Hey you Scotch experts!

[George C]

:o

Went to a Scotch tasting function on the ship and they told they would match any price found on the islands . A local store in St Martens had Johnny Walker Blue for $125 took a picture of the price tag and of the store who offered it. (right at the port)...Ship price was $175,,,i got it for $125 Best deal of the week!!

 

125 is a great price for blue. Remember when comparing prices is ship bottles are normally liters and no tax.

[Mynki]

Guilty. The Cao Ila is almost a joke, though, as finding an 18 year old would be like finding a unicorn...

 

But, yes, understanding the OP's taste in whisky is pretty important!

 

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I have a few foals here!

 

 

I collect and invest in rare Scottish and Japanese whisky. In 2006 and 2007 Diageo released a few Islay taster packs containing a 12 and the 18 year old Caol Isla. A 12 and 16 year old Lagavulin and depending on year a 6th or 7th Port Ellen release all in packs of 5 x 20cl bottles. I doubt many noticed at the time. But they caught my eye around 5 years ago.

 

Port Ellen is now a silent still (closed for good) and is widely regarded as one of the best Scotch whiskies of all time. On the specialist whisky auction sites prices have been heading north year on year. One day I found these packs on the whisky exchange site at £175 each. The little 20cl bottles were making between £350 and £450 each as it was. So I bought a load and planned on removing and selling the small bottles of PE and drinking the Caol Isla and Lagavulin. I never got around to that but will probably auction off the packs minus the Port Ellen one day now as they're doing ok without the PE...

 

https://www.scotchwhiskyauctions.com/auctions/124_the-86th-auction/216963_classic-islay-collection-2006-release-4-x-20cl/

 

Anyway, the moral of the story is, you can find the occasional dusty old bottle or Duty Free exclusive that will sell for a lot more than RRP on the secondary market (specialist whisky sites) when travelling. But probably not on regular cruise ships, sadly.

 

Extreme example from four months ago...

 

https://www.scotchwhiskyauctions.com/auctions/120_the-82nd-auction/198070_port-ellen-7th-annual-release-1979-28-year-old-20cl/

 

There you go, Uncle Mynki's guide to financing future cruises. And if your investment goes horribly wrong and prices do crash it will be very easy to drown your sorrows..... :D

 

P.S TWE have a couple of 18 year old expressions available if you do fancy treating yourself. :)

[Bo1953]

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I have a few foals here!

 

 

I collect and invest in rare Scottish and Japanese whisky. In 2006 and 2007 Diageo released a few Islay taster packs containing a 12 and the 18 year old Caol Isla. A 12 and 16 year old Lagavulin and depending on year a 6th or 7th Port Ellen release all in packs of 5 x 20cl bottles. I doubt many noticed at the time. But they caught my eye around 5 years ago.

 

Port Ellen is now a silent still (closed for good) and is widely regarded as one of the best Scotch whiskies of all time. On the specialist whisky auction sites prices have been heading north year on year. One day I found these packs on the whisky exchange site at £175 each. The little 20cl bottles were making between £350 and £450 each as it was. So I bought a load and planned on removing and selling the small bottles of PE and drinking the Caol Isla and Lagavulin. I never got around to that but will probably auction off the packs minus the Port Ellen one day now as they're doing ok without the PE...

 

https://www.scotchwhiskyauctions.com/auctions/124_the-86th-auction/216963_classic-islay-collection-2006-release-4-x-20cl/

 

Anyway, the moral of the story is, you can find the occasional dusty old bottle or Duty Free exclusive that will sell for a lot more than RRP on the secondary market (specialist whisky sites) when travelling. But probably not on regular cruise ships, sadly.

 

Extreme example from four months ago...

 

https://www.scotchwhiskyauctions.com/auctions/120_the-82nd-auction/198070_port-ellen-7th-annual-release-1979-28-year-old-20cl/

 

There you go, Uncle Mynki's guide to financing future cruises. And if your investment goes horribly wrong and prices do crash it will be very easy to drown your sorrows..... :D

 

P.S TWE have a couple of 18 year old expressions available if you do fancy treating yourself. :)

 

m - thank you for the informative post....

 

 

bon voyage

[DYKWIA]

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I have a few foals here!

 

 

I collect and invest in rare Scottish and Japanese whisky. In 2006 and 2007 Diageo released a few Islay taster packs containing a 12 and the 18 year old Caol Isla. A 12 and 16 year old Lagavulin and depending on year a 6th or 7th Port Ellen release all in packs of 5 x 20cl bottles. I doubt many noticed at the time. But they caught my eye around 5 years ago.

