The Ark of the Covenant, whiskey is not. Searching for the best whiskeys may feel like staring into an overwhelming void, with all its choice and the often high price of admission, but it’s more of a wonderland with more variety than you could possibly imagine. Black cherries, ripe bananas, Mexican vanilla, cinnamon, and clove—if I were grossly irresponsible, why, I could say whiskey is a completely balanced diet. But our lawyers and common sense warn me to shut up and definitely, definitely not say that, so I’ll only say that you’re in for a world of discovery with the wide variety of the best whiskeys (and whiskies) I’ve assembled before you.
Whether you’re looking for a prime candidate for celebratory shots, cocktail ingredients to build out that home bar for a house party (check out the best cocktail shakers while you’re at it), or a complex masterpiece suitable for sipping at the end of a long day, I’ve got recommendations for you. Because, hey, whiskey is an investment. There’s nothing worse than buying the wrong bottle and knowing you’re stuck with 15 glasses worth of it. Take our recommendations, and you won’t regret it. Not regretting the next morning, however, is up to you and how much you decide to drink.
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These are the best whiskeys I’ve found, and I’ve searched far and wide, from Kentucky bourbon to Scotch, to Irish whiskey and even a great Japanese whiskey. I hope you enjoy these picks as much as I’ve enjoyed them.
Quick look at the best tasting whiskey
- Best all-around bourbon – Four Roses Single Barrel
- People-pleasing Irish whiskey – Teeling Small Batch
- Non-smoky scotch – Macallan 12 Year
- A Versatile rye whiskey – George Dickel Rye Whisky
- A tasty bourbon for all occasions – Buffalo Trace
- Top-shelf Japanese whiskey – Nikka Whisky From the Barrel
- Smooth and lovely, premium Irish whiskey – Redbreast 12 Year
- Like marshmallows on a campfire – Old Forester 1920
- Best smoky and peated scotch – Ardbeg Ten Years Old
- Scotch and bourbon had a baby – Kings County Peated Bourbon
- Sweet, non-smoky scotch for mixing cocktails – Monkey Shoulder
- The sleeper bourbon hit – Russell’s Reserve 10 Year Old Bourbon
- The wild champion of shots – Wild Turkey 101
- Strong but sweet – Baker’s 7
- Bourbon kissed by the deep blue – Jefferson’s Ocean Aged at Sea
How We Tested
Whether you drink yours neat without ice, on the rocks (over ice), with a drop or three of water, or mixed into a cocktail, the best whiskeys taste good. I’ve selflessly tasted every whiskey discussed in this guide at least several times (and many more, to be honest).
But you can’t enjoy a delicious whiskey if you can’t actually get your hands on it. Whiskey takes a long time to produce, so the industry takes a long time to respond to sudden growth in demand (like we’ve seen this past decade). Many good whiskeys—especially bourbons—have shot up in price and become hard to find. And lastly, we valued smoothness and lack of that rough burn common to poorly aged, cheap whiskeys.
Best all-around bourbon – Four Roses Single Barrel
There’s a rag-worn saying in the whiskey world: The plainer the bottle, the better the whiskey. Four Roses Single Barrel upends that in a big way. This Kentucky bourbon ain’t no snot-nosed youth. It’s mature. Four Roses matures this golden ambrosia in fresh oak barrels for seven to nine years before it’s bottled. All that time spent in the storehouse, exposed to Kentucky’s changing seasons, ekes out all the vanilla and caramel notes from the oak barrels while taking the raw edges off, making a delightfully smooth sipper to enjoy slowly neat or over ice.
There’s a wee bit more of a peppery rye note than other bourbons in this price range that lends Four Roses Single Barrel a delightful depth and complexity. Single barrel whiskeys such as this vary more from batch to batch than small batch whiskeys or blended whiskeys. I’ve had many bottles of Four Roses Single Barrel over the years, and despite the variation they’ve all been favorites of mine. My home bar is never without a bottle… for research purposes. If you haven’t tried it yet, you owe it to yourself.
People-pleasing Irish whiskey – Teeling Small Batch
Teeling Distillery is a newcomer to the world of Irish whiskey. Opened in 2015 in Dublin, they play a bit more loosely with the rules than Jameson and Bushmills. Bottled at a slightly higher alcohol percentage (ABV) than most Irish whiskeys—46% versus 40%—Teeling takes the added step of finishing their whiskey aging in disused rum casks. But what results is a wondrously unique Irish whiskey at a price that costs less than your ill-advised flash tattoo.
Rummy and just a hint sweeter than most Irish whiskeys due to the rum cask aging process, Teeling gives a subtle, lingering aftertaste of well-ripened bananas that wafts over the back of the tongue. It colors the smooth, underlying whiskey without overwhelming it. Another unique Irish whiskey at this price is Bushmills Black Bush, which is finished in disused sherry casks for an undercurrent of sweetened-wine on the tongue.
