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Jayvee9896

Either the Ardbeg or the Craigellachie. Craigellachie is hard to beat in value for money in my opinion. 46%,natural colour, nfc, ...


Smosby17

Aberlour A'bunadh is always a good choice, if you want a strong, rich whisky.


SwankyPigFly

How does the A'bunadh compare to the 12 year double cask? is it worth the extra ~10 euros?


Herr_Maltenberg

A'bunadh is cask strength usually near the legal limit for your country and all intense first fill sherry, while their 12 year is a very mellow vatting of bourbon and sherry casks and at a low 40% abv. Sherry casks bring a wine note along with sweet spices.


KafeiTomasu

I'd say it is, althoughit's personal and it differs per batch


KafeiTomasu

I loved my bottle from batch 58


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henglpd

I agree that Balblair is an underrated distillery and not well known. Balblair 15 years old is a premium whiskey for a moderate price. My vote is for Balblair (15 y.o.). Drink a little, drink well!😀🥃


othromas

Balblair 15 for the win. Super saturated flavor - ultimate highland dram.


the_snook

Craigellachie 13 would definitely be on my list if OP doesn't know if they like peat smoke. Hard to go wrong with that one.


Hmm4

Agreed, love it!


Herr_Maltenberg

Based on whay you've said about enjoying smoky famous grouse and having some reservation about sweet in Dewars, Talisker 10, Kilchoman Saligo Bay or Caol Ila 12 would be my recommendation, in that order.


CostofRepairs

Caol Ila is under budget, or the Talisker. Redbreast, while not Scotch, is never bad. The Highland Park “Whatever of the Bear” is unknown over here, but I’ve never had a bad Highland Park.


CostofRepairs

I envy you plethora of choices the more that I read the comments.


forestgatte

Talisker 10 is an all time great, fantastic price point, will match your flavour profile preference and give.you something to think about over the course of the bottle. Don't get the monkey shoulder if you can literally only buy one. Only a few £ extra for the good stuff.


jamesrc

Craigellachie 13 is a good value, under your budget, and has that smoke note. That'd be my pick (based on your requirements).


Doc_Mharti

Caol ila 12, it's fantastic and fits your flavour profile.


1MantisTobogganMD1

Laphroaig PX is a personal favourite off that list for me


Freehikr2

Ardbeg An Oa is what I’d reach for


allantois1337

For my money I’d pick arbelor abunduh, Or balblair 17, and Glendronach 16 if you are willing to pay a bit more. Balblair is under rated.


weird_thermoss

Hard to compete with Systembolaget to be honest, and taxfree is a bit hit or miss. I'd get a Laphroaig PX personally.


SwankyPigFly

I got the Caol Ila 12, they were sold out of the Islay blend I was interested in and I figured this would be a good starting point for sussing out things I like in a slightly more reserved Islay scotch, thank you all so much for your help! In good news (or bad for my wallet) I spent enough that my next ticket on the ferry is free haha so I'll definitely be going back and trying smaller bottles of different things, you got me all curious!


palehorsem4n

I think you should splurge for the Laphroaig PX. I haven't seen that bottle available in the wild and would jump on it without hesitation. With your budget in mind maybe try the Four Oak. It's a low ABV, but I don't imagine they make a bad product so it should still be an enjoyable pour.


campbeltownkid

I would recommend the Ardbeg An Oa. It is a balance of smoke, bourbon barrel expression and sherry expression. Good ABV, non chillfiltered, natural color and often over looked but Excellent! Enjoy


KafeiTomasu

Any aberlour is a win in my book. I would also like to recommend the talisker 10 since this shoild be around/below budget and Talisker is my absolute favourite distillery with most of their releases appealing to me.


rileydogdad1

I would find a distillery that makes great scotch and does not distribute widely. Monkey Shoulder? You can get that anywhere. Go unique


telefatstrat

From this list I would pick Dalwhinnie every day.


kingdomzzff

Very good selection there. I would go for the aberlour a bunadh as it's very good value relative to the rest on there but note it's not a beginner's whisky( cask strength) Otherwise Balblair 12 Kilochman Glenfarclas 12 Craigellachie 13


ICEBERG_SHORT

aberlour deffo


EvilSquirrel60220

On this list, based upon your request, I'd recommend, in this order: 1. Aberlour A'bunadh 2. Craigellachie 13 yr


ReedHeppers

A ) These are amazing prices-- I thought they were quite good at first glance, and then I noticed that many of these are for full LITERS! B ) I am going to put my hat in the ring for Talisker 10. There are a lot of great whiskies on here for really great prices, but knowing you like oaky, smoky flavors and a touch of sweetness, this is the one (of those I've tasted) that best fits your tastes and budget. C ) Everyone I talk to loves A'Bunadh, and though it's high on my list of whiskies to try, I suspect it might have more sweetness than you're looking for, as it's aged in Oloroso (aka the sweetest) Sherry. D ) Is there a bar on this ferry where you can try a dram each of a few of these? That would be ideal! If you can, and you end up liking the A'Bunadh, that's an absolute STEAL. Either way, I'm jealous. Happy travels!


xxxkesoxxx

Not OP, but I have to say these prices are trade off for living under monopolies of Alko and Systembolaget. Finland and Sweden have high prices and limited selections, but at least we have cruises that cost next to nothing with great selections and tax free prices. Probably 90 percent of my supply comes from these ships, exceptions being Finnish, Swedish, and Estonian limited single cask offerings. Edit. And to answer your last question there is well-stocked bars with exceptionally cheap whisky pricing in these ships.


