Whisky drinkers? Which is best?

GrumpyOldGamer

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I'm not a whisky drinker myself but I'm looking to buy a bottle as a gift for my parents at Christmas, they usually have a tipple of your everyday brands (bells, grants etc).

My budget is upto £40 for a decent bottle, any advice?
 
At the budget a nice Malt whiskey would be good.

Best is all subjective, I like some whiskey/malts but not others that my father in law loves. Best is hard to define.

Personal favourites include Bowmore, Dalwhinnie, Bruichladdich, Highland Park, Bunnahabhain.

Saying that, you won't get a bad bottle of malt at £40 or so.
 
Glendronach 12yr old. Super smooth and I have given this to non whisky drinkers and they have enjoyed it. within your price range as well.
 
Glennfidich used to be my favourite but it is subjective. For something really different try a bottle of 43. It's a liquor but it's great on the rocks tried it for the first time in August and I can't get enough.
 
Best to try and figure out what their preferences are. Most West coast and islands brands tend to be heavy/peaty types, whereas your East/Speysides are much smoother. If you can't find out what they prefer then maybe a Macallan (Speyside). I say this because even the staunchest of peaty drinkers will admit that it is a lovely dram. And as already mentioned, Glenmorangie is a very popular tipple too!
 
As already said no such thing as "best", people's pallets are so different and there is do much choice.
Arbelour is a favourite brand of mine.
Sure they will rnjoy whatever you get.
Best regards
DJ
 
If they like it peaty, as I do then Glenmorangie Quinta Rubin will do just fine
 
Controversial choice but I'm a big fan of Monkey Shoulder and so is everyone who I've introduced to it, as a gift it has a really cool looking bottle and a bit of a story. :)
 
My favourites are Ardbeg and laphroaig. Both are heavy and peaty. That said they all have their own character and I'd never turn down a new single malt. At the moment I have a bottle of Talisker.
 
I'd suggest Highland Park too, very well balanced and not too peaty. I'd go for the monsters, but that's a lovely dram. Or Caol Ila...
 
If you like a bourbon A good cheaper alternative to jack daniels is tescos own old samuels its bout 12 quid for 70cl
 
Crown Royal
 
I do prefer the peaty ones but I would never buy someone a peaty malt unless I know that they do like them. Of the non-peaty ones my favourite is The Macallan.
 
I'm not a whisky drinker myself but I'm looking to buy a bottle as a gift for my parents at Christmas, they usually have a tipple of your everyday brands (bells, grants etc).

My budget is upto £40 for a decent bottle, any advice?

From what you say here it sounds like they are casual whisky drinkers and still haven't ventured too much away from the popular brands as you mention. For that reason I'd be very careful in how you select your bottle, as HMHB says:

I do prefer the peaty ones but I would never buy someone a peaty malt unless I know that they do like them. Of the non-peaty ones my favourite is The Macallan.

I absolutely agree with this, I love the peat monsters myself but they are not something everyone can just dive straight in to. Highland Park has been mentioned a few times and I would be tempted to agree with this suggestion, especially the 12 y/o - it's a nice middle of the road single malt and not a bad step up from Bells/Grants, the 15 is a step in the sweet/fruity direction while the 18 is a little more peaty.
You could also get a bit more peaty and go for something like the Ardmore Traditional Cask or even a little peatier again the Caol Ila 12- the Caol Ila is pushing more towards a Laphroaig 10 in terms of peatiness, but it's not too heavy and it's a nice balanced malt. But the reason I suggest it is that Caol Ila is used in the Bells blend (although that's along with 30 or so others), that along with the fact that it's generally one of the best second steps for whisky drinkers who want to slowly progress and find their tastes.
There is also the Talisker 10 which is also a nice rounded peat.

If £40 is your budget, get a £30 or so bottle and also get a couple of glencairns, they make a difference in the drinking experience.

Whisky drinkers will have their own tastes, some like the sweeter (christmas cake) whiskys, others like the peat monsters, some just find themselves somewhere in between. There's only one way to find out where your tastes lie and that's to sample a variety of different ones. I would suggest getting a wee tasting range, but the prices probably don't work out the best value.
But you could have a look at the selection on Masters of Malts to see what you think:
Tasting Sets - Master of Malt

My favourites are Ardbeg and laphroaig. Both are heavy and peaty. That said they all have their own character and I'd never turn down a new single malt. At the moment I have a bottle of Talisker.

Seems we have similar tastes, Laphroaig is my favourite and last Christmas I was lucky enough to get a bottle of 18 as opposed to my usual 10, a lovely drink for sure. Which Talisker do you have on the go?
 
Nikka from the barrel is a good japanese blend. Think it's about £30 at the moment or £40 for a gift set. For me that's the best "budget" Japanese whiskey on the market
 

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