Best every day whiskies?

I would think these two fit the bill nicely :

Highland Park 12 - Excellent balance of flavors and low price point. Talisker 10 - A bit higher in price but a must-have

Nice affordable whiskies (in my opinion) are: Speyside: Aberlour Double Cask 12 or 16 y.o. Islands: Longrow/Sprinkgbank/Hazleburn CV Highlands: Glenmorangie Original/ Old Pulteney 12 y.o. Lowlands: Auchentoshan Three Wood Islay: Laphroaig Quater Cask/ Bowmore 12 y.o

Ardbeg 10 , JW Black , Maker Mark 46- all three I can get below 40 USD (Ardbeg must be on sale ) and I always have them on hand

The Arran 10 Y.O. (70cl) is a very cheap whisky considering how excellent it taste! It goes for £30 on The Whisky Exchange.

I would recommend Aberlour 10, Benriach Curiositas, Compass Box The Spice Tree, Compass Box Great King Street Blended, An Cnoc 12, Glenfarclas 12, Talisker 10, Ardmore Traditional Cask and Laphroaig QC.

Several already mentioned certainly fit your criteria (Old Pulteney 12 and anCnoc 12). Here are three others:

Deanston Virgin Oak (46.3% & un-chill filtered) (this one's a steal for a whisky with those specs)

Tullibardine Aged Oak Edition (46%) (Serge at whiskyfun.com gave the 40% version of this one a 70, but I have to believe this 46%-er is a whole different whisky than Serge had)

Strathisla 12

There are at least one or two previous connosr discussion topics with extensive comments on this or very similar topics. "Steal of a Deal" is one.

Value for money Whisky, for me, has to be Aberlour 10yo. When I'm drinking it I always have the same reaction, "God, this is good! I cant believe it's half the price of a'bunadh".

My every day single malts are Laphroaig 10 and Talisker 10. Both of which can be purchased here in NZ "cheaply" (when on special) for around $50 USD each.

At the moment though my go-to dram is Ardbeg 10, which is significantly more expensive but I can't get enough.

Cheers.

For sure don`t forget Balvenie double wood and again ,Glenfarclas 12,these are my best!

I'll add laphroaig QC to the list...

For my money Aberlour 10 yr old is a steal of a deal, Talisker 10 yr old is a little bit more expensive, but very good and a different flavor profile. Last and the most expensive is the Macallan 12 yr old Fine Oak, but I'd decant it as soon as you open it as I found that it oxidized very fast which made me a sad panda. For a whisky that's not SMW I go with Knob Creek Bourbon which is a steal of a deal in the US for around $40 bucks but sadly sits at around $100 bucks over here in The Land Down Under.

Wow, thanks for all the suggestions! I would personally add the younger bottles of Benromach. Even those under the age of 10(e.g. the 8 year old traditional and the 8 year old peat smoke)are really great.

I will add my vote to this thread in the form of Auchentoshan 12, Te Bheag, and Evan Williams Single Barrel Bourbon (I have the 2000 vintage, but most bottlings seem to get good reviews).

Are we talking only single malts? I suppose it's relative to your budget and it reminds me of discussions among mechanical watch enthusiasts. There are people that believe an "expensive" watch costs $500, while others believe $5,000 is an entry level purchase. Likewise, I think there are people who'll say you shouldn't bother with inexpensive stuff (sacrifice quantity for quality or drink less not drink down).

Personally, I can't afford to drink 30-year old malts on a daily basis. I think there are some fine 10-12 year olds that serve well as go-to whiskies. Names like Aberlour, Talisker, Maccallan, Highland Park and Bowmore come to mind.

@Dag I think any good everyday whisky is what is meant here. The problem with the 25+ yr old whiskies is that only if you're in the top income brackets can you afford to come home and crack open a bottle of Macallan 30 yr old whisky. I think for the majority of the members on the site those whiskies while we'll buy or try to buy them where possible, they become special occasion whiskies. I have several bottles of $200+ whisky, but they only get cracked open on the special occasions.

@dag Even if i would have been filthy rich, i would still buy those less expensive whiskies. If you only drink the very best whiskies, then you just can't appreciate those anymore. And sometimes you don't feel like drinking a complex whisky. A fresh and fruity young dram can sometimes really be the thing you're craving.

For a decent everyday dram, I would also look to Black Bottle. It is about $19 here and a wonderful alternative to the more expensive Islays. I realize that many folks (myself included) may consider these "entry level" whiskies, but Macallan 12 and Glendfiddich 12 are good value for the money. Glenmorangie 10 runs about $29 per bottle here, and for a lighter whisky, this to me seems like money well spent.

@Marcus I find the Glenfiddich 12 a really uninteresting whisky. I loved it as a beginner, but now it seems like a very dull dram. In the same price range, you can find an Old Pulteney 12 yo. There's a lot more going on in this bottle.

Blended Whisky - Black Bottle; Single Malt - Glenmorangie 10 y.o. They're both quite affordable and satisfying.

Makers Mark 46 is a go to whisky for me, but plain ol Makers Mark also works.

Blended - Teacher's Highland Cream. Bourbon - Evan Williams Green. Single Malt - Laphroaig 10 (about $34 per bottle here).

One of the things that differentiates an "everyday" is that often for me it is something that isnt to strong, and isnt to complex. An everyday whisky is one that I can have a pleasant drink of whilst I am doing other things. This is as opposed to the whiskies that are an "experience". A Glenlivet 12 year old is about the same cost as a bottle of Ardbeg 10, and without a doubt the Ardbeg is a better whisky, but to me the Ardbeg is a whisky to sit down and savour quietly when everything that has to be done for the day is done. The Glenlivet would be my daily drinker of the two because it is something that I can enjoy sipping away at while I read a book, surf the net, or do the dishes.

With that definition in mind, the best daily drinker that I have found, by a massive margin, is Alberta Premium 100% rye. Of the scotches, I would go for the Glenlivet.

try speyside: glendronach 12 yrs sherry, Island: highlandpark 12yrs Islay: Lagavulin 16yrs

Nikka From The Barrel. It's a blend, but an exquisite one, and can usually be found for about 30 Euros.

Glenmorangie 10 year and Highland Park 12 seem to be my "go to" regulars

Two under $100 bottles I've found are Bladnoch 10 year old or a'Bunadh. However, they are so good they don't taste like an every day whisky. But if you, like me, can only have a dram 1-2 times a week, the "special" Whisky can be a usual go-to dram. Otherwise there will never be a time for the special dram.

HP 12 is also a good all-rounder. Peat monster is also good but you may get peat fatigue

Glenmorangie Original, Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban, Old Pulteney 12, Highland Park 12, Glenlivet 12, Glenlivet 15, Springbank 10, Johnnie Walker Black, Buffalo Trace, Elijah Craig, Maker's 46

One more i forgot to mention...Cardhu 12. I'm becoming a big fan of this one.

As others have already mentioned; an Cnoc 12 yr, Old Pulteney 12 yr, Glenmorangie 10 yr, and the Balvenie 12 yr DoubleWood (however there seems to be an across the board price hike on all Balvenie single malts; certain stores may have reasonable prices, and others the inflated).