Hidden gem scotch recommendation?

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I am also not a Scotch drinker, but I will add another vote for WhistlePig!

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Many excellent suggestions. My go-to scotch is Johnnie Walker Green Label, a blend of four single malts. Fantastic. I usually order Johnnie Walker Black when Iā€™m out since the Green is hard to find, but itā€™s well worth a try if you can get your hands on it.

I love the peaty malts for a neat sip: Lagavulin (the finest liquid made by man), Talisker, Ardbeg Uigeadail (pronounced OO-ga-doll). On the other end of the spectrum, Dalwhinnie 25 is magical if you can find it, and I recently tried Tomintoul Tlath (pronounced Tuh-LA) ā€” smooth and lovely.

Elsewhere, you must try Hillrock Solera Aged Bourbon and Angelā€™s Envy Finished Rye, both simply astonishing. And among Tennessee whiskeys, I have to put in a word for Uncle Nearest 1856. Cheers!

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By the time weā€™re ready to shut the house down for five months, our freezer is empty, and itā€™s generally recommended to keep a freezer reasonably full to maintain optimal temperature and energy efficiency. DH doesnā€™t want his treasure to suffer the heat of an AZ summer (AC is set to 85), and alcohol doesnā€™t freeze, so win-win.

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I might not like the rye, but Angelā€™s Envy is top of my bourbon list.

Thereā€™s an Uncle Nearest in that freezer, too.

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Interesting, last night we watched an episode of Food That Made America from History Channel and the subject was Jack Danielā€™s. As a result, I understand the reference to Uncle Nearest. 18 hours ago, would not have known who that was!

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So which ones have a similar taste to Macallan Sherry or Balvenie? As a non scotch drinker I am unfamiliar with al the tasting descriptions (I can do wine descriptors, though!)

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In terms of American whiskies of various sorts, I would toss in a recommendation for Barrell Bourbon. Each batch is different which is funā€“sort of like vintage wine.

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Agreed, the Angelā€™s Envy bourbon is quite good as well. And thanks, Iā€™d missed the Nearest in the freezer.

@MADad, glad you had a chance to learn the story. And the tale of the modern-day Uncle Nearest distillery is a great one, too. I had a chance to meet the CEO a couple of years ago through my former job, and sheā€™s a remarkable person.

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@GKUnion ā€˜s area of expertise.

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This thread is about scotch, not bourbon. Have the bourbon choices handled. Thanks.

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If you like blends, like Monkey Shoulder, I think Dimple Pinch is very nice and tastes way better than it should for 30-40 bucks. and the bottle is pretty cool.

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Sorry, Iā€™m away in Ireland drinking Guinness & Irish Whiskey. :wink:

I prefer the smokey and peaty scotches. You probably canā€™t go wrong with the Kirkland brand from Costco. The Johnnie Walker blends are always a decent fall back.

For a $80-$90 hidden gem take a look at Kilkerran 12 year old.

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I bet youā€™re not really sorry,ā€ @GKUnion. :wink:

Sounds like a great trip.

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Report back after your tastings there!

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Ended up at Costco so got the Macallan 12 year sherry cask.

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This was the winner even though it wasnā€™t the most expensive. Itā€™s about $60.

https://www.redbreastwhiskey.com/en-us/whiskey-collections/redbreast-12-year-old/

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When we toured Scotland a few years ago our tour/tasting at a distillery was cancelled due to the queenā€™s funeral that day. Iā€™m not a scotch drinker, but was looking forward to being ā€˜educatedā€™ on the subject. I like smoked foods, so I think Iā€™d like the peaty highland scotches.

Thank you for reading my random commentā€¦

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