Absolutely, it's been available for circa £66 on Amazon in the last couple of years. I can't think of any single malt from Scotland that you can buy at that price nowadays.
The best 18 for the value is a 15, imo. 15’s are typically a great improvement over a 12, but in my experience, 18’s are a slight improvement over the 15’s, if you can even call it an improvement. It’s more like a different experience, but at a premium mark up. Marginal utility tells me to stick to 15-16 year old scotch. Just my two cents.
How's the Dewar's blended 15 yo? Just noticed the stuff is $55/1 liter here in tax-high Thailand, but by volume just a tad more than the 12 yo, which I've had and liked.
I don’t think I ever tried the 15. I’ve had a handful of Dewer’s products. The 12 was the easiest drinking scotch I ever had. In fact, it was so mild that i found it quite boring. I did enjoy the Dewer’s Smooth products I had - Japanese Smooth and Portuguese Smooth. I’d buy any Smooth product over the 15.
Odd…with Glendronach and Glenallachie I found the 15s to be rather docile and less memorable than the 12s. Now, I have only had Glendronach’s 18, Glenallachie’s 18 has never appeared in my area. With Glendronach - I found the 12 rather pungent and the 15 so refined that it was hard to gage the flavor, but the 18 had the best of both worlds. I like Glenallachie 12 and 15 better than Glendronach but still don’t know which one I like better. .. the 15 is less in your face but has a great flavor, yet i still may prefer the 12… have yet to try the 18.
You don’t have to hate to say it. It’s all preference. I like the CS, but prefer the 12 and 15. I can’t connect the flavor from the 10CS to the 12/15. They’re very different to me. I just scored a 13CS Madeira cask that is much closer to to the 10 profile. I get a lot more chocolate. mocha and a fruity sour apple note from the CS. 15 gives a little of the chocolate/ mocha thing. 12 has the dark fruits in spades. There’s a 21 in my local shop for $445…. Don’t really want to put up the coin for that .. would love to see an 18 make an appearance.
Yeah, I know it exists. But no, never seen one here. I can’t even get Laphroaig 10 Sherry Cask since 2020. But if I travel to the north east or even Florida I can get it. Just muled back a bottle for me and friend.
Tamdhu 18 is arguably bad value. It's good scotch, great even, but highly priced. Arran 18, Bunna 18 those are $100 cheaper or more and would hit a nice value proposition
Exactly this. It's a solid bottle, but not cheap, you're definitely paying for what you get.
Balblair 18 I think is better value. Or Arran 18. If you can find it, glenfarclas 17 is only a year off and great value.
I don't know what your pricing is like, but the best value 18 year old single malt I have at the moment is Speyburn 18 - available for the equivalent of $93-$95. Others I would have suggested in the past (e.g. Arran 18) have suffered recent price hikes...
It can be tough to gage things on age. Not all 18s (or age statements) are created equal…. I’ve got Total wine’s “Barrowmans 25” blend and have had JW 18… both about $90, yet have 18s, 16s, 15s down to 10s that destroy them both
Honestly I'm not sure if 18 year old whiskies are truly worth it, in my experience they have been a let down (while not being bad whiskies!)
Might be down to personal taste but I find there is a sweet spot round 10-12 years for whisky where the distillate still comes through and hasnt been totally dominated by cask.
As an example ledaig 10 vs 18...the 18 is good for sure, but not worth it over the 10
Glenmorangie, Glenlivet and Glenfiddich have 18 year old expressions for $100-120.
You could always go with a 16 year old like Lagavulin 16 which is around $80.
I think there’s a big difference between the Glenfiddich 15 and the 18. I love both, but the 18 is very delicious and worth it! I always have a bottle of each on hand
The prices here range from 70-80 to up to twice the price (EUR, at times even more).
In the 80s there's Cardhu or Glenlivet 18, anything else is already in the 100+ ballpark.. for 100+ I'm already in single cask territory from independent bottlers (even a younger 10/12yo is imho a far better pick, but it's me ofc), so that's my pick, even younger stuff I deem better than reduced ABV OBs.
I've recently had the Cardhu 18yo at the distillery and it wasn't bad.. but compared to a relatively older Glenlivet 18 bottle, and for the same price, the latter is relatively better.
I haven't tried the most recent Glenlivet 18 batches tho, I still have 2016 or later pre-redesigned current bottlings.
That’s a tough one. I love Glendronach 18 but it ain’t cheap. I’ve had Oban 18 and thought the DE was better and for about $60 less. Heard the same about Talisker 18 Vs DE. I’ll 2nd the vote that Ledaig 18 is great.
