Worst whisky ever!

Sorry CanadianNinja, but the probably 4 out of the 5 worst whiskies I've ever tasted are Canadian ;-) Pick any bottle of Canadian off the bottom or middle shelf, and you've got yourself a contender for the worst whisky ever. The stuff shouldn't be called whisky, honestly.

You won't hurt my feelings @valuewhisky I assure you! I have never been much of an American bourbon or Canadian rye fan at all. In fact it is just recently that I have begun to try to expand my horizons and revisit bourbons and ryes. I personally have never had a Canadian whisky that I would call a 'top shelf' whisky, however I'm sure this is simply due to my lack of experience, I have no doubt that they are out there ; )

Our group did a terrible whisky night for our April get together...a Bowmore tainted with FWP was the worst single malt, in the flavoured category, Red Stagg narrowly eclipsed one of the maple flavoured Canadians, and a weird JD was the 'winner' of the American title...

The hangover was horrendous

Bowmore 18 for me. I think it was affected by FWP syndrome though. It was really unpleasant.

The only bottle of whisky I've poured down a drain, Glen Parker "single malt". It's an ultra budget bottling of what must be the absolute dregs from somewhere in Speyside. Tasted like flower petals mixed with rubbing alcohol. I think I managed 2.5 pours before it had to go, it couldn't even be mixed it was so awful.

@valuewhisky - While I agree that most Canadians are bad, if you're ever in Canada pick up either Wiser's Legacy or Lot 40 they just might change your mind.

Pretty much any well whisky at a bar. I avoid the well. If I don't have a lot of scratch on me, I will opt for a beer instead.

This said, I won't drink Budweiser or really cheap beers either. I would rather drink water or soda. And when it comes to soda, I prefer cane sugar and not corn syrup, which, to me, tastes like crap. I also avoid Asperatame like the plague. Stevia is fine. I have no idea why soda companies don't use stevia. It could be grown on a mass scale quite cheaply--much cheaper than corn. When it comes to artificial sweetner, GMO's, and fluoride, the USA and its industrial food/beverage complex is a tad shady and . . . yes, evil. Can you say "you-gen-ics?"

Inexpensive whiskies I drink with soda and ice? Grants, Teachers, Black Bottle, Walker Red, and a whole slew of bourbons.

Lately, I enjoyed drinking Stranahan's on ice. It's really quite good on ice. A delicious Colorado Scotch that tastes quite a bit like bourbon in a good way.

@rigmorole Colorado Scotch? It's very good, and it's a whiskey, but it's not a Scotch!

So far it is a toss up between four, and all for different reasons: Highwood Distiller's White Owl (Canadian), Corby's Royal Reserve (Canadian), Ballantine's "Finest" (Blended Scotch), and Locke's 8 year-old Single Malt (Irish).

Am I missing something here!? Why did @rigmorole's comment get buried?

@CanadianNinja, he refered to Stranahan's Whiskey as a "Colorado Scotch"! Sorry, if I had known there was going to be such a backlash, I wouldn't have pointed out his error.

No need to apologize @MacBaker62, certainly no harm in pointing out a mistake. It would surprise me if that were the reason for the comment getting buried though!

If you ever get the chance to try the Egyptian whisky 'The Old Stag', go for it. I'm sure it will reach the top ten of anyone's Worst Whisky Ever list!

The worst single malt I've ever tasted was Tuthilltown Distillery's Hudson Single Malt. It was harsh, grainy, with little other flavors, and no complexity at all! This New York State distillery makes some very nice Bourbons and whiskeys, but their Single Malt needs better cask management, or more aging, or both! They are also a bit pricey, when you consider their half size bottles!

@MacBaker62, it probably had to do with his digression back to the issue of GMOs, fluoride, and precious bodily fluids. Ok, maybe not the last point, but it seemed too good to not refer to Gen Jack Ripper from Dr Strangelove

Darn it! Sorry there @markjedi1, accidentally hit the thumbs down bud! Anyway, sounds like a terrible whisky I'd love to try ; )

@CanadianNinja, I put a like on the buried thread that seems to have made it viewable again, I also liked MarkJedi1s post, to offset your error.

No worries (and thanks for the save MacBaker). Here are the tasting notes on the Egyptian whisky: connosr.com/reviews/….

It is rare that I cannot find some redeeming qualities. While I have had a number of whiskies that were sub par level of quality, they were still drinkable, albeit it took me awhile to finish. In this category, I would count say Speyburn 10, Rebel Yell, Bowmore Legend and Evan Williams 1783.

The only bottle I could not finish because it was so vile was McClellands Islay. The worst ever in my book.

So far I haven't had a whisky I hated. The worst I've had is Jack Daniel's, but it's not so bad that I would never have it again.

@JeffC Indeed, McClellands Islay is indeed a rather unpalatable whisky. Here is my take on it : connosr.com/reviews/mcclellands/….

@HughesDePayens, I am not a fan of Jack Daniels, either, but, I can tell you, there are hundreds, maybe even a thousand, a whole lot worse than Jack.

@JeffC & @markjedi1 I heartily agree with your assessments of McC's Islay, but I've had one that's worse:

High Spirits Single Malt Mesquite Smoked Arizona Whisky

I love mesquite smoked bar-b-que, but whisky? Dreadful stuff.

I'm a proud Canadian and I'll readily admit that most of our whisky is... not so good. It's true there are some good bottles out there (I'll vouch for the Lot 40 as well), but even the best of the best is somewhat middling fare compared to a decent scotch.

As for worst of the worst, I've drank some pretty crappy Canadian whiskies meant mostly for mixing way back in the day... I remember that they would come in these huge bottles with cheap plastic caps, but the memories mostly escape me I'm afraid. Not that that's a bad thing.

@two-bit-cowboy Yep, I've had that one too (connosr.com/reviews/high-spirits/…) and it scores only one point more that the McC Islay :) Looks like we agree more or less.

@markjedi1 Just read your review. Wow, you are truly a gentleman.

I don't do numerical ratings; if I did I'm quite sure my rating would have been far lower than yours. But it does appear you and I are in sync on those two.

Now if only I could learn to love Auchentoshan. The two Valinches have been terrific (2012 the better of the two), but I just don't "get" any of the 'toshans between Valinch and the 18.

@two-bit-cowboy Thank you for the kind words, sir. I'm sorry you don't 'get' the Toshans, but hey, that's okay (as it leaves more for me :-)).

Macgavin's Islay is one that I really regretted buying. It tasted like very young Caol Ila watered down to a point where all it offered was a hint of smoke. Auchentoshan Classic was also a purchase that I regretted.
@MacBaker62 Sorry to hear that about Tuthilltown Single Malt. I liked their Rye, and it's a distillery that I have been rooting for. I agree that they need to work on their prices. Even their unaged corn whiskey is about $40 for 375ml.

@Jonathan I agree on the Auchentoshan Classic. It's the only Toshan that I - being the Toshan Man - would not recommend. Even the discontinued Select is better. And the cask-strength version of the Classic, the much praised Valinch, is sooooo much better.

I'm thinking Ten High purchased in college for $2.99 from target for a fifth in 2002. It reminded me of everclear but at I think 40% ABV at the time just not a good thing.

@Nolinske, I'm not exactly proud that Everclear is distilled in my home city of St. Louis, but it's high ABV makes it a good alternative fuel source in the event of the coming zombie apocalypse!