Good luck with that. It’s in such short supply that even if you can find a bottle, the owner probably won’t sell it to you. Or even let you taste it without giving up a daughter or two.
For a taste of what the base liquor is, buy a bottle of Old Weller Antique ($17.95 at my local grocery store). That’s what it tastes like without the aging and the blending, and at 107 proof it packs a whallop without a bit of dilution.
I totally agree with this - the difference in my reactions to the 12 (“that’s okay, I guess?”) and the 18 (“wow, that’s really good!”) the first time I had them made me try them again. Nope, it really is that much of a difference with that extra aging!
I dabble in everything whiskey/whisky, but I’ve got the most experience by far in Irish and bourbons. Given the limited information about what you’ve liked and haven’t, I’d suggest to move on to Bushmill’s (the Other Major One in most areas of the US along with Jameson; figuring out which of these you like better is probably worth it since they’re everywhere) and Redbreast (more expensive, more complex flavors) for Irish whiskeys. For bourbons, I’d start with Maker’s Mark, since it’s so accessible, and Knob Creek, since’s it’s a good sample into heavier and stronger flavors. Those two should be easy to find, both in liquor stores and in bars with any sort of liquor selection. If you like one or both of those, I have all sorts of subsequent recommendations, but there’s no point getting all worked up over rare and expensive bottles until you find something in the genre you like as a starting point.
Tonight’s Drink Is: Knob Creek Single Barrel
Ardbeg. The 10 is the smoothest 10 year old scotch I’ve ever had, and the Corryvreckan is powerful and subtle and layered and all things good in the world of single malt whiskeys. I’d have said “16 year old Lagavulin” once, but I understand there was trouble at the distillery some years ago and they haven’t managed to recreate what made that scotch so yummy yet. Maybe they lost all their good casks or something.
I love Ardbeg. The Ardbeg Uigeadail may be my favorite Scotch whiskey period. But the Islay malts are very much a love-hate affair. It’s worth trying an Ardbeg or Laphroiag to see if it’s a taste that appeals. It’s not something I would recommend off the bat to a whiskey newcomer, but, who knows? If you like extreme smoky and earthy flavors, they will be up your alley.
While I agree that Ardbeg and Lagavuilin are great whiskies and enjoy them myself, I would not to recommend them to novice whisky drinkers like the op because they often find the peatiness and pronounced smokiness overpowering.
There were a lot of great recommendations already but if I can suggest something a little bit unconventional, I would offer the Suntory’s Yamazaki to try. The 12 years is rather bland, but you get into special territory with the 18 as it’s very rich with smooth oak and a medium-long finish. Also, the op mentioned Glenfiddich as something he liked and I would say Yamazaki is similar to a Speyside.
I don’t.
Macallen 12
Stranahan’s Colorado
I’m partial to single-malt scotch myself. Glenfidditch is my go-to label. Here’s a thread I started on Talisker, which is not available in Thailand, so it’s a treat when I can pick up a bottle abroad.
Also, we used to be able to get Cardhu here but no more. That was pretty good stuff.
When I first started trying Scotches ($100 in miniatures at the Scotch Whisky Heritage Centre in Edinburgh), I thought Ardbeg 10 tasted like a bandaid. After a few weeks, though, I started hankering for it.
If you’re looking to try bourbon out, you can’t go wrong with Four Roses. The normal, everyday $17.99/750ml bottling is good enough to drink straight, and the small batch and sinlge barrel versions are better than the price indicates.
I should probably stop pushing this stuff, though. The price is slowly climbing, and I’m probably going to have to find another everyday bourbon if it keeps up. Oh well, get it while ya can. 
Yeah, that would be my recommendation. It’s hard to go wrong with The Macallan. The Speysides are pretty good crowd-pleasers, and given the OP’s like for Jameson’s and Glenfiddich, I think this would be a sure thing. It’s an elegant whiskey. While we’re at it, you can also try something like Oban 14. A little more seaweedy and smoky, but nothing anywhere as extreme as the Islays. Some may complain it’s a little understated, but I think it’s a fine, well-balanced whiskey.
I can really only speak upon Scotch Whisky. My wife used to work for Allied Distillers before they were taken over and broken up and we have many friends who still work in the whisky industry, including several brand ambassadors. She introduced me to the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS), a private bottlers who specialize in single cask (so one step beyond single malt) whisky, bottled at cask strength.
Recommendation are obviously an individual taste. Your current two top picks are actually very different; a Scotch Speyside single malt whisky and an Irish triple distilled grain whiskey. Both share characteristics of relative sweetness and smoothness but otherwise the styles and tastes are quite different.