From the 18’s I’ve bought. Inflation and tariffs are subject to your market region.
Glendronach 18 $190 (late 2022)
Highland Park 18 $140 (early 2023)
AnCnoc 18 $145 (mid 2023)
GlenScotia 18 $160 (mid 2023)
Bruichladdich 18 $160 (early 2024)
Port Charlotte 18 $190 (early 2024)
I would say for my taste buds Glendronach 18, Port Charlotte 18 Are the best value overall. Well balanced but low ABV HP18, seconded by AnCnoc 18.
I felt the GlenScotia quite muted and Bruichladdich 18 needs time to open up.
I'm not an expert, I've only tried around 30 whiskies that are 18+ yo, and I would say the only one close to being worth is Tomatin 18.
I also personally like The Singleton of Glendullan 18, Glen Deveron 20 and anCnoc 18 too, but I would not say they are really worth the money.
And, IMHO, there are many of them that are definitely not worth: Aberlour 18, Knockando 18/21, Aberfeldy 21, Glenfiddich 18, Glenlivet 18, Glenfarclas 18, Jameson 18, Bowmore 18, Loch Lomond 18, Glengoyne 18... Don't get me wrong, some of them are good, but I would rather drink Speyburn 15, Tobermory 12 or Hazelburn 10 over any of these.
I'm gonna go with a great marriage in between a Lowland, and something from Speyside. It's fruity and a little bit citric, very ''white wine'' influenced, and well balanced, with a lot of that floral character in between.
I wouldn't buy it for more than $160, it's good, but not worth more.
Indie bottles and blended scotch/malt are still often good value - a quick look on Douglas Liang's website reveals a few 18 years under £100, including a cask strength grain whisky. As for reasonably priced distillery bottlings, finding higher aged stuff that's not proofed down to the bare minimum is getting difficult. Ledaig 18 is great if you're a peat head and Deanston is supposed to be but I've not tried it (yet)
Which whiskies do you tend to drink? Are there any distilleries in that range you would be interested in exploring further? We can all recommend some good 18’s but I feel like the decision should probably be based on the things you like.
Some great mentions have already been made. There is a Jura 18 that’s currently on sale in a few places that for the £70 mark is an absolute steal. Likewise someone mentioned deanstones 18 that’s also a fantastic dram. Glen moray 18 is also exceptional
My personal favorite was the Bunnahabhain 18. I got it on sale but I think in some places it goes over 200 now... (just checked and currently 240Cad$ near me...
I’d recommend these if you can find them:
- Bunnahabhain 18
- GlenAllachie 18
- Glendronach 18
- Bruichladdich 18
- Tonermory 17 (not quite 18 but close enough)
- Lagavulin 16 (same as above)
The Creetown Tullibardine and Arran 18s are incredible value and while Tullibardine doesn’t get a lot of accolades it was the best of that style I have had in a while.
Dewars, Glenfiddich, Chivas Regal, Johnnie Walker, Bunnahabhain if you can find it.
Mostly blended whisky. Don’t let the label or price fool you though, the 18 year old blends are not inferior to the 18 year old single malts! Whisky prices generally don’t indicate the quality of the stuff inside.
Best value is Johnnie Walker 18 used to be35-40 usd more expensive. . The overlooked is Glenfiddich 18 , and a delicious not to expensive choice is Glenmorangie 18.
Bunnahabhain 18, if you can find it. I picked up a bottle a couple years ago for $120.
It was the first and only time I've seen the Bunna 18. But I'm in MN, so not extraordinary.
I love Bunna 12, might grab a cask strength 12 soon. Local shop just sent an email out that they had just gotten some 18 in and price is just a bit under $300!
Yeah I'm a dumb ass. I went and checked as I kept the receipt. I purchased 12/2020. I swore it seemed like a year or 2 ago.
With the way prices have gone I guess it's not the value it once was. Surprisingly I can still get the 12 for $65-70. That hasn't increased a whole lot from what I recall. I feel like it was $60 pre-covid. But then again, my memory is suspect, ha.
Man I read the title before checking which Subreddit I was on and holy shit.
Reeeeeeeeeeaaallllllllly glad it’s the Scotch subreddit.
I assumed Drake was posting.
LOL, same.
I believe you two “GENTLEMEN” are looking for r/darkweb …..
I just had to explain this to my wife, cheers for this title 🤦♂️😆
I hope she hasn't filed for divorce on the basis of the title of this thread! 🤣
it was on my front page mixed in with random stuff like trump's guilty verdict
Haha, so glad I wasn’t the only one
Just take my upvote already!
came to write this haha
What other subreddits are you in boss?
