.

the more you know.

i was just under the assumption that distilling anything (to extract alcohol) would pretty much result in relatively pure grain alcohol, with most of the taste being in the stuff that doesn't boil.

 

[lxskllr]

the more you know.

i was just under the assumption that distilling anything (to extract alcohol) would pretty much result in relatively pure grain alcohol, with most of the taste being in the stuff that doesn't boil.

I don't know the finer details. I'm guessing with something like Everclear, it gets redistilled until it's pure alcohol. Grain alcohol is made in column stills, and stuff like scotch is made in pot stills. The large amount of copper(essential for good whisky), and small size make pot still whisky more flavorful. Distilling's a complicated art if you want to do it well. Still shape, construction, and when you capture the spirit are all important.

 

[Spike]

Buy online and ship it in.

http://www.stirlingfinewine.com/r/products/balvenie-port-wood-single-malt-scotch-whisky-21-year-old

I love you. Technically you can't ship alcohol (at least not liquor, wine is ok) to WA but some companies do it anyway and label it as wine. This place has the lowest I've seen of any online sites so I may have to go for it.

EDIT: Ordered me a bottle. The free shipping on it was just too good to pass up. Most online places willing to ship to WA add at least $20 per bottle to ship which makes them more expensive than buying locally.

Thanks!

 

[linuxboy]

I accept gratitude in wee dram form (if you're in the Seattle area). j/k, happy to help.

 

[sjwaste]

Wow, that's a nice price. Too bad they don't ship to NH or ME. I guess the extra $20 it costs me in NH evens out the shipping and all.

I will look for that 3 pack you were talking about. I haven't ever looked hard for premium Scotch in airplane bottles, but that's a great idea for tasting without committing to an entire bottle. There's a lot of whisky to be sampled!

 

[Scotteq]

You can distill the wine and fortify it. That improves wine tremendously imo.

...'twer a joke.

so what's the difference between distilling wine and normal, uh....'mash?' i think they call it. i though sugar was sugar as far as distillation was concerned.

Distilling/fortifying Wine is how the Spanish make Sherry

{edit} and others make Port, Madiera.. etc...

 

[Spike]

I accept gratitude in wee dram form (if you're in the Seattle area). j/k, happy to help.

Assuming it all works out I'd owe you that. I still have one of the unopened 50ml's of the stuff that I would glady throw your way for helping me find a reasonably priced large bottle. And yes, I'm over east in the "Quah" right before you hit the pass.

Wow, that's a nice price. Too bad they don't ship to NH or ME. I guess the extra $20 it costs me in NH evens out the shipping and all.

I will look for that 3 pack you were talking about. I haven't ever looked hard for premium Scotch in airplane bottles, but that's a great idea for tasting without committing to an entire bottle. There's a lot of whisky to be sampled!

I had not either until I stumbled across it at one local liquor store. I'm told it's more common come Christmas time so I can't wait to look for mini's of many items. I found a 3 50ml Glenfiddich pack with the 12, 15, and 18 years all even in small cardboard tubes! I've also heard other states have it a little easier to find mini's and I know that the lees liquors I was in (Vegas) had tons of mini's of everything, including Johnny Walker Blue label though it was like $40.

There is also a website, (blanking on it right now since I'm at work) that actually takes large bottles and sells 30ml samples. They ship from the UK and the prices are still steepish (5-10 pounds per sample) but that is cheaper than buying an entire bottle of a premium scotch.

 

[BoomerD]

http://www.bevmo.com/Default.aspx

Your bottle sells for $179 here.

http://www.bevmo.com/Shop/ProductDe...4967240&area=spirits&ProductID=6842&Ns=Name|0

(currently out of stock)

 

[grohl]

damn wishing they would ship to Texas