What whisky as a gift?

[Simon Bags]

Afternoon. I'm looking for a Whisky as a gift. I know nothing about Whisky. I know he likes single malt. I'm going to have to get it from a Supermarket, Sainsbury's probably,and maybe something away from the normal brands, Glenfiddich etc. Budget about £50. Anyone heard of Cardhu Gold Reserve?

Simon.

[djsmith74]

Any reason why you need to get it from a supermarket, when on-line retailers like Master of Malt offer much better options.

Searching for Single Malts in the 0-£50 bracket gives the following options:

https://www.masterofmalt.com/country-style/scotch/...

[RedWhiteMonkey]

Difficult to advise as people tend to have very differing tastes when it comes to whisky. One thing I would say is they might love peaty or smoky whisky but unless you know for certain I would avoid those.

Probably not available in a lot of supermarkets but this is available from the distiller or other online sellers. I thought it was pretty good and the bottle is ideal for something that is a present (looks more expensive than it is) - https://ncnean.com/products/organic-single-malt

[vixen1700]

djsmith74 said:

Any reason why you need to get it from a supermarket, when on-line retailers like Master of Malt offer much better options.

Searching for Single Malts in the 0-£50 bracket gives the following options:

https://www.masterofmalt.com/country-style/scotch/...

Yes, don't limit yourself to a supermarket.

Some lovely ones there:

Edradour
Talisker
Balvenie
Benriach
Ardbeg

I'd be more than happy with any of those received as a gift.

[Simon Bags]

djsmith74 said:

Any reason why you need to get it from a supermarket, when on-line retailers like Master of Malt offer much better options.

Searching for Single Malts in the 0-£50 bracket gives the following options:

https://www.masterofmalt.com/country-style/scotch/...

Main reason being is that I'm not sure what address I'll have at time of ordering. But that website looks interesting, thank you.

[Mahalo]

RedWhiteMonkey said:

Difficult to advise as people tend to have very differing tastes when it comes to whisky. One thing I would say is they might love peaty or smoky whisky but unless you know for certain I would avoid those.

This^ - very difficult to advise. Funnily enough I was having this very same conversation this morning when giving a neighbour a lift into London. There is such a huge range of tastes available just for single malts.

[Simon Bags]

vixen1700 said:

Yes, don't limit yourself to a supermarket.

Some lovely ones there:

Edradour
Talisker
Balvenie
Benriach
Ardbeg

I'd be more than happy with any of those received as a gift.

Thank you, some good choices and some great looking bottles.

[Galibier]

Personally I’d always prefer a gift voucher for somewhere like Master of Malt. Let them choose as it’s a very personal thing.

[popegregory]

As others have said, whisky is a bizarre drink that leads to being deeply personal in terms of taste and preference. £50 is a great price point in terms of quality before the diminishing returns start to kick in and you’re paying for rarity or marketing. Mates a booze rep and he often brings us round amusing bottles for the lads evening drinks; we’ve had three grand bottles which tasted like liquorice and amazing ones he’s said he can get us for £25.

I’d genuinely echo the MoM voucher idea. Your mate can do loads of thinking and get what they want; alternatively it gives them £50 off and they can explore a price point they’d never normally have looked at.

[MickC]

Another vote for a master of malts voucher. If you prefer something more tangible then if you know what his normal tipple is, maybe we could suggest something in the same vein but maybe a bit more special. Although 50 for whisky nowadays is a the price of normal bottle tbh

[ATG]

As said above, without knowing the recipient's taste, it's a gamble, but the safe bet would be a Speyside whisky, something like The Glenlivet. If you hand over a bottle of a perfectly good west coast fiery, peaty rocket fuel, it'll either be a massive winner or a total failure. A decent Speyside well appeal to almost anyone.

[oddman]

ATG said:

As said above, without knowing the recipient's taste, it's a gamble, but the safe bet would be a Speyside whisky, something like The Glenlivet. If you hand over a bottle of a perfectly good west coast fiery, peaty rocket fuel, it'll either be a massive winner or a total failure. A decent Speyside well appeal to almost anyone.

My thoughts too.

Someone who likes gentler or sherried malts won't thank you for a peat monster but someone who likes peaty drams would be OK with a good Speyside or Highland whisky

I don't think you could go wrong with Arran 10, GlenAllachie 12, Glendronach 12, or Deanston 12. Also for a really keen connoisseur, I think the Glenlivet Nadurra bottlings are interesting. Usually organic barley and virgin oak - won't blow anyone away with their character but subtle and intriguing - a real reference point as far as taste is concerned