Inflation and Malt Whisky - A Disturbing Trend

I understand we’re in inflationary times, despite what the Fed may be telling us. And everyone knows how prices have skyrocketed at the gas pump. But how come there has been more attention paid to this totally alarming economic indicator – the rise in the price of malt whisky? I stopped by White House yesterday, and had a most disturbing conversation with my man Ben. Where do we start?

How about Bruichladdich, which is rapidly becoming so pricey that Ben may no longer stock it after the first of the year. The ten-year old, entry level Laddie, is expected to climb into the upper 60s. The fifteen year-old, long their flagship whisky, and a wonderful buy when it sold for around $55, will soon approach $100 a bottle. The twenty, which I enjoyed with G at our recent visit to Keen’s, is already $160 on the shelf, soon to pass into the stratosphere. Now I know oil is expensive at over $110 a barrel, but a barrel holds 42 gallons of oil, which according to my calculations is about the same as 211 bottles of malt. So if we had to buy malts by the barrel, at the prevailing retail price, we’d be paying over $20,000 a barrel. Are you kidding me?

Here are a couple more examples: Macallan 15 will soon be $75 on the shelf; Balvenie is bringing out a 17 year old, finished in Rum casks – sounds great, except for the fact that it will cost $130 a bottle; most of the fancy Ardbegs are already more than $100, and HP18 is going up to somewhere north of $75. How about paying $60 for Macallan 12, which is an enjoyable whisky, but nothing special, considering that the sherry sweetness comes close to overpowering the underlying malt flavor. Macallan 12 is fine for when you’re at some restaurant that stocks a half-dozen of the most generic and available whiskies, and all you really want is a glass of anything. Now I don’t know whether this inflationary trend is a reflection of the weakness of the dollar, or just old-fashioned supply and demand, with lots of new Asian entrepreneurs driving prices up by leaps and bounds. I’ll ask Rico to weigh in on that topic; after all he’s the commodities man. But regardless of the reason, it’s putting s serious crimp on our ability to enjoy malts.

Not that there aren’t good tasting, moderately priced whiskies any more. One can still enjoy Aberlour 12, rich and flavorful and smooth, for under $40. Laphroaig 10 has a ton of flavor and character, even though it has a bite. Matter of fact, some folks like the bite, and prefer the 10 to the 15, which is silky smooth and much softer. But if we’re limited to 10s and 12s, there are far fewer malts that we’re going to find satisfying. Yesterday, in anticipation of these price increases, I bought a bottle of Macallan 10. We drank it last winter when we went snowshoeing, but really, any whisky tastes good when you’re out in the woods and the cold. And I had a glass last night with a Romeo & Juliet, which made the malt taste smooth and satisfying. But today, without the taste of tobacco in my mouth, it’s a tad bit harsh. More than that, it lacks the depth and character of the older Macallans; remember that I’ve been drinking the magnificent 17, which I picked up last year very reasonably at a tasting. So yes, the ten will be much more affordable than the 17, but am I going to enjoy it as much? Hardly.

Here’s a thought. We were out the other night with Dan & Randy – new place at Village Gate called Good Luck. They’re serving classic cocktails, which have resurfaced all over Boston, but haven’t really come back in Rochester, at least not yet. When I told the owner how much I liked that idea, and when he then shared his recipe for Manhattans – Sazarec Rye and Punt e Mes for the vermouth - and when I then raved about that recipe, he brought us all a tasting sized sample. Excellent. And fun. So perhaps instead of drinking only malts, I’ll branch out and enjoy a cocktail or two instead. Why not? There’s every bit as much variety in cocktails as there is in malts. And there’s all the fun of mixing and shaking, and trying different recipes. And we won’t have to spend $100 a bottle for the booze. At least not for a year or two.