This will be vague, not being a whisky drinker, but having tried and liked Macallan in the past I’m thinking of getting a bottle in for some festive tipples.
Seems to be a Gold and a single malt which are quite different prices but I’m possibly wrong…guessing I had the standard one.
What’s a good price and what tastes very similar to it?
No TCP peaty suggestions please 😉

Highland Park, Jura, something Japanese.

i love mellow pale malt.
my faves are,
edradour
dalwhinnie
macallan gold
jura origin.

no more than £40

Just stick to Macallan – hard to beat.

Try a Glenkinchie?

or a Balvennie Doublewood

Whatever you do, never ever try a MaCallan 18. That little taste session ended with my forking out for a bottle a few months later.

It made my Bunahabhain taste like someone added water.

Personal favourites are Aberlour 10, Bunahabhain and the macallan 18, or anything matured in sherry casks.

Download a whiskey tasting map and see what’s best in your preferred Map area..
Personally I’m 2/3rds of the way across, 1/3rd up, if that makes sense.

Aberlour 10 is on offer most supermarkets for £20 at the moment BTW. That’s a bargain as its usually £33

A handy little guide there, sticks me firmly in top right which explains why I’m trying to track down this at a good price

Not for the OP but one of the more beautiful things I have tasted

Had a sniff out the neck of a bottle of Octmore in the pub the other night – oooff! rather nice actually.

As an alternative to Macallan – but similar – try some of the other meaty Speysides – Strathisla (which is rather good and undersung), Glen Elgin is lovely, and ever dependable Mortlach. For further afield – Highland Park might be a bit different – more peat and tang – Old Pulteney (usually on offer this time of year), and my choice Springbank… Don’t overlook likes of Glenrothes (the whisky, not the town) and the daddy, Glenlivet. Glenfarclas can be a bit hit or miss, the older stuff is much nicer but costly. Try the 105, it’s nice too.

I keep hearing HP being described as ‘peaty’ and I don’t see it. Could just be my palette of course, or that it’s all relative and compared to something like Ardbegeddon or cask Laphroaig it’s practically sherry, but I’d never have described it as such.

I guess ‘smoky’ might be better terminology in the case of Highland Park and ones of that ilk..

Agreed on ‘smoky’ rather than ‘peaty’ for Highland Park. Getting back to OP’s question – Sainsbury has 15yo Glenfiddich Solera vat on sale at the moment….

http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/shop/gb/groceries/whisky/glenfiddich-15-year-old-malt-whisky-70cl

It is really nice and smooth as anything, yet full of flavour. Highly recommended as an alternative to Macallan. I’m not a massive fan of Macallan trying to establish itself as some sort of Rolls Royce of whiskies lately for some reason, stopping putting the age on bottles, product placement in Bond etc, leading to an impression one has to be a laird of some sort to drink it. Still a nice tipple but **** off with the ‘if sir has to ask sir can’t afford it’ graces, whisky is made by normal people, leave the marketing **** for Grey Goose crowd.

try Mortlach if you can get your hands on it, lightly smoked, not peaty, sherry finish.

Don’t overlook likes of Glenrothes

ahh yes, lovely drinnk, occasionally turns up in Aldi at a reasonable price

Macallan has had product placement in the films for some time though – “Don’t Look Now” and *that* scene, for example..

if anyone buys me this for Xmas they are dead to me

Top left for me Ardbeg and laphroaig.I tried Highland Park last xmas and didn`t like it at all

Cougar – Moderator
Highland Park, Jura, something Japanese.

Mmmmm, yes!
I’ve got a bottle of something Japanese that a mate gave me for my 60th; waiting for an appropriate occasion to open it.
Fond of HP, and most of what’s in the top-right quadrant of that diagram. 😀

Anyone else tried Ileach? Think it’s young Lagavulin. For £20 a bottle it’s great!
OP. I would recommend Mortlach, the 15yo Glenfidich, low end Japanese stuff and Glenfarclas 105 if you want a bit more oomph. Kilchoman Machir bay is lovely too, but a little over-priced

I’m also a Macallan fan,, but no whisky expert. Not to keen on smokey/peaty. Macallan is Speyside – most Whiskys describing themsleves as Speyside have a similar character and I haven’t found one I dont like.

My brother, on the other hand, is a member of the Scotch Whisky Society and is constantly trying to make me drink things that, to me, taste like TCP.

Speyside may be “Beginners Whisky”, but I’m happy to stay there.

And that’s no bad thing. Broadening your horizons is a good thing, but ultimately your tastes are your own.

I don;t know as I’d say “beginner’s whisky” exactly, that’s slightly condescending. “Gateway whisky” might be a better term.

