Hey everyone, I need an opinion on single malts. I know each has it's own flavor & we all have our own special favorites, so I am just asking for an opinion.
I am wanting to branch out & try some single malts, but don't want to fork out the money just yet. My liquor store has a single malt for about $20 called Speyburn or Speyborn. Since most blends cost $20-$50 for a really decent bottle, is this a cheap & nasty single?
Any ideas on where to start, for the Scotch drinker on a beerman's budget? So far, my favorite blend is Dewar's Special 12.
I have literally dozens of malts on hand, and one of those is always Speyburn. It is a salty, big-flavoured whisky. I like it on ice for a big splash of flavour, and sometimes (much more rarely) neat. I think it is terrific value on a flavor-for-price ratio. I think it beats out most things at the price (as little as $16.99 in Wisconsin), and I don't think there is a blend that can come close in value to Speyburn.
Those that DO come close in value lately for me are: * Bowmore 12 at $22.99 lately in these parts (nice peat--fab!); * about $20 for a Glen Moray matured in Chenin Blanc casks (vanilla tasty!); * sometimes around $20 for Old Pulteney (light, clean, but still nicely fruity!); * a Benriach that I got in Florida for $22 lately (rich--a steal!);
One that that I DON'T think is worth it in that price range are: * Isle of Jura in the low $20's (almondy, but creepily rough, dull & offish);
And two that I avoid, but might be nice for variety in that price range are: * Auchentoshan (no age statement) around $20 (touch of smoke, but a bit light); * Aberlour 10 in the low $20's (used to be sherry-rich, but I think the quality has gone downhill to a more austere multi-used-bourbon-cask style);
Speyburn isn't bad! It's big and maybe a little rough, but has up-front flavor and character for something that reasonable, pricewise.
It's always interesting to see how different people's taste preferences are. Even though I sell wine for a living, I enjoy a really nice single malt as a change of pace. A couple of my favorites include the Isle of Jura (particularly the 16 year old, but also the 10) and the Aberlour 10 (although, I have been in the same bottle for a couple of years, so can't comment on whether the quality of production has deteriorated as mentioned.... guess I should buy a more recent bottling for comparison).
In Germany you would pay for the Dalmore 12 y.o. 0.7 litre for instance 29 Euro thats 38 USD!!! I should immigrate...
I used to look forward to my malt whisky shopping runs to Germany--now I bring mine WITH me from the states. With the decline in the dollar, and the very good prices on some very nice malts in the U.S., I can't rationalize even STOPPING at Weinquelle in Hamburg anymore. Our bottles are 0.75L most of the time--and most likely to be 43% whereas too many malts in Germany are sold at 40%.
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