Two malts, two floors, one Thursday to choose

Sources

• generate_cycle.py replay payload, artefact 2026-08-20-replay/compare-the-pair/dalwhinnie-15-year-old-highland-single-malt-scotch-whisky-70-7a4ad7, grounded on vintage 2026-08-20.r, window as-of 2026-08-20.
• Dalwhinnie 15 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL: shelf ticket $95 (claim / grounding.ref.price), not a member offer; at its own-history floor (percentile 0.0, price variation present, 4 observations). Usual list $128.99 (2026-08-20.r dossier reference card).
• Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL: shelf ticket $75 (claim / grounding.cand.price), not a member offer; at its own-history floor (percentile 0.0, 4 observations); list $75.85 (dossier), so the floor and the usual price sit close.
• Similarity: VSM profile cosine 0.9574, VSM rank 9; CE utility score 0.0631, CE rank 46 (candidate.pair, rank_diff -37). Both Scotland, both single malt; ages 15 and 12.
• Character: Dalwhinnie 15 factor profile Orchard & Cereal 0.11 + Peat & Maritime 0.07 (light, soft, honeyed with a faint smoke); Glenfiddich 12 Orchard & Cereal 0.13 (light, orchard-fruited) — 2026-08-20.r dossiers.

Omissions

• Light form only: no CE 360 band, no cross-read CEARP, no Welch t-test on the two means. Ruled out here, not implied.
• Each leg carries only 4 in-window observations this early in the 13-week window; the 'at the floor' read rests on a short history and the post keeps it to a timing observation, not a movement claim.
• No bundle price asserted.
• Two other compare-the-pair candidates cleared select() this cycle (Dalwhinnie 15 / Dimple 12, and Glenfiddich 12 / Dimple 12). Both share an anchor with this pair, so only this one is written — one anchor per batch.

Notes for reviewer

• Flagged: the pairing is a profile-model near-neighbour but a value-model outlier (9th vs 46th, rank_diff -37). Confirm the post reads as 'two different malts, both cheap right now, take your pick', not 'these are the same whisky'.
• Flagged: thin grounding — 4 observations per leg this early in the window; Glenfiddich's 'floor' is inside a very narrow range, so the real discount is Dalwhinnie's ($129 → $95). The post says so.
• Replay draft on rehearsal vintage 2026-08-20.r; may_publish: false and never flips in replay.

Format note

Compare the pair, automated light form. Two shelf tickets and each bottle's own-history position only; no CE 360 bands, no cross-read CEARP, no Welch t-test (the module does not produce them, pair_level null). Both prices shelf basis, neither a member offer. Both 700mL. Not a similarity claim: the profile model ranks them 9th-closest, the value model 46th (rank_diff -37), so this is a timing note — both at their own-history floor — not 'the same whisky, cheaper'.

{
 "date": "2026-08-20T00:00:00.000Z",
 "title": "Two malts, two floors, one Thursday to choose",
 "angle": "compare-the-pair",
 "position": "n/a",
 "status": "draft",
 "derives_from": "none — standalone; the automated replay cycle grounds this on the vintage build and the week's harvest, no long-form article backs it",
 "grounded_on": "2026-08-20.r",
 "may_publish": false,
 "replay": true,
 "review_priority": "flagged",
 "artefact_id": "2026-08-20-replay/compare-the-pair/dalwhinnie-15-year-old-highland-single-malt-scotch-whisky-70-7a4ad7",
 "format_note": "Compare the pair, automated light form. Two shelf tickets and each bottle's own-history position only; no CE 360 bands, no cross-read CEARP, no Welch t-test (the module does not produce them, pair_level null). Both prices shelf basis, neither a member offer. Both 700mL. Not a similarity claim: the profile model ranks them 9th-closest, the value model 46th (rank_diff -37), so this is a timing note — both at their own-history floor — not 'the same whisky, cheaper'.",
 "claims": [
  {
   "item": "Dalwhinnie 15 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL",
   "kind": "price",
   "value": 95
  },
  {
   "item": "Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL",
   "kind": "price",
   "value": 75
  }
 ],
 "subjects": [
  "Dalwhinnie 15 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL",
  "Glenfiddich 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL"
 ],
 "verified_at": "2026-09-27T05:53:06.000Z",
 "verified_by": "etl/price_verify.py (harvest sidecar danmurphys_whisky_products_2026-08-20.normalised.csv, as of 2026-08-20)",
 "verified_prices": {
  "17621": 74.9,
  "84915": 94.95
 },
 "verification_note": "2 price claim(s) verified live",
 "quality_gate": "pass",
 "gated_at": "2026-09-27T05:53:06.000Z",
 "site_publish": true
}