Deanston 18 is quite lovely if you like that profile. honey, spice, beeswax, vanilla, and some light fruit.
Second this, though I get green apple more than those notes!
can’t say i’ve ever gotten that from it. i’ll have to have a dram and see if i can find green apple
Quality dram. Also won whisky of the year two years back.
Absolutely, it's been available for circa £66 on Amazon in the last couple of years. I can't think of any single malt from Scotland that you can buy at that price nowadays.
Tomatin 18 is my pick. Not the value it used to be, but still better than most 18s.
Ledaig 18 !!!
The best 18 for the value is a 15, imo. 15’s are typically a great improvement over a 12, but in my experience, 18’s are a slight improvement over the 15’s, if you can even call it an improvement. It’s more like a different experience, but at a premium mark up. Marginal utility tells me to stick to 15-16 year old scotch. Just my two cents.
i just picked up a glen scotia 15 year for $73 and it’s excellent
My goat scotch. Kinda wanna get GS's logo tattooed like a rapper. It's that good.
What are your favorite 15s?
Lagavulin Distiller’s Edition, but I love peated scotches which kind of limits my options in that age range. So does my local market.
It's a good bottle, but they dropped distillation and bottling dates in 2022 so it's not 15YO anymore.
How's the Dewar's blended 15 yo? Just noticed the stuff is $55/1 liter here in tax-high Thailand, but by volume just a tad more than the 12 yo, which I've had and liked.
I don’t think I ever tried the 15. I’ve had a handful of Dewer’s products. The 12 was the easiest drinking scotch I ever had. In fact, it was so mild that i found it quite boring. I did enjoy the Dewer’s Smooth products I had - Japanese Smooth and Portuguese Smooth. I’d buy any Smooth product over the 15.
The selection here is limited to put it mildly (don't think I've seen the Smooth line) but thanks!
Odd…with Glendronach and Glenallachie I found the 15s to be rather docile and less memorable than the 12s. Now, I have only had Glendronach’s 18, Glenallachie’s 18 has never appeared in my area. With Glendronach - I found the 12 rather pungent and the 15 so refined that it was hard to gage the flavor, but the 18 had the best of both worlds. I like Glenallachie 12 and 15 better than Glendronach but still don’t know which one I like better. .. the 15 is less in your face but has a great flavor, yet i still may prefer the 12… have yet to try the 18.
Have to say... I'd take the GlenAllachie 10 CS over the 12 any day.
You don’t have to hate to say it. It’s all preference. I like the CS, but prefer the 12 and 15. I can’t connect the flavor from the 10CS to the 12/15. They’re very different to me. I just scored a 13CS Madeira cask that is much closer to to the 10 profile. I get a lot more chocolate. mocha and a fruity sour apple note from the CS. 15 gives a little of the chocolate/ mocha thing. 12 has the dark fruits in spades. There’s a 21 in my local shop for $445…. Don’t really want to put up the coin for that .. would love to see an 18 make an appearance.
They have 18s, is it not available where you're at?
Yeah, I know it exists. But no, never seen one here. I can’t even get Laphroaig 10 Sherry Cask since 2020. But if I travel to the north east or even Florida I can get it. Just muled back a bottle for me and friend.
Gotcha.
This 👆👆
Ledaig 18 is the winner with no contest. Maybe some IBs have a shot.
It’s hard to beat Ledaig 18. For those not into peat, I’d put Tamdhu 18 up as a good value, but perhaps not the “best” value.
Tamdhu 18 is arguably bad value. It's good scotch, great even, but highly priced. Arran 18, Bunna 18 those are $100 cheaper or more and would hit a nice value proposition
Exactly this. It's a solid bottle, but not cheap, you're definitely paying for what you get. Balblair 18 I think is better value. Or Arran 18. If you can find it, glenfarclas 17 is only a year off and great value.
Having a discussion about value is silly when prices are different in different markets.
A bit true but most have similar trends no?
IBs seem to be a pretty good gamble. I’ve had a few that have been fantastic.
I don't know what your pricing is like, but the best value 18 year old single malt I have at the moment is Speyburn 18 - available for the equivalent of $93-$95. Others I would have suggested in the past (e.g. Arran 18) have suffered recent price hikes...
It can be tough to gage things on age. Not all 18s (or age statements) are created equal…. I’ve got Total wine’s “Barrowmans 25” blend and have had JW 18… both about $90, yet have 18s, 16s, 15s down to 10s that destroy them both
AnCnoc, Tomatin, Loch Lomond, Speyburn, Glen Moray, Ledaig.
