re: Which whiskey to buy for a special gift?

Needed a gift for the friend that guided me on an elk hunt. Glenlivet had been mentioned in conversation on a previous hunt. Went in search of a bottle in the small town taverns in our area and finally found one. Price as marked was reasonable and it looked no worse for wear after wiping all of the dust off of the bottle. After it was presented and opened, much to his pleasure, he examined the bottle and found that it had been aged 12 years in the cask and sat on the shelf in the small town tavern for another twelve. No wonder the price was so reasonable because it too was twelve years old.