The 5 Best Value Scotch Whiskies To Buy Now

9/23/2018 The 5 Best Value Scotch Whiskies To Buy Now
72,928 views | Apr 5, 2018, 07:30am
The 5 Best Value Scotch Whiskies

To Buy Now
Joseph V Micallef Contributor i
Food & Drink

I write about wines and spirits and the hidden corners of the world
There are over 3,000 whiskies available today
There are approximately 3,000 Scotch whisky expressions in the world. Of these
around 500 are blended whiskies, while the balance are single malt scotches. The
number includes the whisky expressions bottled by Scotland’s 110 or so distillers,
as well as those packaged by the approximately 300 specialty bottlers around the
world. It also includes the custom bottlings produced for various retailers, both
blends and, increasingly, single malt expressions.
Prices can vary from under $20 for entry level blends to tens of thousands of
dollars for rare, ultra-aged single malts. Today we will look at the 5 best values in
single malt Scotch whisky. Note that best value doesn’t mean the cheapest, just
https://www.forbes.com/sites/joemicallef/2018/04/05/liquor-library-101-5-best-value-scotch-whiskies/#65cabbd47b69 1/13
outstanding value compared to the pricing of its peers. Prices can vary widely
depending on local taxes and regulations.
A bottle of Glenlivet 18 YO single malt Scotch whisky
1. Glenlivet, 18 YO, 43% ABV, 750 ml, best price: $75-$90
For many Scotch whisky enthusiasts, The Glenlivet was the single malt that
started it all. The distillery was among the first to bottle and widely distribute its
single malts. Glenlivet has historically been the best-selling single malt in the
United States and has battled with its Speyside neighbor, Glenfiddich, for the title
of world’s best-selling single malt.
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The Glenlivet 18 YO, offers a classic Speyside whisky profile. It is rich and creamy
with sweet honey notes accompanied by fruit and floral aromas. On the palate,
there are the dried fruit notes typical of sherried whiskies, along with wood spice
notes and vanilla. With most 18 YO single malts now selling for between $100
and $200, a diligent search can often snag a bottle for under $90.
A bottle of Aberlour A'Bunadh Cask Strength single malt Scotch whisky
2. Aberlour A’bunadh, NAS, 59-61% ABV, 750 ml, best price: $80 to
$100
A’bunadh is a blend from barrels ranging from 5 to 25 years in age, and is bottled
at cask strength, which historically has averaged between 59% and 61% ABV. The
whisky is not chill filtered, nor is any coloring added to it. It is exclusively
matured in first-fill Oloroso sherry butts, a rarity it shares with only a handful of
Scotch whiskies, including The Macallan.
The whisky has the typical profile of a sherry matured Scotch, offering distinctive
fruit notes, more cooked than dried, featuring peach, apricot, prune and
especially golden raisins, as well as a hint of cherry. There are also notes of
candied orange zest and bittersweet marmalade as well as sweet spice aromas of
nutmeg, allspice and a bit of cinnamon, followed by hints of vanilla and then
walnut. Distinctive sweet honey notes above a backdrop of waxiness and hints of
furniture polish are clear throughout.
The Macallan had a comparable, cask strength, NAS, sherry matured whisky. The
expression has been, sadly, discontinued. There are still bottles around at retail,
however. At a price of around $500 per bottle, they are 5 to 6 times more
expensive than the Aberlour A’bunadh. If you are looking for a cask strength,
sherry matured whisky, this is the one to choose.
A bottle of Talisker 25 YO single malt Scotch whisky
3. Talisker, 25 YO, 45.8% ABV, 750 ml, best price: $275-$325
Talisker is produced on the island of Skye, part of the Hebridean chain of islands
on Scotland’s west coast. The 25 YO offers the typical Talisker profile of honey
sweetness, lingering smoke and a light peaty note and the trademark Talisker
pepperiness. As the whisky opens up, notes of citrus and wood spice emerge
along with some vanilla and a distinctive brininess.
Most 25 YO age statements sell for between $500 and $1,000 a bottle, with
prestige brands easily selling for triple that. At an average price range of between
$275 and $325 a bottle, the Talisker 25 YO represents an outstanding value
compared to its peers.
A bottle of Glenfarclas 40 YO single malt Scotch whisky
4. Glenfarclas, 40 YO, 46% ABV, 750 ml, best price: $650-$850
The Glenfarclas 40 YO is a classic ultra-aged Speyside sherried whisky. It offers a