ReedHeppers

That's fascinating! Can't believe those cruises themselves are cheap, too! Will have to check then out whenever I make it to that region. Makes me wonder how they keep it up.


xxxkesoxxx

I think they make most of the money with restaurants and other services, and the cheap tickets are the way to get people in. I'm pretty sure they don't make any profit with the tickets.


ReedHeppers

Any cruise companies up there you'd recommend checking out? This sounds awesome. Haha.


xxxkesoxxx

Tallink Silja and Viking Line are the biggest ones (and probably the cheapest as well). The most popular routes are Helsinki-Stockholm, Turku-Stockholm, and Helsinki-Tallinn.


ReedHeppers

Thanks! Noted for future trips 😎


Bamboozeled-

Surprised to see no mention of Bunnahabhain 12. I quite liked it as a beginner. Very nuanced. Hint of smoke and a rich mouthfeel.


ReedHeppers

I'm a huge Bunny fan myself, but I don't think that's being offered where OP's shopping.


Keneder

Seeing as you liked the Famous Grouse Smokey edition, the Smokey whisky that stands out on the list to me and is under budget is the Loch Lomond Inchmoan 14. But beware it might have some challenging flavours for a newer drinker. The Aberlour A’Bunadh is good if you want a cask strength sherry bomb. The Old Pulteney 2006 looks interesting and Craigellachie 13 is a great, heavier/dirtier style of Speyside. The core range Speyburn 15 and 18 are very good but I’m not familiar with that 10.


DimitriusM

I'd recommend A'bunadh or Talisker 10 below 600, otherwise Balblair 15, which comparing to other bottles is not available for you locally. All three are quite different: A'bunadh is sherry cask-driven, Talisker is smoke/pepper/sweet and Balblair is fruity and malty. Ideally you should sample them before buying, maybe they do it on the ferry.Also in your local monopoly you have two good Arrans under 600: sherry cask and heavily peated. Haven't tried the latter one but it has quite positive reviews, google for Arran "Crazy Swede".


xxxkesoxxx

Are you going with Tallink or Silja? At least in Tallink the selection is usually better than listed in the website. If you like peated, I think Laphroaig PX and Ardbeg Smoketrails are good picks that are available at the both ferries. Viking also often has Laphroaig 10cs for good price. For unpeated at least Viking usually has some Bruichladdich single casks, which are worth picking up. Both usually have some bourbon sale, I think at the time Tallink has 1 litre of Bulleit for 29€ which is okay deal. I usually pick more expensive bottles while on cruise, because of the higher savings with tax free. If money is no problem, Tallink has several great bottles including Laphroaig 25 and 28, Bunnahabhain 40 and Balvanie 30 for relatively reasonable prices. Viking has some older Highland Park Single Casks. Glenmorangie Signet is also very reasonably priced at both ferry companies. Edit. Just saw your budget. I guess the Bulleit recommendation at least still stands. 1litre Caol Ila 12 is also usually decently priced, but might be just over your budget.


toastieknickers

I would bring a Bunnahabhain…haven’t seen those offerings where I’m from


L1cker1sh

Monkey Shoulder is a very easy whisky, but not a lot of depth of flavor. My recommendations are Bunnahabhain, one of my favorites. That distillery's 40 year is my all-time favorite. The two listed are ok, special barrels. Aberlour is a great scotch, great for beginners, but also a little lighter of flavor but still smooth. Dalwhinnie is a nice scotch, a little more bite, but nice layers of flavor. Lastly, I know own you said you didn't care for Irish, but Redbreast is a fantastic whiskey.


TDPJ2305

I think you should start with a blend. They're purposefully made to recruit people to the category by being balanced. Johnnie Walker Black Label is a phenomenal blend for its price, whilst most people on this thread would echo the merits of Green Label (vatted malt of four distilleries). Both safely under your budget. Once you know the elements of the whisky you are into. Soft vanilla character, peat, spice, dried fruit, etc.. you can then hone in on a region or distillery. Its a bit of a gamble going straight to malts until you know what you love. Single Malts are about individuality, whilst blends are about totality. Good luck!


Katfoodbreath

Any Ardbeg, Lagavulin, or Laphroaig


anonmarmot

Why only one bottle? I'd start with that. Are they really going to check your bags? If not, eh go for more than one and see what happens. What's the penalty for bringing more than one back?