 

Port Ellen is now a silent still (closed for good) and is widely regarded as one of the best Scotch whiskies of all time. On the specialist whisky auction sites prices have been heading north year on year. One day I found these packs on the whisky exchange site at £175 each. The little 20cl bottles were making between £350 and £450 each as it was. So I bought a load and planned on removing and selling the small bottles of PE and drinking the Caol Isla and Lagavulin. I never got around to that but will probably auction off the packs minus the Port Ellen one day now as they're doing ok without the PE...

 

https://www.scotchwhiskyauctions.com/auctions/124_the-86th-auction/216963_classic-islay-collection-2006-release-4-x-20cl/

 

Anyway, the moral of the story is, you can find the occasional dusty old bottle or Duty Free exclusive that will sell for a lot more than RRP on the secondary market (specialist whisky sites) when travelling. But probably not on regular cruise ships, sadly.

 

Extreme example from four months ago...

 

https://www.scotchwhiskyauctions.com/auctions/120_the-82nd-auction/198070_port-ellen-7th-annual-release-1979-28-year-old-20cl/

 

There you go, Uncle Mynki's guide to financing future cruises. And if your investment goes horribly wrong and prices do crash it will be very easy to drown your sorrows..... :D

 

P.S TWE have a couple of 18 year old expressions available if you do fancy treating yourself. :)

 

My wife got me a bottle of Port Ellen about 10 years ago and paid about £80 for it. With the thought of not drinking a bottle of whisky being something I couldn't comprehend at that point, I drank it over a 3 month period - wonderful stuff - incredibly smooth. Haven't seen a bottle under £600 in the last couple of years - a shop in London had some north of £1000 recently.

 

bang for buck I think a 10 year old Talisker is great. A bit more expensive I really like The Balvenie 18 year Double Wood.

 

I find many of the Duty Free shops sell almost exclusively so-called Special Editions which I find difficult to value and know if I'm getting a reasonable deal - Talisker Storm is a great cheap special - very spicy. I personally find Johnny Walker overpriced for what it is (particularly the gold. Bought a bottle of the ubiquitous Macallan on Celebrity last time and recall not being that impressed - each to their own. My father on his first tasting of a gifted bottle of Laphroaig was so appalled at the taste and convinced it "was off" through the whole lot down the drain.

[markeb]

Sorry, I couldn't resist. I have a few foals here!

 

 

I collect and invest in rare Scottish and Japanese whisky. In 2006 and 2007 Diageo released a few Islay taster packs containing a 12 and the 18 year old Caol Isla. A 12 and 16 year old Lagavulin and depending on year a 6th or 7th Port Ellen release all in packs of 5 x 20cl bottles. I doubt many noticed at the time. But they caught my eye around 5 years ago.

 

Port Ellen is now a silent still (closed for good) and is widely regarded as one of the best Scotch whiskies of all time. On the specialist whisky auction sites prices have been heading north year on year. One day I found these packs on the whisky exchange site at £175 each. The little 20cl bottles were making between £350 and £450 each as it was. So I bought a load and planned on removing and selling the small bottles of PE and drinking the Caol Isla and Lagavulin. I never got around to that but will probably auction off the packs minus the Port Ellen one day now as they're doing ok without the PE...

 

https://www.scotchwhiskyauctions.com/auctions/124_the-86th-auction/216963_classic-islay-collection-2006-release-4-x-20cl/

 

Anyway, the moral of the story is, you can find the occasional dusty old bottle or Duty Free exclusive that will sell for a lot more than RRP on the secondary market (specialist whisky sites) when travelling. But probably not on regular cruise ships, sadly.

 

Extreme example from four months ago...

 

https://www.scotchwhiskyauctions.com/auctions/120_the-82nd-auction/198070_port-ellen-7th-annual-release-1979-28-year-old-20cl/

 

There you go, Uncle Mynki's guide to financing future cruises. And if your investment goes horribly wrong and prices do crash it will be very easy to drown your sorrows..... :D

 

P.S TWE have a couple of 18 year old expressions available if you do fancy treating yourself. :)

 

I have an unopened Cao Ila 18 year old distiller's edition at home. Purchased in Heathrow several years ago. Probably worth significantly more than I paid for it, but I'll eventually start drinking it!

