I know in the grand scheme of Whisky world that £30-40 is drop in the ocean but im looking at getting the old man the best whisky for this price.

Any suggestions from the singletrack whisky experienced folk?

Thanks

What does he drink usually?

10yr old Ardbeg?

The Macallan gold is a good one for £35 ish

Taliskye, Glenfiddic but fancy him getting something different

Waitrose are doing deals of £32 on Lafroag (sp) select at the mo… Don’t know what it’s like because it’s too peaty for me.

Bunnahabhain
Highland Park
Talisker

Balvanie 14hr CARIBBEAN Cask circa £40 from Salisbury and Waitrose.

Penderyn

Ardbeg is a good call if he likes Talisker IMO.

Balvanie 14hr CARIBBEAN Cask circa £40 from Salisbury and Waitrose

Possibly in Tesco aswell I think at £40. It is nice too

Could you stretch a few extra pounds to Glenfarclas 15? It will be worth it. Probably would have to get that from an online retailer to get a good price, but a specialist shop may match it. Not talking that specialist either e.g. Odd Bins

Talisker Storm.

My current favourite available in shops is the Tamdhu 10 year old which is about £34 from Waitrose, Booths or Amazon. It is made by an independent distillery using old methods but more importantly it tastes great.

Tamdhu 10 link

If you are near a Diagio distillery then you can pick up a Glen Ord 12 for £34 but it is not available in UK shops which is a pain as I love it.

Just got a bottle of Laphroaig for £30 from Tesco delivered with my shopping – not sure if its the same price in store. As suggested above Ardbeg or Caol Ila is lovely and can be had from one of the supermarkets for usually about £36.

Caol Ila if they like Talisker
They might find Ardbeg too subtle

+1 for the Penderyn. Used to live down the road, the madeira cask is a personal favourite as I’m not a fan of stronger, peatier types, though they do these as well.

Glendronach is also a nice cherry cask.

I’ve got a hip flask full of Glenlivet for a weekend in the Lake District – it’s very nice

The other bottle I have on the go is Glenfiddich. Have a Highland Park that I’m yet to open

Some good suggestions there. Sounds like waitrose have some good deals to

Caol Ila if they like Talisker
They might find Ardbeg too subtle

Also likes Glenfiddich though, if you see where I’m coming from?

+1 for the Penderyn. Used to live down the road, the madeira cask is a personal favourite as I’m not a fan of stronger, peatier types, though they do these as well.

Whereas I think it’s very average at best… just goes to show that there is no “best”, just personal preference.

Glenfarclas 15

an absolute peach of a whisky. so is the Caribbean cask…

Been enjoying this recently

I’m a total novice though so it may be frowned upon by others, also at someone else’s expense, he has Whisky but doesn’t drink it, so technically I’m doing him a favour 😉

Glenfarclas 15

Might be able to get a 105 bottle of Cask strength for £40 if you’re lucky.

Tullibardine 500 would be similar and a little rarer for the same/less money

Caol Ila is good but the cheap stuff is a bit subtle, nicely balanced though – not as full-on as other light-but-peaty whiskies like Ardbeg.

Jura Superstition will be well within your budget and is great value – Talisker without the pepper.

Ben Riach 16 is an excellent speyside for little outlay if you fancy trying a lighter malt

+1 for the Penderyn

I’ve got a welsh friend who always has this in. Agree with Ransos – very average.

If he likes Talisker then most of the Islay malts will be a good shout. See what’s on offer in Waitrose and bob’s your uncle.

Yamazaki Distiller’s Reserve would be my suggestion.

Taliskye, Glenfiddic but fancy him getting something different

Something different but very nice is Scapa. The 16 yo that I’m just running out of is fabulously smooth compared the more medicinal qualities of those you’ve listed – but not in a way that fans of sharper tasting whiskys would find boring – I’m more usually a fan skye /islay / jura stuff but this is a really enjoyable change. The 16yo tends to go for around £60-£80 bottle – where you can still find it

This but this is closer to budget

Aberlour 12yr old is £27 in Asda at the moment by the way; know some of you lot rave about it.