complex and nuanced aroma and taste that features classic Christmas cake notes
of raisin, prune, and candied fruit along with hints of mint, liquorish and a bit of
varnish or furniture wax. There are also notes of milk chocolate and citrus zest
and a bit of toasted bread on the finish.
Until recently, it was possible to occasionally find the Glenfarclas 40 for under
$500. There may still be the odd bottle that a retailer failed to reprice, but those
prices are now gone. Most retailers price this whisky for around $1,000, although
it’s possible to find it from discounters in the $650 and up range. By comparison,
the Glenfiddich and Highland Park 40 YO expressions retail for around $3,000
per bottle, while the Macallan 40 YO retails for $20,000.
A bottle of 1950 Speymalt Macallan 56 YO single malt Scotch whisky
5. Gordon & MacPhail, 1950 Speymalt Macallan, 56 YO (distilled in

1950, bottled in 2006), 43% ABV, 750 ml, best price:
$5,000-$5,500
The Speymalt Macallan is Gordon and MacPhail’s custom bottling of Macallan.

The firm has been filling specially chosen casks with new mark spirit from the
Macallan distillery and then carefully aging it in its own cellars in Elgin, Scotland,
for the better part of a century.
The whisky was matured in a first fill sherry butt. The color is a deep orange red.
The nose is full and rich with aromas of baked fruit, raisins, prunes and figs with
a tiny hint of peat. On the palate, there are honey notes, with elements of
cinnamon and coffee. There is a pronounced sherry note with hints of caramel,
rum and buttery fruitcake. The finish is long, with a slight woody note and a
touch of cereal sweetness. In other words, it is a classic Macallan.
Scotch whiskies from the 1940s and early 1950s are rare. The industry was largely
shut down from 1942 through 1944 to preserve barley stocks and had to operate
under a rationing of barley supply till 1953. What distillers were able to operate
did so at a fraction of their capacity.
Macallan does bottle a 50 YO expression. It is extremely difficult to find and will

set you back around $29,000. At around $5,500 a bottle the G & M Speymalt
bottling isn’t cheap but it is a fraction of the official distillery bottling. Note, that
on occasion it is possible to find a bottle of the Speymalt bottling in the UK for
under $5,000 but this is for a 700-ml bottle. Only a handful of the 1950 Speymalt
Macallan bottling is left, so if you want one grab it while you can.
I have been writing and speaking about wines and spirits for 20 years. Along
the way I became a winemaker, Oregon Pinot Noir; a judge for various
international competitions, among them the Irish Whisky Awards and the
International Wine and Spirits Competition; wrote a book o... MORE
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9/23/2018 The 5 Best Value Scotch Whiskies To Buy Now

72,928 views | Apr 5, 2018, 07:30am

The 5 Best Value Scotch Whiskies

Food & Drink

There are over 3,000 whiskies available today

A bottle of Glenlivet 18 YO single malt Scotch whisky

1. Glenlivet, 18 YO, 43% ABV, 750 ml, best price: $75-$90

MORE FROM FORBES

A bottle of Aberlour A'Bunadh Cask Strength single malt Scotch whisky

A bottle of Talisker 25 YO single malt Scotch whisky

3. Talisker, 25 YO, 45.8% ABV, 750 ml, best price: $275-$325

A bottle of Glenfarclas 40 YO single malt Scotch whisky

4. Glenfarclas, 40 YO, 46% ABV, 750 ml, best price: $650-$850

The Glenfarclas 40 YO is a classic ultra-aged Speyside sherried whisky. It offers a

A bottle of 1950 Speymalt Macallan 56 YO single malt Scotch whisky

5. Gordon & MacPhail, 1950 Speymalt Macallan, 56 YO (distilled in

The Speymalt Macallan is Gordon and MacPhail’s custom bottling of Macallan.

Macallan does bottle a 50 YO expression. It is extremely difficult to find and will

19,289 views | Sep 19, 2018, 09:00am

My Grandmother Calls Me Every

Ferrisa Connell is a guest contributor for #VoteTogether

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