[JonnyGUofD]

Hi all,

 

I am the OP on this thread. First of all, thanks to all for all the great advice. It's fun just to watch the scotch drinkers sharing their experience and interests. To answer some of the questions, I have OBC from both TA and X and plan to use the X OBC for this purpose. My wife and I cruise Celebrity a lot and I'm only considering this now because we don't have a flight home (I don't want to have to schlep the bottles on an airplane/TSA, etc), we get other chances for other ship board purchases quite often, and I'm developing a taste for scotch nowadays. I've bought many Apple products on board in the past.

 

I plan to get my TA OBC refunded.

 

Since I'm such a neophyte to scotches, I've found that I enjoy almost all that I try - mostly because I find the variety of flavors interesting. I've been to some pretty sophisticated tastings but, alas, I don't remember much about favorites - I did notice that I found single malts to be more "interesting" than blends (not necessarily more enjoyable). I do like JW Black.

 

Based on your input, I'm probably going to buy some single malts that might be difficult to find in the States. I'm hoping they might have a "special" offering on board to help me decide. Also, I will be in Michael's Club each evening before dinner so, I will be asking for recommendations for tasting there.

 

Thanks again!

 

Jonny G

[DYKWIA]

I find this a useful website to get an idea of what might be out there. Gives you an idea of undiscounted retail prices - I find the prices generally top end on this site

 

https://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/

[ghstudio]

Hi all,

 

I am the OP on this thread. First of all, thanks to all for all the great advice. It's fun just to watch the scotch drinkers sharing their experience and interests. To answer some of the questions, I have OBC from both TA and X and plan to use the X OBC for this purpose. My wife and I cruise Celebrity a lot and I'm only considering this now because we don't have a flight home (I don't want to have to schlep the bottles on an airplane/TSA, etc), we get other chances for other ship board purchases quite often, and I'm developing a taste for scotch nowadays. I've bought many Apple products on board in the past.

 

I plan to get my TA OBC refunded.

 

Since I'm such a neophyte to scotches, I've found that I enjoy almost all that I try - mostly because I find the variety of flavors interesting. I've been to some pretty sophisticated tastings but, alas, I don't remember much about favorites - I did notice that I found single malts to be more "interesting" than blends (not necessarily more enjoyable). I do like JW Black.

 

Based on your input, I'm probably going to buy some single malts that might be difficult to find in the States. I'm hoping they might have a "special" offering on board to help me decide. Also, I will be in Michael's Club each evening before dinner so, I will be asking for recommendations for tasting there.

 

Thanks again!

 

Jonny G

 

Why not look at prices in your area :) https://www.totalwine.com/ locate a store near you (4 stores in NJ). They have an excellent selection of Scotches (382 different ones in 750ml bottles) offered locally).

 

Since you likely have free unlimited internet (generally a suite perk along with Michaels Club), just check totalwine against what's sold in duty free.

 

Enjoy your cruise...

[George C]

Why not look at prices in your area :) https://www.totalwine.com/ locate a store near you (4 stores in NJ). They have an excellent selection of Scotches (382 different ones in 750ml bottles) offered locally).

 

Since you likely have free unlimited internet (generally a suite perk along with Michaels Club), just check totalwine against what's sold in duty free.

 

Enjoy your cruise...

 

Total wine is great, Michaels has a few good scotch's including McCallan didn't realize that was there until I saw some one ask for it, after that we ordered it for almost every drink , this is also a single malt.

[Mynki]

m - thank you for the informative post....

 

 

bon voyage

 

You fancy playing the scotch whisky investment game Bo? :)

[travelnap]

I have an unopened Cao Ila 18 year old distiller's edition at home. Purchased in Heathrow several years ago. Probably worth significantly more than I paid for it, but I'll eventually start drinking it!

 

Although I don't usually shop at the Duty Free shops very often, but your post brought back a pleasant memory to me. Many years ago I was flying out of Heathrow and had quite a bit of time before my flight left so I wandered around the terminal and found myself in the Duty free shop there. I thought I had found Nirvana. They happened to be sampling some of the better single malts and an excellent Irish whisky. I am not a morning drinker but I found myself on a Sunday morning doing shots of Single malts and an Irish whisky. I ended up purchasing a 16 year old Aberlour, but the flight home was extremely enjoyable. Well what I remember of it was. A memory I had forgotten until I saw your post. Thank you.