(I may have bought some for Christmas to see what all the fuss is about, and I may also have doubts about whether it’s going to remain untouched until then)

I may also have doubts about whether it’s going to remain untouched until then

One of ‘Santa’s little helpers’ will die for every dram of it you drink before the day!

Apologies for hijacking the thread – How does the better stuff differ from the run of the mill stuff? My experience is of the cheap stuff in clubs years ago – probably JD, maybe Jamesons.

I don’t want to be screwing my face up in disgust when I drink it. I’d rather enjoy the flavour. Is this what differs when you drink the better stuff?

Now here is a can of worms!

My advice is to go to a pub with a good selection of whiskies and a friendly barman. Try a few, try a few more, and a few more… Only one way to work out what you like.

One of ‘Santa’s little helpers’ will die for every dram of it you drink before the day!

this is of no concern

Chug-a-lug

‘Pulls up chair and brew with interest’

have a swatch at a whisky auction for something different. set to about your budget, but hit the last page for “mony no object” or first page for “cheapskate” options.
This is an independent bottling from a distillery that was closed for a few years and pre-closure bottlings are becoming collectable, if that floats your boat.
Kilchoman is another Islay worth looking at. Not widely available but highly rated, it started distilling about 10 or 11 years ago, they grow their own barley and malt it themselves, pretty much the only distillery still drying on a malting floor (might be wrong but can’t think of another). Islay malt but not as peaty as Laphroaig or the rest. There’s a few bottles on the whisky auctioneers site
Glenmorangie Quinta Rubain (finished in port casks is slightly over bi=udget but lovely as is their La Santa (Sauternes, much nicer than I though it would be.)
Just finishing a bottle of Oban (around £45, never seen on the cheap shelf) which is an excellent dram and fortunately I’ll be in Oban over the weekend to use my distillery discount card. Slightly smoky left in refill sherry casks. Lovely, lovely aroma and colour.
If it’s island peatiness though, Caol lla and Lagavulin both winners.

How does the better stuff differ from the run of the mill stuff? My experience is of the cheap stuff in clubs years ago – probably JD, maybe Jamesons.

It’s not wholly dissimilar to comparing real ale with supermarket tramp juice lager.

Older whiskies tend to be smoother, younger whiskies can be very rough. Very much oversimplifying but, you’re paying for age.

How does the better stuff differ from the run of the mill stuff

The better stuff is better, but better is a matter of taste. If by “better” you meant “more expensive” then it’s largely due to the “angel’s share” . Whisky in wooden barrels evaporates at a rate of about 2% pa. Grain whiskies tend to mature in barrels for 3 years (minimum to be called Scotch whisky, possibly the same for Americans), malts typically for 12+ years, which is a lot of time to have an asset tied up doing nothing but evaporating. And as there’s less of it, it gets more expensive.
So, as Cougar says, you’re paying for age, but at a recent tasting I was at the second favourite was the cheapest (Old Perth FWIW and around £28/bottle).

Jura Superstition will be well within your budget and is great value – Talisker without the pepper.

I’m a big fan of Talisker but I didn’t like Superstition at all – overly sweet and a bit rough on the palate.

One recommendation I have is Asda’s own label Islay Single Malt (yes, really). I think it was £21 and is a stonking bargain at that price – plenty of peat as you would expect but nicely balanced. A good way to find out if you like the Islay style without breaking the bank.

It may have been said but I can’t be arsed to read. The best bottle of whisky for that price is two bottles of whatever is going cheap in the supermarket in the version (speyside, islay, etc) that you like 🙂

Asda’s own label Islay Single Malt (yes, really). I think it was £21

That’s what I meant, something like that. But two of them 🙂

Sainsburys have Jura Superstition for £26 at the moment. It’s a nice drop.

Fell in love with Dufftown Singleton 15 yr old whilst on holiday in Scotland this Summer. Not sure how easy it is to get hold of down here though…

It’s all very subjective…

Green Spot, Irish Whiskey. Waitrose stock it, ’bout £35. Absolutely delicious.