@WhiskeyLonghorn That makes a lot of sense. Thanks for telling me about the Whisky Advocate article. I think I found it (whiskyadvocate.com/big-box-whiskies-feature/) and am looking forward to reading it! It's surprising though that a distillery would let a good 20 YO go to Costco or would bother to keep aging one for decades when the quality isn't turning out that great, so I'm hopeful there will be some juicy details about the reasons for those behaviors inside :)

@ContemplativeFox Whiskey Advocate did a piece on whiskey from “big box” stores like Costco and Total Wine a few years ago. Often times they’re sourcing casks from distilleries that the distillers themselves wouldn’t sell because it hasn’t matured up to their standards. The distillers sell a poor cask of whisky at cost to a place like Total Wine with the stipulation that Total Wine cannot reveal their source (lest it damage the brand’s name or integrity), and we’re left with cheep, largely inferior product. The few exceptions I e found are the older Costco scotch bottlings like the 20 year Speyside and some of the Trader Joe’s bottlings (I enjoyed the 10 year Highland as an easy sipper). Hope this helps. Thanks for starting the conversation @Ctrexman. Always enjoy reading your opinions.

@Benji-Robert I did the same thing and came to the same conclusion. What's driving me nuts is that there's a 31 YO Grangestone sitting there on the shelf and yet I've heard little to recommend it (even from the box itself). I can respect cutting corners to cut costs, but at some point I would think these brands would put some decent juice into a decent barrel.

you're one away from 200 reviews! excellent work my friend. yeah I got the 50ml of this and the 50ml of Sheldaig 12y and both were pretty forgettable.