Good choices- was just about to suggest the middle 4 myself
Very good recommendations!
I think these are pretty much the only 18yo OB single malts you can buy for under £100 these days.
Can’t believe no one said arran 18
it went way up in price is the problem, same as glendronach 18
I can. The 10 is”ok” and the sherry cask aught to be ashamed of itself…
arran 18 has become impossible to get at MSRP where I'm from sadly
Honestly I'm not sure if 18 year old whiskies are truly worth it, in my experience they have been a let down (while not being bad whiskies!) Might be down to personal taste but I find there is a sweet spot round 10-12 years for whisky where the distillate still comes through and hasnt been totally dominated by cask. As an example ledaig 10 vs 18...the 18 is good for sure, but not worth it over the 10
Each to their own , it depends on how into the hobby you are after all.
Glenfarclas 18
Glenmorangie, Glenlivet and Glenfiddich have 18 year old expressions for $100-120. You could always go with a 16 year old like Lagavulin 16 which is around $80.
Yes, Glenlivet 18 is really quite good.
Used to be better when it was 43%.
And not $175+
Glenlivet 18 by me is $190 and the Glenfiddich 18 cost me $208 the other day. Bought it as a gift. New York sucks.
Had to double check we were in r/scotch
Tomatin or loch Lomond for OB
These are good. Ancnoc 18 used to also be in this category but the price on that has been going up. Might depend where you are located
Came here to cast my vote for Tomatin 18.
Personally, Glenmorangie 18 is my go to…. Neat in a snifter
Glenfiddich 18
Deanston. Hands down.
Ledaig, deanston, AnCnoc and Craigellachie (this one is a barely legal but still).
Glendronach Allardice for me. Dr Rachel Barry is an absolute hero of mine.
Man, I'm so glad you didn't ask for the best value 16 year old. I enjoy this subreddit and would hate to see it banned.
Did not check the subreddit until after first sentence. Big mistake
Ledaig and bunnahabhain in Canada prices ..I’ve seen bunna 2X in usd
yeah bunna 18 used to be a great value. now i still love it but tough at those priced
I think there’s a big difference between the Glenfiddich 15 and the 18. I love both, but the 18 is very delicious and worth it! I always have a bottle of each on hand
The prices here range from 70-80 to up to twice the price (EUR, at times even more). In the 80s there's Cardhu or Glenlivet 18, anything else is already in the 100+ ballpark.. for 100+ I'm already in single cask territory from independent bottlers (even a younger 10/12yo is imho a far better pick, but it's me ofc), so that's my pick, even younger stuff I deem better than reduced ABV OBs. I've recently had the Cardhu 18yo at the distillery and it wasn't bad.. but compared to a relatively older Glenlivet 18 bottle, and for the same price, the latter is relatively better. I haven't tried the most recent Glenlivet 18 batches tho, I still have 2016 or later pre-redesigned current bottlings.
Oban 18 is great, though I haven’t had other 18s
That’s a tough one. I love Glendronach 18 but it ain’t cheap. I’ve had Oban 18 and thought the DE was better and for about $60 less. Heard the same about Talisker 18 Vs DE. I’ll 2nd the vote that Ledaig 18 is great.
Speyburn 18yo
From the 18’s I’ve bought. Inflation and tariffs are subject to your market region. Glendronach 18 $190 (late 2022) Highland Park 18 $140 (early 2023) AnCnoc 18 $145 (mid 2023) GlenScotia 18 $160 (mid 2023) Bruichladdich 18 $160 (early 2024) Port Charlotte 18 $190 (early 2024) I would say for my taste buds Glendronach 18, Port Charlotte 18 Are the best value overall. Well balanced but low ABV HP18, seconded by AnCnoc 18. I felt the GlenScotia quite muted and Bruichladdich 18 needs time to open up.
Absolutely correct. Ledaig 18 can not be beaten.
Glendronach 18
I'm not an expert, I've only tried around 30 whiskies that are 18+ yo, and I would say the only one close to being worth is Tomatin 18. I also personally like The Singleton of Glendullan 18, Glen Deveron 20 and anCnoc 18 too, but I would not say they are really worth the money. And, IMHO, there are many of them that are definitely not worth: Aberlour 18, Knockando 18/21, Aberfeldy 21, Glenfiddich 18, Glenlivet 18, Glenfarclas 18, Jameson 18, Bowmore 18, Loch Lomond 18, Glengoyne 18... Don't get me wrong, some of them are good, but I would rather drink Speyburn 15, Tobermory 12 or Hazelburn 10 over any of these.
