Here is the odd thing about Johnnie Walker 18. The critics and the drinkers see it differently. On how the critics rate it, it sits in the top 21% of the whiskies at Dan Murphy's. On how broadly everyday drinkers like it, it lands in the bottom 7%. Same bottle, two verdicts. So which one is yours?
Start with what is in the glass. Complex and elegant from the first sip, with a woodsmoke note like a bonfire of green twigs, ashy peat embers and the smell of grain stores. Underneath runs vanilla cream and honey over baked apples, then golden syrup flapjacks, vanilla fudge, candied apricot and orange peel, a little gingerbread and pepper, and a catch of smoke that carries into the finish, where citrus and honeyed grains show up. Classical in style, but easy to get on with.
What to pay. Johnnie Walker 18 is $131 at Dan Murphy's this week. Work it out as a pour at home and it comes to about $5.93 a standard drink, with roughly 22 standard drinks in the bottle. A pint at the pub, about $13 for its two standard drinks, runs about $6.28 a standard drink. So a measure of this on your own bench sits just under a pint out.
1/The oldest age statement in the core Johnnie Walker range is on a members' ticket this week. Johnnie Walker 18 is $133 for My Dan Murphy's members; non-members see $177 on the shelf.
2/For a blend it carries real weight. The numbers back the buy, too: its CE 360° jury puts fair value near $164, with a band floor of $156. At $133 the members' price sits comfortably under both.
3/Sherried, a wisp of smoke, built for sipping neat rather than mixing. $133 for an aged blend of this pedigree is strong buying as of this morning. Would you take it over a single malt at the same money? I would — what's your call, and your local price?
| slot | 08-13 | 08-20 | 08-27 | 09-03 | 09-10 | 09-17 | 09-24 | 10-01 | 10-08 | 10-15 | 10-22 | 10-29 | 11-05 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list / member | 178.99 observed | 176.99 m 133.00 observed | 176.99 m 133.00 observed | 176.99 m 133.00 observed | 178.99 observed | 178.99 observed | 178.99 observed | 178.99 observed | 178.99 observed | 178.99 observed | 178.99 observed | 178.99 observed | 130.99 observed |
| basis | mean | median | sd | min | max | range | cv | se mean | latest | own-range pctl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list | 174.84 | 178.99 | 13.20 | 130.99 | 178.99 | 48.00 | 7.6% | 3.66 | 130.99 | 8 |
| member | 164.68 | 178.99 | 22.34 | 130.99 | 178.99 | 48.00 | 13.6% | 6.20 | 130.99 | 8 |
| moments | m1 mean | m2 var | m3 skew | m4 ex-kurt | 95% band of the mean |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list | 174.84 | 174.31 | -3.58 | 12.86 | 167.7 – 182.0 |
Fancy a Johnnie Walker 18 but eyeing the price? Chivas Regal 18 gives you about 97% of what you love about it, for 95% of the price, at $125 this week. Nose of vanilla and toffee, soft oak and spice on the finish. More on Johnnie Walker 18 in this week's piece.
Who's it for? Anyone chasing woodsmoke and honeyed oats; I'd pour it gladly. Its neighbours' drinkers would pay $120 to $231 for Johnnie Walker 18, each from their own bottle. This week it's $131, inside that range. More in this week's piece.
Pour one after dinner, lamps low. Johnnie Walker 18 works out at $5.93 a standard drink, just under a pub pint's $6.28 a standard drink. Woodsmoke off green twigs, honey over baked apples, a catch of smoke into the finish. More in this week's piece.
I kept coming back to the orchard fruit on Royal Salute 21. Masses of it, a hint of passion fruit, then a drop of water lets a banana note up. Thick and chewy, a little nut on the finish. $210 at Dan's. More on it in this week's piece.
Like Royal Salute 21? Johnnie Walker 18 gives you about 91% of what it does, for 85% of the price. That's $179. Woodsmoke, honey, baked apples. More on Royal Salute 21 in this week's piece.
Hand Royal Salute 21 to a Chivas Regal 18 drinker and they'd pay about $99 for it, close to 79% of what their own bottle costs, marking it down mostly for the name on the label. More on where Royal Salute 21 sits with its neighbours in this week's piece.
Royal Salute 21 runs about 22 standard drinks a bottle, so a pour at home is $9.51. A pint at the pub sits near $6.28 a standard drink. The 21 lands above that; Chivas 18 slips under at $5.66. What's a fair price for a pour in your own glass? More in this week's piece.
Like Royal Salute 21? Chivas Regal 18 gives a Royal Salute 21 drinker about 85% of it, for 60% of the price, at $125. Vanilla, almond slice and toffee on the nose. Malt, dark fudge and raisin, then a warm, long finish. More on Royal Salute 21 in this week's piece.
Royal Salute 21 is $210 at Dan Murphy's this week. A pour works out at about $9.51 a standard drink, and there are about 22 standard drinks in the bottle; a pint at the pub runs about $6.28 for the same measure, so this one sits a touch above the pub pour per glass.
| # | candidate | price | CEARP | price − CEARP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glengoyne 18 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $275.99 | $138.86 | +137.13 |
| 2 | Glengoyne 21 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $360.99 | $135.09 | +225.90 |
| 3 | Glenfiddich 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $139.99 | $134.50 | +5.49 |
| 4 | Glenfiddich 18 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $174.90 | $131.65 | +43.25 |
| 5 | Royal Salute 21 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky 700mL | $259.99 | $131.57 | +128.42 |
| 6 | Chivas Regal 18 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky 700mL | $124.95 | $130.72 | -5.77 |
| 7 | Glengoyne 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $161.99 | $128.67 | +33.32 |
| 8 | Aberlour 14 Year Old Scotch Whisky 700mL | $159.99 | $128.30 | +31.69 |
| 9 | Tamdhu 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $201.99 | $127.33 | +74.66 |
| 10 | Glenfarclas 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $129.99 | $125.31 | +4.68 |