Whilst we don’t review whisky here, we sure do drink a lot of it at festivals. Most buying guides focus on the big distilleries and supermarket brands in the run up to Christmas. So, allow us to teeter on the precipice of breaking our own rules and sort-of-reviewing in the name of public service. This article is for those of you trying to buy a bottle for the whisky fan in your life. 

To keep this helpful here’s the the parameters most lists don’t apply:

• All these whiskies are readily available on the UK market at the time of writing.
• All of them are from independent bottlers or smaller distilleries that you’ll see less often on recommendation lists. 
• We’ve also tried to keep them affordable where possible. Prices will range from £30 – £75 here.
• None of these links are affiliates. We don’t get anything if you click.
• Finally, we’ve tried all of them. Whilst taste is subjective, we enjoyed them.

For Pleasing The Crowd

TB/BSW 9 Years Old The Final Release – Thompson Bros (£50)

This whisky won’t show up on most lists because it’s only available through specialist retailers. However, among enthusiasts it is often discussed as one of the best budget buys of the 2020s so far. For me it’s like the delightful fancy cousin of Famous Grouse, but only a little more expensive. It’ll have everything a Grouse fan loves but dialled up to 11. If you know someone who likes their classic supermarket blends, this’ll impress them. It’ll also impress any whisky enthusiast as you’ll be giving them a calling card that says “I’ve put the effort in to do research.” Well done you!

North British 34 Years Old – Thompson Bros (£65)

If you want safe flavours that still impress then old grain is the ace up your sleeve. Grain whiskies are usually used as filler in popular blends but on their own, and with a few decades of age, they can produce gentle, buttery flavours. These spirits will still pack the punch of alcohol, but without any of the rough edges. This one in particular is 34 years old! At just £65 it’s one of the cheapest price to age ratios you can find, and it’ll taste nice too. You have the same people as TB/BSW to thank. Right now Thompson Bros represent some of the best value on the UK market.

For Cocktail Lovers

Kyrö Malt Rye Whisky (£51) 

Rye is our usual recommendation for cocktails. The spices cut through the other ingredients and deliver depth where other gentler flavours can’t. Whilst for most that’s an American product we go for the Finnish option these days.  Kyrö are a lowkey favourite of many world whisky enthusiasts as they deliver a confident core range full of spicy and woody flavours. The standard entry is like eating marmalade on toast in a sauna. It’ll bring big bread & butter pudding and fruity Christmas notes to your cocktails, all backed up with a crisp woody bite. If you want things jammier, their Oloroso sherry finished version is one of our all time favourites. 

Henstone English Single Malt (£55)

If the cocktail profile you’re after is more about fresh citrus and grassy notes then Henstone is the distillery you want to follow. This is a tiny family run business right on the England/Wales border that makes a variety of spirits but their whisky is our favourite. It lends cocktails a lemon and black tea flavour when you first try it, backed up by straw and apple on the finish. It’s pricier than other young whiskies but the ‘craft premium’ is worth it here in our opinion.

For The Sweet Toothed

Glencadam Reserva PX (£47)

Listen, things do get sweeter than this but there’s such a thing as balance in whisky. This Glencadam Reserva PX has big buckets of sherry sweetness from the Pedro Ximenez casks whilst still tasting like whisky. It’s not just the classic fruity sugars you’ll find but also some balsamic and tobacco notes to go along with the orchard fruit and vanilla-laden malt. If this doesn’t sound sugary enough then scroll on down.

Signal Hill Founders Select Overproof (£51)

For our money, Canada is one of the most underrated whisky markets. There’s some serious skill over there in blending and production, and yet we only got the budget options imported over until recently. This corn and barley whiskey is full of butterscotch popcorn and croissant pudding with some baking spices cutting through. How they got it so sweet is a topic of some contention, and many people won’t enjoy this one. For those who need sugar, Signal Hill is likely as sweet as you can get a whiskey whilst still calling it whiskey. If you’re not in a rush for this one then set an alert – it often shows up on Amazon at a heavy discount.

For People Who REALLY Like Smoke

Croftengea Double Finish Cask Craft  – Murray McDavid (£29)

Smokiness in whisky usually comes from peat, and it often fades over time. Older whiskies can still be very smoky but it’s younger ones that have the heft. If you’re buying for someone who always talks about burned rubber, bonfires and ash in their glass then these are for you. This whisky from Independent Bottler Murray McDavid is a budget favourite of ours. You can often find it below £30 and it is a fat wallop of smoke backed up by deep rich fruit from Port and Madeira casks. It’s like barbequed fruit and bonfire ashes blended together. That might sound terrible to you, but to peat lovers that’s a Bat Signal!

Scarabus 10 Years Old – Hunter Laing (£42)

This range from an Independent Bottler is a secret distillery but many speculate it’s Caol Ila. However, that secrecy means you can save money versus buying direct from the drinks giant that is Diageo. This is a more classic peat finish than our other recommendation as there’s no wine casks involved, the bourbon and virgin oak preserve the distillery character. Think straw, vanilla and floral notes at first before the burning wood of the peat hits.

If all this sounds too smoke-filled and you just want a confident wisp of it then check out Glenglassaugh’s Portsoy.

For Something Unusual

Floki Birch Cask (£75)

This whisky is from Iceland, but that just makes it expensive, not unusual. The strangeness is in the wood. Scotch whisky must only be aged in oak, otherwise you can’t call it whisky. Iceland has no such regulation and birch is a local wood deeply ingrained (pun intended) into the island’s history. The birch gives this whisky a resinous note like pine furniture or hoppy beer. There’s a rocky minerality knocking about as well as plenty of classic vanilla and cereal to remind you this is still very much a whisky.

Eimverk also makes a Sheep Dung Smoked whisky in the Floki range which you can get if you really want to maximise the strangeness. However, whilst we’re fans it is very vegetal and hard to recommend as a beverage versus a curiosity. 

Fielden Rye – The Heart Cut (£69)

English Whisky is now a mature and legally protected category so wheeling out the same old (lovely) distilleries no longer qualifies as unusual. However, it remains a niche market, and English Rye is a further niche within it. We think this bottle is the best one to come out of it.

Fielden Rye is a gentle spirit (for a rye) that reminds us of the English countryside. Flowers, hedgerow fruits and fresh bakery treats. The Heart Cut have taken this and dropped it into a sherry cask that’s nearly half a century old. That cask has added a load of body and sweetness that elevates this young rye into feeling like a much older whisky. You won’t have tasted anything quite like it. 

That’s our list of recommendations. Drop a comment if you want to ask about a category that isn’t covered above. If you’re still struggling then check out our list of not-whisky recommendations for whisky lovers for alternatives.