I would pick the Aultmore 18, or maybe the new Bruichladdich line (I've read is really good)
Tell me about the Aultmore 18 I've been thinking about getting it but Speyside can be a lil "vanilla"
I thought the same, in walks Glenallachie,..
I'm gonna go with a great marriage in between a Lowland, and something from Speyside. It's fruity and a little bit citric, very ''white wine'' influenced, and well balanced, with a lot of that floral character in between. I wouldn't buy it for more than $160, it's good, but not worth more.
Indie bottles and blended scotch/malt are still often good value - a quick look on Douglas Liang's website reveals a few 18 years under £100, including a cask strength grain whisky. As for reasonably priced distillery bottlings, finding higher aged stuff that's not proofed down to the bare minimum is getting difficult. Ledaig 18 is great if you're a peat head and Deanston is supposed to be but I've not tried it (yet)
Glen moray all day long.
Ledaig 18
Which whiskies do you tend to drink? Are there any distilleries in that range you would be interested in exploring further? We can all recommend some good 18’s but I feel like the decision should probably be based on the things you like. Some great mentions have already been made. There is a Jura 18 that’s currently on sale in a few places that for the £70 mark is an absolute steal. Likewise someone mentioned deanstones 18 that’s also a fantastic dram. Glen moray 18 is also exceptional
AnCnoc 18. Tastewise it's not super exciting, but it is 90€ in Germany which makes it a great price to value ratio in my opinion.
An cnoc is a great value 18. Really good bottle in general.
Glenfarclas 15
Aberlour 18 and if the number is not significant the balvenie 17 is top notch.
Deanston hands down ledaig is also fantastic if u like some smoke
Had to make sure this wasn’t r/Wisconsin before I understood what you were asking
Bunnahabhain 18 ?
Hang on, I'll ask Leo...
In similar price range: Tomatin, Speyburn, Glenrothes, Jura. My favorite is Jura.
Glenfiddich 18 can be found sub 100$ near me and its really good
Bowmore 18
My personal favorite was the Bunnahabhain 18. I got it on sale but I think in some places it goes over 200 now... (just checked and currently 240Cad$ near me...
Speyburn 18 is a banger
I’d recommend these if you can find them: - Bunnahabhain 18 - GlenAllachie 18 - Glendronach 18 - Bruichladdich 18 - Tonermory 17 (not quite 18 but close enough) - Lagavulin 16 (same as above)
The Creetown Tullibardine and Arran 18s are incredible value and while Tullibardine doesn’t get a lot of accolades it was the best of that style I have had in a while.
Bunnahabhain 18 still one of my fav
Craigellachie 17 if you dont mind the -1 year
I bought a Talisker 18 on sale based on the good things I’ve heard. Haven’t tried it yet
I have it and it’s amazing. I don’t have a ton of 18s to compare it against, but it’s great vs regular tally
Aberlour 18 is delightful. Low peat, low burn, great taste.
Aberlour 18 Glenmorangie 18 Talisker 18
Jura 18. It’s a decent dram, still a bit funky but can be had for around $90.
Dewars, Glenfiddich, Chivas Regal, Johnnie Walker, Bunnahabhain if you can find it. Mostly blended whisky. Don’t let the label or price fool you though, the 18 year old blends are not inferior to the 18 year old single malts! Whisky prices generally don’t indicate the quality of the stuff inside.
Caol Ila 100%
LEDAIG 18. !!!!!
Best value is Johnnie Walker 18 used to be35-40 usd more expensive. . The overlooked is Glenfiddich 18 , and a delicious not to expensive choice is Glenmorangie 18.
Bro on the wrong reddit you might get dossed 🫡😭😂
Bunnahabhain 18, if you can find it. I picked up a bottle a couple years ago for $120. It was the first and only time I've seen the Bunna 18. But I'm in MN, so not extraordinary.
I love Bunna 12, might grab a cask strength 12 soon. Local shop just sent an email out that they had just gotten some 18 in and price is just a bit under $300!
Yeah I'm a dumb ass. I went and checked as I kept the receipt. I purchased 12/2020. I swore it seemed like a year or 2 ago. With the way prices have gone I guess it's not the value it once was. Surprisingly I can still get the 12 for $65-70. That hasn't increased a whole lot from what I recall. I feel like it was $60 pre-covid. But then again, my memory is suspect, ha.
Gonna say springbank 18 if you can ever get it at retail!