[Duanerice1]

My wife is the whiskey drinker in the family. She enjoyed the Johnny Walker Blue. I know, not high end but she likes it. Last day of the cruise she bought it for $99 a bottle but that was a year ago. They had the same price on St Marteen so she bought on ship with OBC.

 

I'm sure she will look again in 60 days as we are on the Equnox.

 

On a side note, anyone know if there is good liquor purchases in Aruba, Curacao or Bonaire?

[JL87]

I love the whiskies from Islay so that's what I look for first. I know this is deviating from the original question a bit, but I read Mynki's post and had to chime in. Port Ellen is my favorite but very expensive. I drank a lot of this years ago after the distillery had closed but before anyone else caught on. Not sure if it's available now at a discount, but if it is I would be a buyer. Drank a bottle of Black Bowmore a few years ago with a friend. Loved it but now also incredibly expensive. It wasn't cheap then either. Laphroaig and Lagavulin are readily available and good. Caol Ila is harder to find where I live but I like it very much. The 12yo is a very nice whisky and not too expensive. Older versions are of course more. I'm always on the lookout for whiskies like these when I travel, but you won't see them very often at a discount. When I do I buy.

[TFLG]

Lol, I've seen Macallan spelled every way but correctly in this thread;p

(well technically, one other reply got it right)

[Bo1953]

You fancy playing the scotch whisky investment game Bo? :)

 

m - I would be, yet would need a mentor, to be sure...

 

Are there any online courses you could recommend?

 

Thank you very much for your insight it is much appreciated.

 

bon voyage

[Mynki]

My wife got me a bottle of Port Ellen about 10 years ago and paid about £80 for it. With the thought of not drinking a bottle of whisky being something I couldn't comprehend at that point, I drank it over a 3 month period - wonderful stuff - incredibly smooth. Haven't seen a bottle under £600 in the last couple of years - a shop in London had some north of £1000 recently.

 

bang for buck I think a 10 year old Talisker is great. A bit more expensive I really like The Balvenie 18 year Double Wood.

 

I find many of the Duty Free shops sell almost exclusively so-called Special Editions which I find difficult to value and know if I'm getting a reasonable deal - Talisker Storm is a great cheap special - very spicy. I personally find Johnny Walker overpriced for what it is (particularly the gold. Bought a bottle of the ubiquitous Macallan on Celebrity last time and recall not being that impressed - each to their own. My father on his first tasting of a gifted bottle of Laphroaig was so appalled at the taste and convinced it "was off" through the whole lot down the drain.

 

Port Ellen the brand is still owned by Diageo. Although the distillery closed years ago Diageo have their 'Special Releases' at the end of the year and have every year since 2001. When the distilleries closed there was still spirit ageing in barrels and this is now offered for sale via a limited number of bottles amongst these 'special releases'. You can google 'Diageo special releases 2017' and all previous years and track how the prices of Port Ellen has been increasing over the last few years. Last years release was £2600 per bottle. When Diageo eventually announce that they have ran out of stock completely the prices will increase. I witnessed the same thing happen with a Japanese distiller called Karuizawa. Their prices rocketed when it was announced there was none of that brand available any more. When it';s gone, it's gone but specialist whisky bars and hotels need to restock with rare whiskies hence them shopping at the auctions. The same applies to Brora and Rosebank amongst others. :)

 

Macallan.... Where do you start? :D A good quality company but trading off it's hey day to some extent. Not quite what it once was? I wonder if there's a cruise line who could be described in a similar fashion? I have an 18 amongst the drinkers, but my interest here lies purely in investment. It's by far the most collected scotch brand out there. These are extreme examples, but the following links show just how investable this brand can be...

 

A little over four years ago in April 2014, a bottle of the legendary Samaroli Bowmore Bouquet 1966 sold for £4,200 at Whisky-Online Auctions. To most sane people £4000 + for a single bottle of scotch is simply a crazy price. Or is it?

Last month the same bottle made £51,611

https://www.whiskyauctioneer.com/lot/118314/bowmore-1966-samaroli-bouquet

Then again, earlier this year two 1926 bottles of Macallan both made over $1,000,000 each including buyers premiums.

https://scotchwhisky.com/magazine/in-depth/19168/million-dollar-macallans-the-inside-story/

Where will it end? People thinking of becoming involved should be fully aware of the word tulipmania before parting with their hard earned cash. Then again people have been saying that for at least the last seven years.

