Favourite readily available/affordable whisky

Springbank 10 yo is an affordable whisky in the Netherlands.

Benromach 10 is great. I really like Aberlour 12 Double Matured. It runs $66 CAD and, in my opinion, outperforms Balvenie 12 Doublewood ($95CAD) and many Macallans (Gold, Amber, 12 YO Double Cask). Glendronach 12 is also really good at $77 CAD.

On the bourbon front, I'm a fan of Knob Creek Small Batch 9 Year Old (currently on sale for $42), Four Roses Single Barrel ($47) and good old Buffalo Trace ($43).

On the Canadian front, Wiser's Dissertation is $65 and terrific. My bottle of Lot 40, which costs about $40, is almost gone but will almost certainly be replaced ASAP.

@nooch, location for purchase is as large a factor as is personal budget, e.g. Ardbeg Uigeadail and Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength just about make your price cut off where I live, and I certainly consider them to be 'affordable'. They could be "everyday driinkers" here. Where you live the one is unaffordable and the other completely unavailable. You might consider a discussion on "What do you consider best buys at the LCBO?". That is mostly what you want to know, isn't it?

N.B. there are other Connosr discussions on similar topics, but since price has changed so much in the last several years, this is a subject which needs frequent updating.

@nooch

I agree that it's hard to standardize a discussion like this in a worldwide market.

I would probably have chosen Benromach 10 as the best buy in Ontario according to your criteria, but sadly it has been sold out for a number of weeks with no clear indication as to when it will come back.

When I bought my bottles of Bowmore Tempest batch 5, I paid less than $80 Canadian.

I think I found a few gems under $80 in Calgary, including Old Grand Dad BiB.

@nooch, in a higher priced market, like Ontario, Can$ 80 doesn't buy a very big list of malt whiskies. Looking only at malts at the LCBO the list is pretty short of great buys in that price range. As I've said several times over the last 6 years if I lived in most of Canada (especially in Ontario, Quebec, or British Columbia) I would establish a network of regular couriers to and from Calgary, Alberta to get that 30-40% average cheaper price on whisky. I hear that New Brunswick is another good option on some whiskies. Trips to the US for whisky are also good, but you need at least 2 or 3 of you traveling together to make the duty free bottle allowance coming back into Canada worth the effort.

@nooch Talisker 10 ticks all my boxes. I've got a bottle that's been open almost a year now and it just keeps getting better (unlike my Ardbeg 10 which went very flat). I find the Talisker very rewarding

@Hewie, Talisker 10 costs 20% above @nooch's acceptable upper limit-- where he lives.

...sorry, 25% more.

@Victor another crazy example of differences around the world. You mentioned Uigeadail to him which is 1/3 MORE than Talisker 10 here in NZ ($120 vs. $80). Talisker is in line with some other recommendations here too. These discussions really do become specific to location.

Best buys in the US:

•Old Grand-Dad 114, $25

•Knappogue Castle 12, $30

•Glenmorangie 12 Quinta Ruban, $38

•Talisker 10, $50

•Ardbeg 10, $45

•Ardbeg Oogie, $56

•Laphroaig 10 CS, $50-60

•The clearance bin at any good Binny's, $Oh-crap

@MadSingleMalt That's just RUDE

I debated what number to make the high end number because I know the LCBO isn't representative. I do have a Calgary mule to bring me back bottles. As much as anything else, I'm looking for what people feel is affordable/available. I chose $85 because above that wouldn't necessarily be considered affordable by some people. Love the suggestions!

I have place near me that carries Lagavulin 16 for $64.99 on special (right now), and it is regularly $69.99. I second the mention of Laphroaig 10. As far as Bourbon goes... Buffalo Trace and Knob Creek always inhabit my shelf.

@nooch Is that the Benromach 10 /100 (Imperial Proof) or the 'regular' 10yo expression?

For me, my contribution to this discussion would be 62.99 USD for Bunnahabhain 12yo, it is affordable, and available, and definitely one I enjoy. This price of 62.99 does not include tax, and I am located in Denver, CO, so prices will vary (as well as tax).

@ajjarrett

The Benromach 10 43% is sold out in Ontario. The 100 proof is $117.00 and there are 2 in Ontario. I'd have bought it but I got 2 in the UK for about $80 and one as a gift from Nova Scotia.

The Bunna is over $85 in Ontario.

@Nozinan Oh my, those are all up in price in Ontario. How do you 'survive' with those prices? When I compared the prices and selection compared to what my friends have in Taiwan, I get jealous. I think I would go insane and feel beyond envious if I were in Ontario.

It's been a while since I looked for it in several places, but another whisky I enjoy and think is affordable and available is 65-70 USD for the Aberlour 12yo Non Chilled Filtered.

@ajjarrett The Aberlour 12 is available and under $70 (used to be 43% and now is 40%) but the 12 YO unchilfiltered has never been listed in Ontario. I have a sample from Fine Drams in Europe, but have not yet tried it.

@Nozinan I got worried (for what reason(s) I am not sure) about the 12yo Aberlour Non Chilled Filtered (48% ABV) availability, some time ago, so I ended up purchasing four bottles of it, and since then, I can still find it around my city. I prefer this expression over the 12yo Double Cask.

@ajjarrett I've heard mixed reviews but I really ought to try it on my own. I like A'Bunadh, but was less impressed with the other expressions at 43%. That was a while back. Maybe with a more mature palate...

@ajjarrett, yeah, those Ontario guys never get tired of reading things like, "I think I would go insane and feel beyond envious if I were in Ontario." It is a true expression of feeling from you, of course, and they also often feel that same way...for some, e-v-e-r-y s-i-n-g-l-e d-a-y.

@Victor So, as we can see location will definitely shape a person's response to the topic of available and affordable. My friends in Taiwan always make me feel a bit down about being in the US, by telling me, "Oh, you should come to Taiwan for a buying trip."

@ajjarrett, your Taiwanese friends just miss you! Obviously no one other than a megabucks collector crosses the Pacific Ocean in order to save money on whisky.

@dcbill lagavulin 16 is $130 in Ontario. Sigh

@nooch You know, Lagavulin 16 I have heard has a wide disparity in pricing, even in the US. In my opinion, anything $70 or less is a steal. Searches online find it priced as much as $105 US from what I have seen.

@dcbill As much as, eh?

And I use the term "eh" on purpose...

@nooch Only $124.95 - don't exaggerate.... sigh

@Nozinan When my Canadian citizenship certificate arrives (any day now), I will add an "eh" or two to my posts.

@MadSingleMalt That post and those prices....that's just mean to post in a thread full of long-suffering Ontarians.

@OdysseusUnbound, what you say is true, but the list is much longer than that.

@Victor Our prices are at least double what @MadSingleMalt listed. In some cases (Glenmorangie QR) more than double. And worst of all, Laphroaig CS isn't even available.