any whisky buffs here?

[Fashionista101]

So I know nothing about whisky but I bloody love a JD Diet Coke.

My partner bloodys loves the stuff and I want to get home something special/nice for Christmas. I know he like a single malt and I think it's from the highlands?!

Any ideas? He has those cube/stones things. He has small tumblers but they look shit, what should I look for?

What's an unusual whisky that he may appreciate?

Tours/distilleries etc he will never go to so not really an option.

Thanks!

I've been to the Talisker distillery on the Isle of Skye, it's a special place and drink. You could as an alternative buy him some miniature selections

Can you get to a decent whisky shop for advice and/or miniatures? There's a group of about 6/7 Scottish distilleries that are loosely linked so maybe start to buy that?

Edradour distillery have some lovely ones. Expensive but lovely.

One that pleases almost everyone - simply because it is delicious - is Aberlour. The 12 year old is lovely and the 15 year old is divine.

My OH is a right whiskey buff too, and his birthday was a struggle. I ended up googling best whiskeys, and got him Craigelle, around £50 plus delivery but he was thrilled with it. I also got him a globe decanter to go with it.

The Balvenie Portwood is amazing but pricey.

DH has at least 30 single malts... He likes whisky! But a bottle lasts years...

I agree the 15 yr Aberlour is gorgeous.

I suggest Old Poultney- i think it's classed as an Islay, so a bit peaty, but it has a good tang of sea salt in it too. I'm not a huge whisky fan, but I like that one.

A barrel stave with glasses would be a great gift. I bought my husband one from the Whisky Experience in Edinburgh. You can get them at good prices on Etsy.

Bruichladdich is gorgeous.

Oh that takes me back. Many, many years ago when DH and I had just started courting, I went on holiday to Scotland with my DS and BIL. This had been arranged for ages before I even met DH. I knew DH (to be, but still just BF then) liked whiskey so wanted to get him something special. We were on the Isle of Arran, which has it own distillery these days but did not back then, and the most intriguing malt I could find was Bruichladdich.

Later I found out this set the jungle drums going in the family because my BIL said to my DSis "That's a single malt! It must be serious" He was right.

You can get a whiskey glass from notonthehighstreet that is engraved with 3 lines saying single measure, double measure and ‘mr fashionista measure’

www.angelsshareglass.com for gift ideas - the droppers are lovely and they have some nice glasses. I like the ones with the lids.

I’d second the Aberlour (the 16 is my favourite) and Glendronach recommendations, Glendronach 18 is very nice. Glenfarclas 15 or Glengoyne 18 are also pretty safe bets I’d say.

From Islay my favourite standard releases are Bowmore 15 and Machir Bay from Kilchoman. I also love Caol Ila 18.

Not a fan of the Balvenie Caribbean Cask, too much going on for me, and wouldn’t go for Macallan for a gift. You get much more for your money from other distilleries (in my view anyway) and it’s fun to try different whiskies.

Aberlour is delicious, and as someone who gets through a bottle every 2 or 3 weeks (with dh’s help) I often find that Sainsbury’s have it on special offer. Oh, and as others have said, no ice and just a threat of water. Enjoy!

Laphroig is not a highland whisky, it’s an islay malt.

If he likes ice in it buy something which says it isn’t chill filtered.

I’m a big fan of bunnahabhain just now - it’s the mildest islay whisky. It happens to taste like TCP.

Aberlour isn’t peaty and is lovely - they have a newish bottle called casg Annamh which mean last rare cask.

Morrison’s has bunnahabhain on special offer just now for £26 (in Scotland so possibly cheaper down south), it’s non age statement though and I can only vouch for the 12 year old.

There’s a few limited edition highland park bottlings just now that are worth looking at.

*laphroig tastes like TCP, not bunnahabhain

Master of Malt website is good. You can build your own tasting set.

I did that for DH last year, and I put a hand-written “voucher” into the box promising to buy him a full size bottle of his favourite once he’d sampled them all.

Or just buy an Aberlour. I live in Aberlour.

Tomatin is also good. Honeyed like a Speyside but mild peat like an Islay. Intriguing.

What about something like this....

We went to a whisky shop and got given ‘provenance’ ignos ehisky in its purest form. They don’t sell much in shop asnofbtebds to be used in blends but is lovely as a single malt. There are different ones from all areas.

Last year I got dh The Whisky Bible (book)...can’t remember his name but a well known whisky guy, who rates every whisky there is and picks his top one.

I couldn’t get dh the top whisky but I bought a bottle of the (very random) number 2 whisky that year...think it was German?

Anyway, dh is a whisky lover and enjoyed it!

I love a single malt! My favourite is Glenmorangie but usually stick to the Glenlivet as it's cheaper. DP loves his Laphroaig and he can keep it! Yargh.

I live in Aberlour.

Lovely place with lovely people, including the distillery. When we (DH, DBro, and SIL and I) went to the distillery, I decided to forgo the tour, having already traipsed around Scotland seeing every distillery in our path. The reception staff gave me a comfy place to sit and brought me coffee and shortbread.

Dalmore is very nice but expensive, laphroaig is very smoky

Wolfburn is a fairly new one. Gets good write ups.

Old Pulteney has some special ones just now.

Not smokey:
Aberlour Abunadh
Dalmore 15

Smokey:
Port Charlotte
Ardbeg Uigeadail