There's plenty of info amongst the specialist forums and FB groups about travel specials. Some are worth buying others much less so. :)

It would be nice to see Celebrity massively increase their range of whiskies. Within the price points they currently stock they could add a much more diverse range IMHO. :)

Edited August 8, 2018 by Mynki

[Mynki]

m - I would be, yet would need a mentor, to be sure...

 

Are there any online courses you could recommend?

 

Thank you very much for your insight it is much appreciated.

 

bon voyage

 

I'll email you some info in a few days. :)

[Bo1953]

I'll email you some info in a few days. :)

 

Thank you M....

 

Much appreciated.

 

bon voyage

[RealBatman]

I'm appreciating this thread! I too am a neophyte in the world of Scotch consumption, but I'm interested in learning. Are there Scotch appreciation 'classes' on board, similar to the wine tasting?

[Bo1953]

I'm appreciating this thread! I too am a neophyte in the world of Scotch consumption, but I'm interested in learning. Are there Scotch appreciation 'classes' on board, similar to the wine tasting?

 

Check your Cruise Planner, there will be at least one or two tastings either bourbon, scotch or some other type of liquor.

 

It will vary by sailing in terms of which is offered and pricing.

 

For example, on our Alaskan sailing in August 2017 a Macallen tasting was offered at $85 p/p and they offered a variety of bottlings ranging from a 12 yo to a 30 yo from a variety of casks as well.

 

As reported on another thread, others have not been so fortunate to have a similar experience.

 

So, YMMV when signing up. I would venture to guess any price under $75.00 p/p may not be as expansive as we experienced, yet, I would not discourage you from attending if you are interested. Anything is a start and will provide you some insight as to where your taste & interests lie in terms of the beverage.

 

Who is to say that if no scotch tasting is 'currently' available on your sailing, you can inquire at the Captains Club desk and make an appointment with the F&B Manager to request they hold one. You never know.

 

bon voyage

[Hlitner]

I have been a big time scotch lover for over forty years but would not buy any of the stuff in a Celebrity "Duty Free" shop. Last year, when we were on the Eclipse, I actually carried a copy of the current Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board price list (this is published monthly). PA has some of the more expensive booze in the country due to are high taxes on liquor (it is a special tax which originally was supposed to pay for the Johnstown Flood in 1889).

 

I actually showed the shop manager that expensive scotch and Cognac was about the same or less price in PA as in his shop. And when you consider our PA prices are already expensive, most cruisers can do better at home and not have to deal with hassle of lugging the stuff off the ship. It is not much different with other products. We have priced-out both watches and cameras on ships and can usually find better deals at home or online.

 

We do have a very favorite liquor store in Phillipsburg, St Maarten that carries one of the best scotch selections I have ever seen. It is called Gulmohar's and is owned by a local Indian family (long time island residents). The owner of Gulmohar's told me her goal is to stock every type of scotch produced. Prior to the hurricane she was getting close :). Their prices are pretty good on some Scotch products..although we go there for selection (and advice) more then for price.

 

Hank

[JL87]

I second Hank's suggestion for Gulmohar's. They have a very nice selection of whisky and worth a visit if on the island.

[George C]

Love this tread , there is so many great and different types of scotch's hopefully this will educate some people.

[Hlitner]

Love this tread , there is so many great and different types of scotch's hopefully this will educate some people.

 

The last time I was in Gulmohars was in Dec of 2016. We would have returned in 2017, but the Hurricane delayed that visit not to mention destroying much of the island. But on that last visit the owner's wife (and she is quite an expert on Scotch) convinced me to purchase a bottle of Longmorn 16. This is not a Scotch sold in Pennsylvania and hard to find in many venues. It was truly a delight for the taste buds and the kind of product I have learned to expect from Gilmohars. We will be returning in December and wonder what delights we shall discover on that next visit. Sadly, the Longmorn Distillery has discontinued this bottling and is replacing it with a newly formulated 16 year old that will apparently cost around $200 a bottle. Not sure I am that ambitious with my whiskey.

 

Hank

[aruzinski]

At least once a cruise they will have a free Johnny Walker tasting in the duty free shop. It holds a limited amount and you have to sign up. While they had some of the more interesting blends to try, people are right, you can usually get them cheaper elsewhere. The only thing that would be worth it is if it is one of the hard to find blends like the green. Do some research before you go, or use the internet on board. Have fun!