Redbreast 15yo - hard to find in UK now?

[Deactivated Member]

Just the other day I saw many of the UK leading whisky shops carrying this wonderful irish whiskey, and now its all but gone - ? Royla Mile doesnt have it, Whisky Exchange doesnt have it - is it becoming scarce?

[Leither]

As far as I know (and according to JM's Whisky Bible) the 15yo is only for the French market.

[Aidan]

It was produced for La Maison du Whisky, but can be found in a good few places in Germany. They are not sure if they're going to continue producing it, so it may or may not be a limited edition.

Jim Murray basically says that it's great, but there's caramel in it. According to Irish Distillers, there is no caramel in any of their aged products.

It would be great to be a whisky writer. You could just make stuff up and earn a living from it.

[Di Blasi]

Yes, I saw it in Hamburg in October, I should have picked up a bottle!
https://www.weinquelle.com/
... a well stocked and nice little shop!

[irishwhiskeychaser]

I had an email from http://www.spirituosen-superbillig.de/ just the other day and they stated they cannot deliver outside Germany anymore due to the EU ruling on shipping alcohol through post/courier to incur local taxes.

DOn't know if they all will start adhering to this as if they do I'll be totally stranded from good whisky.

[Mr Fjeld]

Yes, I remember the ruling very well because if it was rejected it could have brought our wine monopoly to its knees. Instead it turned out to make things even more difficult for the inhabitants in EU countries. I suppose a small concern when they made the decision had to be all the various countries tax systems and also their relative degree of competitiveness between the countries. I think it's bad for the consumers but it is inevitably good for local businesses who would suffer from "online stores" .

Still, the 12 is a fantastic whisky if you cannot find the 15.

[peergynt323]

Impossible to find in the U.S.

[lambda]

I don't really understand this interpretation of the ruling. Didn't the ruling only imply that the buyer has to pay excise duty in his own country (on top of the excise duty paid in the shop's country)? From this I do not see why it would be illegal for them to send alcohol at all, or is it somehow the obligation of the seller to pay this excise duty? I would think it's the buyer's problem..

Anyway, whisky-doris.de also seems to have it for 50 euro per bottle.

[Oliver]

Jim Murray basically says that it's great, but there's caramel in it. According to Irish Distillers, there is no caramel in any of their aged products.

It would be great to be a whisky writer. You could just make stuff up and earn a living from it.

Aidan, I heartily agree with your post.
But lest we be unfair to other whisky writers, lets remember that Jim Murray is the undisputed, fearless(!), world-authority on making things up.

[irishwhiskeychaser]

I don't really understand this interpretation of the ruling. Didn't the ruling only imply that the buyer has to pay excise duty in his own country (on top of the excise duty paid in the shop's country)? From this I do not see why it would be illegal for them to send alcohol at all, or is it somehow the obligation of the seller to pay this excise duty? I would think it's the buyer's problem..

Anyway, whisky-doris.de also seems to have it for 50 euro per bottle.

I think you find that online companies decide not to ship when these issues are involved to save them the hassle of returns etc if the buyer does not pay the local taxes. Sometimes it is just all the fuss that goes with it they do not want to get involved in as it probably would involve extra official documentation etc when they are shipping.

[Jobi]

Impossible to find in the U.S.

If you don't mind the delivery charges, Celtic Whiskey Shop in Dublin has been the source for the 3 bottles I've had the pleasure of tasting.

[Mr Fjeld]

I'm just glas the 12 is available in my whereabouts. It's almost as good as the 15
But why doesn't Jameson launch a pure pot still whisky?

[Deactivated Member]

I have just sourced a bottle of the Redbreast 15 for my next tasting (nex tweek) and as far as I know, the shop where I bought it has a good stock. I may get some more if it's successful.

As fo shipping abroad:
I really have no problem shipping abroad.

Within the EU no customs declaration is required, therefore there is nothing on the outside of the box to state what is inside. I doubt very much whether any individual boxes will be opened when delivered between EU countries, customs just don't come into the equation on this scale. Delivery companies do everything themselves without any intervention when within the EU.

I believe the real 'problem' is with bulk shipping, as happend in this test case. A complete van load of alcohol was shipped, not just one parcel.

As for shipping outside of the EU: Exactly as normal, fill in the customs declaration and send.

If any local taxes are to be paid, then yes, that is the responsibility of the buyer upon receipt of delivery.


It is also interesting to note how some companies (Errrrmm Macallan. Sorry, Edrington - not just the Macallan distillery) suddenly stated that it was "illegal" to ship outside the UK when the distance-selling laws were brought in by the EU. According to Edrington, the fact that people have the right to return goods if not satisfied, makes it illegal to ship outside the UK.

(But don't worry, when the UK gets ID cards, the UK Gov't will probably make it illegal to buy anything outside of your own village )

MT

[Aidan]

I'm just glas the 12 is available in my whereabouts. It's almost as good as the 15
But why doesn't Jameson launch a pure pot still whisky?

I heard there was a plan to produce a Jameson 15 pure pot still, but they dont' have much old stocks at Midleton. However, they haven't fully decided whether to continue or discontinue the Redbreast 15.

Also, they're going to make the Jameson Gold more widely available beyond duty free and make a new Jameson Vintage - which will be a blend.

Irish Distillers is doing very well at the moment, I think, so I'm sure they will have increased production for the long term.

[Spirit of Islay]

(But don't worry, when the UK gets ID cards, the UK Gov't will probably make it illegal to buy anything outside of your own village )

MT

it's getting close to that now MT !!!!! LOL!
And the Royal Mail is trying to do their bit by making it expensive to send anything thru them......

The one thing i have noticed on (Whisky) sites is the list of countries growing that they can't ship to , it used to be only USA and Canada , now i've seen Switzerland and i'm sure Norway on a couple of them !

Slainte
Gordon

[Deactivated Member]

I can understand some not wanting to ship to Switzerland and Norway as they both have quite strict import restrictions and duties.

I personally offer to ship anywhere, but of course, the payment of any duty is the responsibility of the buyer upon receipt of goods.
MT

[Deactivated Member]

Whose responsibility is it if the goods are intercepted and destroyed?

[Jobi]

Just the other day I saw many of the UK leading whisky shops carrying this wonderful irish whiskey, and now its all but gone - ? Royla Mile doesnt have it, Whisky Exchange doesnt have it - is it becoming scarce?

I'm in London for the week, and I saw 3 bottles of the Redbreast 15 at the Whiskey Exchange outpost in Vinopolis.