We’ve tried in excess of 750 between us, since starting our tasting journey. The vast majority of those whiskies (whisky, whiskey and bourbon) that we try will fall into the nice or very nice category (there are a few that we would say are ‘bad’, but I’m not going to mention them here).
Conversely, there are a handful of whiskies that have been truly memorable. These are the whiskies that, throughout the tasting experience, have proved to be as near to perfect (for us) as it gets: nose, flavour, balance, nuance brand story etc.
Those that have made it into our all-time ‘whiskey top 10’ are listed below (this is a fluid list (pun intended!)). These are our top 10 whiskies of all time!
| Position | Whisk[e]y |
|---|---|
| 1 | anCnoc 24-Year-old 46% ABV |
| 2 | Wemyss Malts Untold Riches (Bunnahabhain) 28-year-old 49.1% ABV |
| 3 | Kilkerran 8-Year-old CS (2021) 56.9% ABV |
| 4 | Little Brown Dog Wee Mongrel Blended Malt Scotch Whisky 52.3% ABV |
| 5 | Waxhouse Release 004 (Cotswolds STR Cask) 54% ABV |
| 6 | GlenAllachie 10-Year-Old Cask Strength Batch 6 57.8% ABV |
| 7 | Glen Scotia 14-Year-old Tawny Port Festival Release 2020 52.8% ABV |
| 8 | Springbank 18-Year-old 46% ABV |
| 9 | Black & Gold 11 Year Old Bourbon Whiskey 45% ABV |
| 10 | Dingle Single Malt Batch 6 46.5% ABV |
| List compiled by @whiskeychap |
| Position | Whisk[e]y |
|---|---|
| 1 | anCnoc 24-Year-old 46% ABV |
| 2 | Jameson Black Barrel Cask Strength 60% ABV |
| 3 | Bushmills 16 Year-Old 40% ABV |
| 4 | Strathisla 12 Year-Old 40% ABV |
| 5 | Bladnoch 14 Year-Old 46.7% ABV |
| 6 | Cù Bòcan Creation #3 46% ABV |
| 7 | Glen Scotia 14-Year-old Tawny Port Festival Release 2020 52.8% ABV |
| 8 | Bushmills SMWS 51.17 54.6% ABV |
| 9 | Highland Park 12 Year-Old SMWS 4.260 61.3% ABV |
| 10 | Hazelburn 10 Year-Old 46% ABV |
| List compiled by @stillsurreal |
You don’t have to pay silly money for good whisky, and nor should you! Below is a list of some of the best value readily available whiskies, in our opinion:
| Position | Whisk[e]y | Price (UK) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ledaig Rioja Cask Finish – Sinclair Series 46.3% ABV | £32 |
| 2 | anCnoc 12-Year-Old 40% ABV | £30 |
| 3 | Wild Turkey 101 50.5% ABV | £30 |
| 4 | Three Ships 12-Year-Old 46.3% ABV | £40 |
| 5 | Redbreast 12-Year-Old 40% ABV | £43 |
| 6 | Bunnahabhain 12-Year-Old 46.3% ABV | £40 |
| 7 | Ardbeg 10-Year-Old 46% ABV | £40 |
| 8 | Black & Gold 11-Year-Old Bourbon Whiskey 45% ABV | £50 |
| 9 | Benromach 10-Year-Old 43% ABV | £33 |
| 10 | Loch Lomond Single Grain Whisky 46% ABV | £28 |
| List compiled by @whiskeychap |
Special mention: Dingle Single Malt (£50), Green Spot (£43), Laphroaig Quarter Cask (£43), Maker’s 46 (£40) and Four Roses Small Batch (£31).