1/A mate's fortieth, and I've been handed the good stuff in the backyard. Birthday boy drifts over, nose in the glass. "Vanilla sponge and marzipan in here, little waft of smoke at the end. What've you given me?" "Chivas Regal 12 — $60 at Dan's."
2/"You on the same?" he asks, tipping his glass at mine. "Nah — Chivas Regal XV 15. Marmalade, almond, cinnamon buns, dark fruit off a cognac cask. Rated 92." "Course you are, keeping the top drop for yerself." "$89 this week. Someone's gotta taste-test it."
3/Here's the thing, though: Chivas Regal 12 gives an XV 15 drinker about 95% of what the XV does, for 67% of its price. What you give up is mostly three years of age and some of the sherry and dried fruit. The XV for its fans on a frosty night; the 12 for every other.
| 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 | 57.95 observed | 57.95 observed | 57.95 observed | 57.95 observed | 57.95 observed | 57.95 observed | 59.95 observed | 59.95 observed | 59.95 observed | 59.95 observed | 59.95 observed | 59.95 observed | 59.95 observed |
| basis | mean | median | sd | min | max | range | cv | se mean | latest | own-range pctl |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list | 59.03 | 59.95 | 1.04 | 57.95 | 59.95 | 2.00 | 1.8% | 0.29 | 59.95 | 100 |
| member | 59.03 | 59.95 | 1.04 | 57.95 | 59.95 | 2.00 | 1.8% | 0.29 | 59.95 | 100 |
| moments | m1 mean | m2 var | m3 skew | m4 ex-kurt | 95% band of the mean |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| list | 59.03 | 1.08 | -0.18 | -2.36 | 58.5 – 59.6 |
I kept coming back to the cinnamon buns on the nose, marmalade and almond just behind, before the palate turned to dark fruit and toffee, velvety smooth, cognac cask woven through. Chivas Regal XV 15, $89, it's in this week's piece. A dram for frosty nights — would it tempt you?
Drink Chivas Regal XV 15? The Chivas Regal 12, at $60, gives you about 95% of what it does for 67% of the price. Vanilla sponge, cut flowers, a little marzipan, an everyday pour. Save the XV 15 for a frosty night. More on it in this week's piece.
Hand a Dewar's 18 drinker the Chivas Regal XV 15 and they'd pay 83% of what their own bottle costs, mostly for it not being from the Highlands. That suits the Dewar's drinker after a softer, fruitier dram for frosty nights. More on the Chivas Regal XV 15 in this week's piece.
Chivas Regal XV 15 is $89. About 22 standard drinks in the bottle. That works out at $4.03 a pour at home. A pint at the pub runs about $6.28 a standard drink. More on the Chivas Regal XV 15 in this week's piece.
Chivas Regal XV 15: marmalade and cinnamon buns on the nose, dark fruit and toffee on a velvety palate, wood spice on the finish. It's $89 this week, about where it usually sells, and we've seen it from $86 to $89. More on it in this week's piece.
Marmalade, almond and cinnamon buns, then dark fruits and toffee rolling in velvety, with a little wood spice to close. The cognac cask sits politely beside the scotch, and I'd keep this one for frosty nights. Chivas Regal XV 15 is $89, and that's where this week's piece starts.
Love the Chivas Regal XV 15? The Chivas Regal 12 pours vanilla sponge, cut flowers and marzipan, and for $60 it gives a Chivas Regal XV 15 drinker about 95% of what that bottle does at 67% of its price. Pour one this winter and see — more in this week's piece.
Hand a Dewar's 18 drinker a glass of Chivas Regal XV 15 — marmalade, almond, those cinnamon buns on a frosty night — and they'd put it at 84% of what their own bottle sets them back, docking it mostly for not hailing from the Highlands. The rest is in this week's piece.
Chivas Regal XV 15 comes to $4.03 a pour at home, about 22 standard drinks in the $89 bottle. A pint at the pub sits nearer $6.28 a standard drink. If a quiet dram sounds like your evening, pour one and see. More in this week's piece on Chivas Regal XV 15.
Marmalade, almond and cinnamon buns, then dark fruits and toffee over a velvety palate: Chivas Regal XV 15 is $89 at Dan Murphy's this week, about where it usually sells, sitting between $86 and $89 whenever we've seen it. More on it in this week's piece.
The Chivas Regal 12 sits at $60 at Dan Murphy's, twelve years old at 40%, and it drinks like an everyday luxury: a nose of vanilla sponge and marzipan, an oily palate of malty toffee and cake, then cocoa, hazelnut and a last waft of smoke. It usually sells around $60.
What are you paying for in a bottle of Chivas Regal 12? Price its age, name, strength and style the way Dan Murphy's prices the rest of the whisky, and you land near $94. This week it's $60: about 36% under the going rate for its features.
310 bottles at Dan Murphy's can be priced per standard drink this week. Cheapest first: Grant's Triple Wood 1 litre at $1.99 a standard drink; the median is $4.16; Dalmore 21 Malt is the highest at $42.68. 235 of the 310 come in under a pint at the pub, which works out at $6.28 a standard drink.
If Chivas Regal XV 15 is your bottle and you'd like the same evening for a little less, the closest answer comes from the same house: Chivas Regal 12, at $60, gives a Chivas Regal XV 15 drinker about 95% of what their own bottle does. That's the whole story in a line, and I'll spend the rest of this walking you around it.
305 bottles at Dan Murphy's can be priced per standard drink this week. Cheapest first: McAllister 1 litre at $2.00 a standard drink; the median is $4.03; Dalmore 21 Malt is the highest at $42.68. 228 of the 305 come in under a pint at the pub, which works out at $6.28 a standard drink.
If you drink Chivas Regal XV 15, the question is a fair one: is there something close for less money? There is, and it comes from the same house. Chivas Regal 12, at $60, gives a Chivas Regal XV 15 drinker about 95% of what their own bottle does. Same family, same signature, a good deal of the way there.
| # | candidate | price | CEARP | price − CEARP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chivas Regal 12 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky 1L | $55.30 | $59.81 | -4.51 |
| 2 | The Singleton of Dufftown 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $69.00 | $59.64 | +9.36 |
| 3 | Label 5 Premium Reserve 12 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky 700mL | $67.99 | $59.55 | +8.44 |
| 4 | Glenlivet 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 1L | $88.19 | $59.48 | +28.71 |
| 5 | Cragganmore 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $85.90 | $59.44 | +26.46 |
| 6 | The Glenlivet 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $78.85 | $59.04 | +19.81 |
| 7 | Glen Moray 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $78.99 | $58.93 | +20.06 |
| 8 | The Glen Grant 10 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $80.99 | $58.73 | +22.26 |
| 9 | The Glenlivet 15 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $125.00 | $58.70 | +66.30 |
| 10 | Aultmore AULTMORE® 12YO Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700mL | $115.99 | $58.59 | +57.40 |