Blended Scotch is fine, especially if you are going to put anything in it other than a little water. If you insist on putting ice in your whisky then don’t spend the money on more than a qood blended Scotch. A decent rule is the higher percentage of malt whisky versus grain whisky then the better the blend is likely to be. The malt content in blends start at 10%. Johnnie Walker Red Label contains ~15%; Johnnie Walker Black Label has ~35%. Chivas Regal has ~50% malt content. One of the blends with the biggest malt part in it is Bushmills 1608 (~80% malts) which may be worth noting if you like Irish Whiskey.
The SMWS have recently introduced defining their products by “style” which is interesting, but understandable when selling single casks which may differ substantially from one another even when the same age from the same distillery. The art of the blender to maintain the “house taste” of a single malt should not be underestimated - it still needs quite a bit of blending between casks of that distillery none of which can be younger than the age printed on the bottle, but many can be much older.
The SMWS styles are currently:
Young & Sprightly: e.g. Clynelish’s and Dalmore’s up to 10 years old
Sweet, Fruity & Mellow: e.g. Isle of Aran 14 y.o.
Spicy & Sweet: e.g Linkwood 23 y.o, Glen Grant 25 y.o.
Deep, Rich & Dried Fruits: Bladnoch 23 y.o.
Old & Dignified: Glenfarclas 24 y.o. and Teaminich 30 y.o.
Lightly Peated: Laphroig 17 y.o, Bowmore 24 y.o or a Bunnahabhain 16 y.o.
Peated: Caol Ila 24 y.o. and older Laphroig’s
Interesting and helpful to those new to the world of single malts perhaps, but yet to take hold beyond the SMWS. This is where to go to really tell the impact of a bourbon cask from a sherry casked Scotch - many single malts blend the two.
The classic Scotch malt classification however remains by region (example picked from the standard blended 12 y.o malts you will find in airport Duty Free):
Lowland: Auchentoshan (smooth triple distilled sherry casked) to Glenkinchie (pale, delicate, sweet pre-dinner malt)
Highland: Very varied bunch but often on the dry side, Old Pulteney perhaps the best known.
**Speyside **(largest area - often sub-divided) Again very varied but very high quality. Home to many of the greatest names in Scotch whisky, such as Glenfiddich, Glenfarclas, Glen Grant, The Glenlivet and The Macallan. The nearer the coast the distillery the more the sea air impacts the style perhaps.
Islands: from Aran, thru Jura, Tobermory and Talisker (Skye) up to Highland Park and Scapa they get more assertive as you head north. Often powerful after dinner malts.
Islay: assertive from medicinal (Laphroig) thru heavily peated (Bowmore) to lightly peated (Bunnahabhain)
Campbeltown: big, heavy, slightly peaty malts. Some detect stinking fish and seaweed notes. Springbank is the best introduction to this distinctive style.
Personally I drink quite a lot of Highland Park (16 y.o) and 12 y.o Bunnahabhain (the lightest of the peated malts) and Glenlivet, and move up to 24 y.o+ Glenfarclas’s when I can afford it.
Hope helpful!
Isle of Jura is the worst single malt I’ve ever tasted. I keep trying, and it keeps being surprisingly bad. YMMV.
Balvenie Doublewood is another easy but flavorful sip without a lot of salt, smoke, or peat.
Another vote for 10. Not super expensive (compared to other single malts) and really excellent. As said before not for everyone, some people don’t care for the smokiness of Islay whisky.
I bought my husband a bottle of Dalwhinnie a few months ago and I’m surprised by how fast it’s disappearing. Everyone wants a taste.
It wasn’t that expensive. I think I paid a bit less than $70.
Southern Comfort was my stand by for decades, but now I drink something called MacAlbert. Whisky especialmente seleccionado.
I’m no supporter of Jura single malt but it would help if you shared what was it about it that you didn’t like? Bad is pretty subjective. It is supposed to be notable for an “oiliness” - I can’t recall to be honest - but might that be what put you off?
Personally I find Balvenie’s Doublewood just a bit overoaked for my taste, too sweet. I much prefer their first-fill bourbon casked 12 y.o, or their Signature 12 y.o which has a proportion of first-fills, refills and sherry casks - nicely balanced sweet and spice.
I think that’s why I like the Doublewood - for the sweetness. But then, I drink primarily bourbon, so that would follow.
ETA: It’s The Macallan, not Macallen. Don’t make me get out the pointy stick!
The finest drink I’ve ever had was a Balvenie 21 year old portwood. Wonderful stuff, like christmas in your mouth.
The first bottle I bought was about 8 years ago and it cost me £45. Now I can’t find it anywhere for less than £110. Dammit, still have to get myself another bottle.
It’s been awhile since I tried the Jura, and while oiliness might capture it, I’m afraid I can’t be more specific since I found it so unpleasant I didn’t write any notes in my Jackson. If the opportunity (sic) presents itself in the future, I’ll though myself on the Jura grenade and report back for the good of the order.