How Fucked-up is the LCBO?

An Ardbeg Committee e-mail has just gone out regarding a forthcoming Ardbeg 25 yr. old. I can only guess at the staggering asking price.

Nothing for me, either, but I'd only put in for the EH Taylor...

@MRick I'm going to guess eleventy billion dollars....but seriously, it will probably be at least $800. Just a S.W.A.G.

@talexander I had a quick scan of the ongoing Waddingtons auction. With 6 days to go the VW/PVW line are now ranging between $900 (10 year) to $3,500 (23 year). There is a 27 year Port Ellen IB Cask strength bottled in 2010 selling at $400 with an estimate high of $600. Probably worth the $600 plus hammer easy.

@Astroke if someone has the budget for it (not my case) the Waddington's auction is a good place to pick up some gems while the fools chase Weller/Pappy/bourbons, Macallan & Japanese whisky. There's been stuff like Littlemill, Rosebank, some of those older Diageo Rare Malts series and such that sell for below their corresponding world values.

@MRick Ardbeg 23 sold for about 1,200$ at the SAQ, I can imagine the extra 2 years and "chastity" cage decanter will likely double the sum.

@cricklewood That's wild ! The Talisker 25 was selling for $400 the last time it was at the LCBO. Of course, it came without any fetish-paraphernalia so there is that. Also, I imagine the Ardbeg is far more limited edition.

@OdysseusUnbound I got a bottle of HP 25yr at NB Liquor back in 2013 for $195...last time the LCBO had it in inventory it was $900...

@cricklewood Might be worth it if you could put that cage to another use...

@Astroke Thanks! I haven't gone through it in great detail yet. That PE might be worth it, but independent bottlings are not as strong investments as distillery bottlings (though I'm sure it will be delicious!)

@OdysseusUnbound Yes, but think how much more beautiful the Ardbeg 25 would look in the display cabinet!

@YakLord That was a steal. I paid more than that for HP25 a year earlier. It was the 48.1% abv version.

@YakLord Steal of a deal on that one. I think their 15 year old special release is going for more than that.

@MRick Nevermind the cabinet, imagine how awesome it would look in Instagram photos (unopened of course) with the right filters !!

@BlueNote Yeah, there's no way I could justify it now. Even the Glenfarclas 25 year has climbed to a point where it would be difficult to provide a rationale for buying it. I picked it up when it was $210, and it's now up to $270.

@YakLord A depressing sign of the times. Doesn't bode well for the future of whisky prices. I'd hate to have to go back to Ballantine's.

@BlueNote if you can hang on for a few more months, after COVID feel free to visit. You wonKt have to drink Ballantine’s for a long, long, time.

Well, looks like the lottery came my way after all, and ended up with an Ardbeg Blaaack

Wooow!

@talexander I’m guessing it’s not like a real lottery win where you actually win something. So how much do you have to pay the LCBO to claim your prize?

@BlueNote They are asking for $6,342 in gold bullion, 20 grams of coke and my left nut. Weird, I know?

@talexander Oh, is that all? You're lucky you don't live in BC. They'd want both nuts

@YakLord Those were the days! For some reason, New Brunswick was THE place in Canada to buy Edrington product up to about 2013. Highland Park: $195 for the 25yo, $90 for the 18!!! (less than half the LCBO price, when HP 18 was still good), also Macallan 12yo sherry was $67 (100 bucks @lcbo). Not sure if its good (still unopened) but I also bought a Speyburn 25yo for $142!!!! soon after, NB pricing came more in line with Ontario.

If any have wondered why the selection at the LCBO is pathetic across the board. From HelloLCBO after my scathing email (one of many) regarding their lack of selection:

"The LCBO typically decides what kind of products to carry based on submissions made by supplier/agents in Ontario. We usually do not scout out products, but rather, the product agents and suppliers approach us to be included to our product selection. That being said, customer feedback plays a vital role, we listen to customer and staff feedback in order to gage what whiskeys customers are looking for and will definitely take your comments into consideration."

There you have it, now we know why the LCBO have endless supplies of bottom shelf spirits and ultra high priced Scotch that can linger for years on the shelf. Of course the last sentence is an outright lie. LCBO=dumping ground for Whisk(e)y nobody else wants, with a few bones tossed in to keep the masses somewhat satisfied. A distributor's dream come true.

@Astroke I mean, everyone I know is pining for one of those 40 oz’ers of Grand Macnish.....they’re so hard to find.

@OdysseusUnbound Isn't Grand McNish the blend that Ralfy poured for his (in)famous Movember episode a few years back?

Oh wait! indeed it is.

Here's a blast from the past. If you watch it more than once a moth, then, well, you're just enjoying yourself too much...

@Astroke, a thousand monkeys with a thousand keyboards may better serve the top-shelf shoppers of Ontario...oh, wait a second, my apologies to the monkeys!! Those of us with friends and relatives in other provinces don't rely on the LCBO to satisfy our fine spirits requirements.

@paddockjudge Haha, yeah. We've got our own simians running the show out here. Happy New Year.

Well as the annual BTAC/VW lottery approaches the LCBO have decided to add these to the list of allocated lottery bottles. Could it get any worse? Imagine entering a lottery to overpay by 50% or more for a bottle of Scotch that generally sits on the shelf in Ontario for months. I guess the LCBO feels, since they lowered the price from the previous even more ridiculous price that there will be a run on these.

Ardbeg An Oa Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky 750 $129.95 Ardbeg Corryvreckan Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky 750 $150.75 Ardbeg Uigeadail Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700 $172.95

@Astroke You guys must be going through a lot of that same kind of lubricant that Ralfy's using. Looks like the LCBO has you boys permanently bent over.