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Morning all,
To save me having to trawl all of the local supermarkets, are thre any good Islay malt offers going around? Tipple of choice is usually Caol Isla, which is near impossible to get locally, but around that taste point is good. I have also recently enjoyed a bottle of Bowmore on offer from Tesco and was pleasantly surprised by a bottle of Islay from Aldi.
I'm a very recent convert to the smoky peaty delights of Islay whisky having mostly indulged in Speyside's offerings, my decanter is currently hosting Lidl's own brand (Ben Brachen) and I'm liking it, not tried the Aldi one yet but have had their Highland and Speyside single malts and have always preferred Lidl's equivalent.
I bought Laphroaig (Select) from Tesco recently, reduced with Tesco card (I only buy whisky when it is reduced), it was less than £30, I think £26?
I like it peaty, so often get Talisker too--I see that is now reduced too:
https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/shop/drinks/spirits/whisky/all
if you don't mind island hopping...
The best I've seen in a supermarket for a long while has been Ardbeg 10 at £40 in Sainsburys but the quality of that isn't what it was. https://www.tyndrumwhisky.com/caol-ila-smoky-scot-single-malt-whisky.html might be worth a look. I tend to stick to indie bottled Caol Ila if I want an Islay these days as the prices can get silly.
Good shout on the Talisker, will see if they have it at my local.
Will have to leave the Smoky Scot for another time as Im going away in a couple of days and it won't be here in time.
is it just me or has (single malt) whisky got worse recently? It's not something that im massively into but buy every now and again and doesnt seem as nice as it once did
is it just me or has (single malt) whisky got worse recently
I think you need to broaden your tastes - I work in a shop and we have 68 different whiskies for sale, from £16.99 to £2,800 a bottle. I get ‘homework’ too - sample bottles from distilleries to try. Limited edition releases from Ardnamurchan of Sherry and Madeira cask are very nice, and the new Quiet Rebel Gordon release from Nc’Nean is lovely. Got myself a bottle of the Hearach from Harris distillery which sold out in hours - beautifully packaged, but might be hanging onto it for a while to see if it appreciates. <br />If you’re looking for a nice ‘budget’ whisky try Maclean’s Nose from Ardnamurchan for £30 a bottle - a blend but 70% single malt and better than some cheaper single malts.
So it appears that there is a Master's of Malt warehouse a mere 13 miles from my front door. I sense a visit tomorrow being a very real possibility!
is it just me or has (single malt) whisky got worse recently?
It's got a lot more expensive generally so the stuff you see in supermarkets for £30 is worse than it used to be. Most is very young and heavily watered down to 40%. There's odd exceptions but £50 is now the rough starting point for reasonable single malts. I've recently has some nice blended malts from Thompson Brothers and North Star which were a bit cheaper.
By the way, picking up in person on two wheels is the most [s]drunk[/s] fun weekend you can ever have....
@matt_outandabout its only 13 miles home, what could go wrong...
its only 13 miles home, what could go wrong…
After that picture my friend pulled out 'one last one for the road' miniature. My wife, the non whisky drinker of the four, said that the other three of us were singing awfully. The three of us maintain we sang beautifully...
If you go to Islay go to the Bruidladdich distillery, if only for the taster dram of octomore. Its super heavily peated and cask strength, and is absolutely amazing. I ended up buying a bottle which I enjoy as an occasional treat. It starts around £140 a bottle going up. I'll probably never get another but as a peated whisky lover I had to do it once. And the pub in bowmore with the enormous selection of island whiskies is worth a visit, not a cheap round but the guy that runs it is a real enthusiast, cant remember the name but ask anyone.
Waitrose seem to have a few decent offers at the moment. No I don't usually shop there but the wife is looking to order the Christmas turkey (!) So Laphroaig, a couple of jura and tarpaulin have made their way to the order.
Sainsburies had something a week or two back. Highland park I think.
There are some decent Caol Isla expressions for 40 if you look for something not big name.
Really all single malts are blends. Only the single barrels are truly unblended.
there was a trend for younger whiskies through the noughties partly as a result of new distilleries opening. I’m not a fan. If you like Caol Isla I can recommend the peated rum from McNairs (I think). It has a similar quality (not taste but profile).
I might be checking out Tesco’s club card prices on a few, and digging into Master of Malt’s more interesting options this year. They were incredibly helpful last year when Evri lost a £100-odd worth of Christmas presents in their Swindon warehouse right before Christmas, and got a replacement order to me next day! <br />I won’t be leaving it too late this year, though, and I’ll try to avoid using Evri, I didn’t know there was an alternative at the time. Such service needs to be recognised by continued patronage.
It’s got a lot more expensive generally so the stuff you see in supermarkets for £30 is worse than it used to be. Most is very young and heavily watered down to 40%. There’s odd exceptions but £50 is now the rough starting point for reasonable single malts. I’ve recently has some nice blended malts from Thompson Brothers and North Star which were a bit cheaper.
makes sense, instead of shrinkflation they just made the product worse 🙄
bump as im ready to splash out on a peaty whisky.
im keeping my eye out for a laphroig 10, or a smokehead, and due to this thread now have bruidladdich and buhnahabhain. any other smoky 'uns to look out for under £30 if poss?
The Maclean's Nose blend is excellent. From the people behind the brilliant Ardnamurchan distillery. Available around 30 quid. Only lightly peated though.
Noticed Ledaig 10 is currently about 36 quid on Amazon. Very good stuff.
M&S have some new malts in. One is an exclusive by Kilchoman and vgv at £35. Their Machir Bay expression is my go to but usually costs £45
Adelphi is fab for a blend. Like mentioned above broaden your horizons there's more to whisky than Islay.👌
£26-30 is about the going rate for laphroaig select and it’s not worth a single penny of it. A distant relative of the real thing.
Maybe if you're a real connoisseur, I've enjoyed a lot of age statement Ardbeg, Laphroaig, Lagavullin and Caol Ila, and am quite partial to a Laphroaig Select, I appreciate the extra tarriness 😂
Gordon & Macphail do a good bottling of Caol Ila, have found it in my local Co-op more tgan once, I like it compared to a Talisker or Ben Brachen as it's less syrupy and thick.
sadexpunk, Amazon have a black friday deal on smokehead, but if its peaty you are after then bruichladdich won't do it, I fancy trying their Port charlotte, its a bit more than I spend on non special occasion whisky, but Xmas is on the way so...
Amazon also have Laphroaig 10yo for £30!