Indeed, Beginners isn’t right term — foothills – like a reception room in a house, but one that’s quite comfortable and some people never leave – many folk I know are more than happy with Speyside (and there’s a wide range of Speysides really, it’s such a big region).

Also a member of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) and to be honest he must be pushing the peat monsters on you (Ardbeg – 3, Caol Ila – 53) as not all their stuff is Islay whisky .. or indeed Scotch – they have Japanese, Bourbon (I think), Rum (lovely) and used to do some cracking Armagnacs too.

My two favourites are The MacAllan Gold and Hibiki 12. Both very easy and smooth.
At Whisky Club (lads get together and talk rubbish for an evening) these two disappear in very short order.
Dalmore is also nice, but not as smooth as the two above.
I am not a fan of smokey drinks/food, so tend to stay away from that side of the chart.

Blends – Jonny Walker Double Black, PLatinum or Green Royal Salute 21

Single – hard choice 0 I like all whisky too much. I don’t mix my TCP with others though, or it ruins it

Best deal I got was $26 for a litre of jura at Ulaanbaatar airport, bargain.

Purchased a bottle of Macallan Gold based on the positive comments from people on this thread and have to say it’s a thumbs up from me too!

OP here again.
The guy who’s Macallan I tried has today confirmed it wasn’t the £36 Gold, but can’t remember what it was.
It was a supermarket buy – I know there’s no exact answer to this but would it more likely be 10 year or 18 year? Morrisons and Waitrose but in my work town have nowt…

None of the usual suspects sell Macallan (Gold) for less than £35 – is it even possible to get a reasonably priced bottle? Help!

£36 for my last bottle of macallan gold. worth every penny, and more.. 😀

The Macallen Sienna is very similar to the Macallan 18 yo. Well, close enough that you can pretend, as long as you don’t have them side by side. The Gold is just a good alternative to a Glenmorangie.

Of course, everyone’s taste is different. Just my tuppence worth.

The Macallen Sienna is very similar to the Macallan 18 yo. Well, close enough that you can pretend

Interesting! like half price 18 then…

Macallan Sienna 1824 Series Single Malt Whisky 70cl, 43.0% abv

Macallan Sienna 1824 Series Single Malt Whisky is a bottling from the no age statement, Sherry matured 1824 Series from The Macallan. This expression balances rich dried fruit sweetness with some lighter spicier notes. The Macallan’s whiskies are all released with no added colouring.

Colour: Sienna
Nose: Vanilla, orange then green apples add freshness and balance.
Palate: Dates, figs and raisins, then nutmeg and ginger with a hint of oranges and apples.
Finish: Gentle, smooth and warm.

If I was thinking along the lines of Glenmorangie Original and Aberlour would I be far wrong (taste compared to Macallan)? Aberlour £20 on offer in a few places at the mo. As I’m a whisky luddite I’m thinking I’ll get a similar taste for half the price of Macallan…

side by side you’ll notice difference from Macallan going to Aberlour for sure and Glenmorangie as well I’d think.

Up to you. Always room for a Macallan in my drinks cabinet. Aberlour, not so much. Glenmorangie – rarely – just got too much of a duff note. 18 yo would be not £35 – more like £70 or more.

Don’t think even my local garage (Buccaneer) has Gold for £35 I’m afraid and they’re usually the cheapest around…

Interesting! like half price 18 then…

And around half as good…

I can’t work out what’s going on with this no age blox.

Macallan 12yo Sherry Oak was my tipple of choice, Gold is not nearly as nice, more like the Fine Oak. Sienna is pleasant, but twice the price of the Sherry 12 and certainly no 18yo, but then Sherry 18 would set you back another 50% again on top of the price of Sienna.

Bottle of Amber on my list now to see if that fills the gap left by the 12…

A shift away from restriction by age – might be able to change the taste more easily over the years (I would bet that Macallan 10yo in 1990 was not the same as the taste of Macallan 10yo in say 2010); and also they are not then obliged to hang onto more expensive casks for years and years to keep up the age statement on the label (so can put in some tasty 7yo e.g. to bulk it out or add the desired flavour if it works).

(Macallan)Gold is not nearly as nice

seconded after a wee one last night in the pub.

Aberlour £20 on offer in a few places at the mo

the 10 year old Aberlour is lovely, one of my favourites, way nicer then the 12 but I think the 10 is more sherry cask than the 12.

Bit off topic but I was given a a bottle of Suntory Hibiki (blend) for Christmas and was absolutely lovely and similar in style to the Speyside whiskys. I’ll definitely be buying again. Felt a bit sacrilegious drinking it in the heart of Speyside over Christmas.