Bunnahabhain 12: the salted Islay that travels one way
Start with the price, because it sets the frame. This week Bunnahabhain 12 is **$99 for members** at Dan Murphy's, and it usually sells around that. Across about 26 pours in the bottle that works out at $3.87 a standard drink, so a glass at home sits under a $13 pint at the pub ($6.28 a standard drink). The price guide below puts it against the bottles closest to it.
Now the odd thing about this one. Give a Bunnahabhain 12 drinker a Tamdhu 12 and they get about 93% of what they like. But a Tamdhu 12 drinker, handed a Bunnahabhain 12 the other way, would pay only 72% of what their own bottle costs, marking it down mostly for the name on the label. The swap runs one way.
1/If Bunnahabhain 12 is your bottle, the one that tastes nearest to it at Dan Murphy's is Tamdhu 12. Nearest two ways: the words in their reviews, and what drinkers reach for. Tamdhu 12 gives a Bunnahabhain 12 drinker about 97% of what it does, for 77% of the price.
2/Bunnahabhain 12 noses fresh: sea salt and tangerines, a little woodsmoke, then vanilla and malt on an oily palate. Tamdhu 12 runs drier and richer, with citrus and cinnamon, sweeter sherry, a touch of banoffee pie. Both reviews land on sherry and hazelnuts.
3/This week at Dan Murphy's, Bunnahabhain 12 is $128 and Tamdhu 12 is $98 for members, about $5.01 and $4.13 a standard drink. A yes for each: stay with the Bunnahabhain 12 if it's your pour; reach for the Tamdhu 12 when you fancy a change.
The bottlesThe Bunnahabhain guy
Also from the Bunnahabhain guy
Bunnahabhain 12: neighbours' price
Bunnahabhain 12 and its nearest neighbour, Tamdhu 12, both lean on sherry casks. Hand a Tamdhu 12 drinker a Bunnahabhain 12 and they'd put it at 72% of what their own bottle costs. Plenty to like either way. More on the Bunnahabhain 12 in this week's piece.
Bunnahabhain 12: per drink
I poured the Bunnahabhain 12 and there it was: sea salt, a little tangerine, smoke drifting off at the end. At $99 that's $3.87 a standard drink, about 26 to the bottle. A pint runs about $6.28 a standard drink; a quieter pour at home. More in this week's piece.
Lagavulin 16: price per drink
Friday night, two Islay bottles on the bench look almost twins. Caol Ila 12 is $99 this week, Bowmore 12 is $95. So Caol Ila costs $4 more a bottle. But at 43% against 40% it's the cheaper drink: $4.17 a standard drink against $4.30. Per standard drink: Bowmore 12 $4.30, Caol Ila 12 $4.17, Bunnahabhain 12 $5.01, Lagavulin 16 $6.74, Lagavulin 11 Sweet Peat $6.95. A pint at the pub is about $13, near two standard drinks, so $6.28 each. Bowmore, Caol Ila and Bunnahabhain come in under; the two Lagavulins sit over. Pick by taste. The price per pour won't trip you up.
Bunnahabhain's two Islay malts both sit above their crowd
Bunnahabhain is the Islay distillery for people who do not want to be hit over the head. Soft, sherried, salt-touched rather than smoke-drenched. This week it has two bottles on the shelf, and both ask a clear premium over the drams they stand beside.
Bunnahabhain's 12 is the fairer pour; the no-age asks more
Bunnahabhain is the Islay malt that barely smokes, the coastal, sherried one that trades on texture and sea air instead of a bonfire. Two of its bottles are on the shelf this week, and the one wearing an age on the label is the one priced closer to fair.
Both Bunnahabhains ask well over their neighbours
Bunnahabhain is the quiet Islay, the one that leans on sea air and sherry rather than a wall of smoke. This week both its bottles are priced like the loud ones.
Bunnahabhain 12 is fair only at the member price
Bunnahabhain is the Islay you drink when you want the island without the argument. Peat, but folded into sherry and chocolate rather than fired straight at you.
The numbers behind these bottles
| bottle | region | latest ticket | read | window price | CE 360° mean | premium | shelf rank | per std drink | drink rank | content |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bunnahabhain 12 | Islay | $127.99 | observed | $127.99 | $103.15 | 19.4% | #15 of 16 | $3.87 | #6 of 16 | 6 |
| Bunnahabhain Stiuireadair Whisky | Islay | $114.99 | observed | $94.00 | $72.10 | 23.3% | #16 of 16 | $4.50 | #9 of 16 | 0 |