I need some advice on Scotch. My wife and I are going to dinner with my Mother at some friends of my Mothers.
My Mother suggested we bring some Scotch, as that is something that my Mom knows they drink.
I don’t know a thing about Scotch. I’ve heard single malt is best.
Any recommendations? Can I get a good bottle for $40 (US) or so?
Basic stuff is always good to use unless they actually love the stuff. Age is not typically an indication of quality.
Glen Livet is nice, light and completely inoffensive.
Glenmorangie is a good single malt. Very drinkable
Glen Farclas is very nice. Personal favourite
Highland Park is warm and peaty.
Oban is very nice with a definite character that most people should enjoy.
Thanks Grey,
And sorry, this should be in IMHO.
I second The Glenlivet as a gift. Everybody will like it. Single-malt, but not an “in-your-face” one.
If they are blended scotch drinkers, then you can’t go too wrong with Johnny Walker Red.
get some blue label 
Glenlivet and Glenmorangie are excellent choices for a Scotch that every Scotch drinker can enjoy. What is your location (country, state?) that might help us suggest good retailers. Does you Mom know which Scotch they regularly drink, if it is a single malt you could get some of the same or something similar. If it is a blend, then getting one of the main character Single malts used to make the blend would be an interesting idea, though it isn’t easy to find what the characteristic Malts in a blend are.
Don’t know if they drink a blend, or single malt. And I really doubt my Mom would know.
I’ve only meet these folks once, and that was about 20 years ago.
I live in the US - central Colorado Rockies, so I’m just gonna go the least expensive liquor store around.
Thanks.
Has this awful brand called Passport Scotch arrived in the US? It sells for about 11 euro and tastes like crap. Whilst it is made in Scotland, it seems extremely low-quality compared even to other cheap scotch like JW or Ballentine’s. The label on the back says (in German for some odd reason) that there’s even caramel colouring added. :eek:
UnuMondo
There is (per my whisky soaked memory) about a 30 mile stretch of the River Spey that produces a more or less no-miss variety of single malts for the general drinker. Glenlivet is my favourite of those when I’m buying it myself, given my budget.
If you’re feeling rich, The Macallan is wonderful at 12 years and orgasmic at 25. (Figures given reflect the age of the Scotch, not the drinker. Please enjoy in moderation and in accordance with all local laws).
Some of the others are an acquired taste and should be a thoughtful gift after you get to know what someone likes.
Moved to IMHO.
bibliophage
moderator GQ
What you should bring depends entirely on how they drink their scotch. Not to sound snobby, but if they mix it with sodas/mixers then get them a cheap bottle of Johnny Walker or splurge on some Crown Royal. Aside from being a total waste of good scotch, the stronger single-malts won’t mix right and will taste horrible.
If you want a conversation piece, there’s a full-malt scotch called “Sheep Dip” that is actually quite nice.
Actually, most Scotches have caramel colouring added. The chill-filtering process takes out some colour and they add artificial colour instead.
There are also unfiltered whiskies available if you want, such as Poit Dhubh (which is nice) or Bruichladdich (which I haven’t tried).
Springbank is hard to find (at least up here) but wonderful.
I’d have to second the Glenmorangie opinion myself. The 10-year is very solid and middle-of-the-road enough that I’ve yet to meet a scotch drinker that doesn’t like it. Very safe bet as a gift. For a more interesting twist, go with the port finish Glenmorangie (which spends the last year or so of its aging life in port casks).
I used to be a big Macallan fan, but the prices went way up after Suntory bought them out a few years back. They also upped production by a factor of 6 and fired the 4 seniormost of the 6 nosers. Doesn’t bode well for the stuff that will be hitting the shelves in a few years.
Just a side note on the Crown Royal – that’s Canadian whiskey, not scotch. Different animal entirely. But I would have to agree that if they’re going to mix, you’re better off with a blend than a single-malt. Hard to go wrong with Johnny Walker in that case.
And yes, I do like my whiskey. I’m more of a bourbon drinker than scotch (Woodford’s Reserve being my favorite) but I do like a good scotch from time to time.
I personally hate scotch but even I will drink Glenlivet. It actually has a nice smooth taste and feel and it doesn’t have the awful nail polish remover aftertaste others have. One problem, the least expensive bottle I’ve seen was $85.
Thanks everyone.
I have never been a whisky drinker, but my brother is once in a while (Crown Royal ONLY).
I really wish I knew if they mixed it. But something tells me that they drink it strait.
Our hosts are from Latvia. Gotta brush up on my Baltic countries too :).
My Mom says that the Wife is a regular Martha Stewart, and I think they are upper, upper, middle class (I hate boxing things up like that).
I think a good single malt like Glenlivits (sp) will probably be the way to go.
About a month ago, I was assisting with a blind scotch tasting and while I can’t remember the name of the overall winner, Dewars came in at #3 out of 14 brands. The scotch “snobs” in the group were simply stunned and aghast, but that’s what they chose when they didn’t know what they were being served.
IIRC, the #1 pick was something that someone identified as one of the single-malts that was blended with other variants to make Dewars.
My favourite blended scotch is Pinch (15 yrs) which runs around 40.00 U.S. for a 750 ml bottle.
Single malt - Glenmorangie… mmmmmm !!!
Strangely enough… this Canuck does not like rye whiskies such as the aforementioned Crown Royal.
Your location field is blank, congodwarf, so I don’t know where you’ve been looking.
Beverages and More! in California sells 750ml bottles of 12-year-old Glenlivet for $22.99. This is “The Glenlivet” with which most people are familiar, and is distilled by George & J.G. Smith. Other brands and ages are more expensive, of course.
It’s even available at their online store (search for “Glenlivet” from the home page) for a special price of $21.99 per 750ml bottle. You - or the OP - would need to be sure that they can legally ship to your home, of course, depending on where you live. This certainly fits the OP’s “under $40” requirement!
Other Glenlivets (be they from other distilleries, or longer-aged) can be much more expensive.
I’m Scottish and although not a big whiskey drinker (much to the disgust of my father myself and my brother prefer bourbon) the MacAllan has always been a favourite single malt in our household.
Glenmorangie and Glenfiddich are also nice (especially for the novice whiskey drinker).
On the same note what are the best bourbons to buy?
My brother swears by Jack Daniels but I like to experiment more and have found Wild Turkey, Jim Beam Black and Makers Mark to be very nice.
Any other recommendations?
(sorry if I’m hijacking the thread, new to this forum lark and not sure on the etiquette).
Cheers.