Duty Free & Travel Retail Shopping
NOTE: Richard posted this originally in Nov 2011; as prices and even what is/isn’t available has changed – Gary updated in Jan 2019.
The holidays are once again right around the corner. For most people in the U.S. this means two things…gift giving and travel. So with that in mind I thought I would pontificate on the intersection where those two things meet whiskey. Duty Free/Travel Retail shopping immediately come to mind.
I’m sure that most of you who have done any type of international travel have seen whiskey for sale somewhere. It might be a small duty free liquor section in the gift shop of your cruise ship or a massive store in Heathrow. If you’ve flown out of Cancun then you can’t actually get to your gate without going through the duty free store. The selections may be big or small but how do you know what to buy?
Before we start I want to dispel the myth that if you get it in a travel shop then it must be a good deal. What once was referred to as “Duty Free” shopping has now morphed into “Travel Retail” shopping. That means that depending on where you are, where you’re going, and what you’re buying the items may not be duty or tax free at all. If you see something that you buy all the time at home then you probably have a good point of reference for the relative value of the purchase. However, if you’re picking up a gift either as planned or on impulse you might be surprised to know that the price of the bottle you are looking at may not be that great. In some instances it might even be more expensive. In this age or smartphones and instance wireless internet connectivity I recommend doing a little homework before pulling the trigger.
If it’s whiskey you are after, look to old favorites, exclusive items, or high-end blends. You need to pay attention to pricing though (and if you’re not sure, that’s what smartphones are for). Some travel retail locations (such as near where the cruise ships dock in Grand Cayman) have historically charged more for some standards than you would pay at home.
Next, I would recommend looking at travel retail exclusive bottlings for something interesting. More often than not you will find Scotch in your search for travel retail exclusives. There are also items that started out as travel retail exclusives, can be found elsewhere in the world, but still may not be available in the United States (so despite not being a pure ‘travel retail exclusive’, if it is up your alley – likely will be cheaper to buy there than say in London). Also, many (not all) now have web-sites where you can check before your trip. They may still have items in-store that aren’t on their site, or just the opposite (on the site but not in-stock). But I always recommend a little web-shopping in advance.
Here’s a brief list of some to keep an eye out for:
Laphroaig fans can look for:
Laphroaig PX Cask
Laphroaig Brodir
Laphroaig The 1815 Edition
Johnnie Walker fans can look for whole bottles from their Explorer’s Club Collection, or they have a sample pack with three 200 mL bottles of Gold Route, Royal Route, and Spice Road.
On the American whiskey front, the selection isn’t as broad, although we do really like the Jack Daniel’s Silver Select if you can find it!
A final thought might be a good Scotch blend. Blends have been getting beat up a good bit in the past decade with the growth of single malts. I can’t seem to throw a cork without hitting a single malt snob these days. The truth is blends are good. Some can be very good. They also seem to have a higher tax/duty mark up and therefore offer great buys in a duty free shop. I’ve regularly found Dewar’s Signature and Chivas Royal Salute 21 Year Old for half of retail price. You might only save 10% or 20% on the bottle of single malt sitting next to it. With deals like that maybe it’s time to see how good blends can be. Personally, I always have a good blend at home and if it’s more than $100 you can bet I got it duty free.
I hope some of this might help you in the near future while waiting for your next flight. I want to be clear that this is purely from personal experience. I have no data from expansive international pricing surveys but I travel regularly and I’m always looking for something interesting. Hopefully, on your next layover or trip to visit the family you can find something interesting too.
Oh by the way, most of the shops gift wrap too. 😉
Drink wisely my friends,
Richard
