I started this article at the end of 2025 but never got around to completing it so I’ve not started 2026 keeping to my resolution to be reliable on posting 😦

In the final days of 2025 I look back at a few highlights and a few lows. I only restarted posting regularly in the back half of the year but still managed some 63 posts averaging 380 words an article. This year I hope to increase the number of posts and the number of words per post.

A Few Disappointments

Almost all Bladnoch’s

Pretty much every Bladnoch I tried felt overpriced and cynically produced. The Waves series was a particular nonsense set of bottles. I hope someone is finding these worthy of buying but its not for me.

Prices

Prices are better than they were 5 years ago but still pretty wild. There is a definite downturn in sales on a by case basis. This is not set to change anytime soon and we can see production being reduced and people being laid off. It looks like so far the solution is to increase price per bottle to keep sales totals but could 2026 be the start of the standard price reductions?

A Few Highlights

Islay Still Delivers

We looked at some fantastic bottles from Islay which still hits the spot for me. Some of the highlights included:

• Advent Day 19: Lagavulin 8 Year Old
• Advent Day 20: Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Batch 16
• Advent Day 8: Bunnahabhain 12 Year Old

Bourbon

The biggest surprise and interest was from a bottle I can’t get in the UK. J Henry & Sons Wisconsin Straight Bourbon is a really interesting and engaging bottle. If you happen to be passing through USA or live there as more than half of the readers of this blog do… then get some in for the cabinet