Non-smokey scotch – Macallan 12 Year
Trembling and afraid at the boogeyman of Scotch whisky? Lots of alleged whiskey-lovers recoil at the mention of it. I’ve heard folks say it tastes like a whiskey in which someone stubbed out a cigar. I’ll defend the honor of smoky whiskies—called peated whiskies—later. Now, I’m here to tell you that an awful lot of Scotches don’t taste smoky at all. Macallan 12 Year is the Scotch I introduce to those who’ve been scarred by smoky Scotches in the past.
Rumors say that Macallan either uses no peat (the smoky-tasting element) or an extremely small amount of peat. Either way, you can’t taste it. What you will taste is a wonderfully balanced whisky with barely a detectable burn. Aged for—you guessed it—12 years, its honeyed flavor notes go down like golden, liquid silk. Subtlety is the name of the game here, with notes of lemony citrus and clove playing touch football gently on your tongue.
A Versatile rye whiskey – George Dickel Rye Whisky
Right alongside Jack Daniel’s, George Dickel is a storied Tennessee whiskey brand. This one’s a very pure rye, its mashbill being made up of 95% rye for a young, peppery collision with your tastebuds. Dry and savory, rye whiskey has what we call a bit of heat behind it compared to sweeter bourbons and mellower Irish whiskies.
Another popular rye whiskey, Rittenhouse, is a bartender favorite for mixing cocktails. Only 51% rye, its higher proportion of corn in its mashbill gives it a sweeter flavor than most ryes. It’s also a damn good choice to sip straight. I’ve enjoyed it neat from my favorite flask many times.
A tasty bourbon for all occasions – Buffalo Trace
This one’s a crowd-pleaser. Sweet and mellow, nobody really knows for how many years Buffalo Trace is aged. Poker-faced or not, this popular beast wallops you in the tastebuds with waves of vanilla, oak, and caramel—sweet with just a touch of heat. Dollar for dollar, this is one of the best values in bourbon that you can find easily. Eagle Rare is Buffalo Trace that’s aged longer, for a minimum of 10 years. Slightly more mellow, it gives flavor notes of black cherries.
For a weird minute back in the late 2010s, Buffalo Trace was selling out everywhere while cases of Eagle Rare sat around for a bargain. People had heard of the former and not yet the latter. Well, that situation has corrected itself. Eagle Rare nows takes its rightful place at a higher price point, but the good news is that Buffalo Trace is once again easy to find, and as deliciously versatile as ever. Mix it into that old fashioned cocktail or sip it straight.
Top-shelf Japanese whiskey – Nikka Whisky From the Barrel
Japanese whisky commands respect on the level of—dare I say it?—Scotland and Ireland. Nikka dilutes their whisky less than most whiskies when transferring it from cask to bottle. At 51.4% alcohol content, it’s markedly higher than most whiskies. Harsh, however, it is not. Rather, it’s like swallowing an opera. Complex and layered. I felt the strength of the alcohol without feeling the rough-edged heat that defines younger, high-alcohol whiskies.
Many whiskey aficionados (whificionados?) splash a few droplets—just a few—to open up the whiskey and give more room for its flavors to make themselves apparent on the tongue. Suntory and Hibiki are two more popular Japanese whiskies. These are crowd pleasers. I’ve never had a guest set down a still-full glass of these smooth, nicely balanced whiskies.
Smooth and lovely, premium Irish whiskey – Redbreast 12 Year
If you need justification on springing for a pricey but oh-so-worth-it Irish whiskey, then let me ask you, are you a nature lover? An animal lover? See that European robin (redbreast) on the label? You’re rescuing that little bird from the cold, inhospitable shelves of the liquor store. You deserve a drink for that, you hero. At any given moment over the past five years, my home bar has had at least one bottle of Redbreast 12 Year.
For those who proclaim whiskey is far too harsh for them, Redbreast 12 Year is an awfully convincing experiment in opening horizons. At 40% alcohol, it’s on the mellow side for a whiskey, and after 12 years of aging in American ex-bourbon casks, it’s an incredibly smooth sipper. Spices, honey, a bit of fruit on the nose. Too nice for mixing into cocktails, I’ve given a glass to several whiskey-hating friends burned out from college-era shots and rough nights. I’m always handed back an empty glass.
Like marshmallows on a campfire – Old Forester 1920
All right, here’s my secret that I’m going to share with you, at the risk of y’all running out to snap it up and drive up the prices on me. This is the whiskey that, years ago, gave me the spark of hope that maybe, just maybe, I could pick out the flavors that separate great whiskies from mind-blowing whiskeys. Taken from an old 1920 recipe of the long-standing Old Forester, this bourbon is truly something special.
All whiskeys begin to very gradually age after you open them for the first time. The tastes of cocoa liquor are more flavor-forward when the bottle is first opened. After a bit of time, hints of charred oak poke their way into the flavor profile alongside well-toasted marshmallows. The cocoa liquor stays in the background, but not as strongly present as it was at first. An absolutely delightful and unique whiskey.
Best smoky and peated scotch – Ardbeg Ten Years Old
Take a run off the diving board and plunge into the smoky, savory depths of Scotch whisky from the Scottish island of Islay. This one’s a pure smoke bomb. Peated whiskies, such as this, are placed over slices of peat soil taken from swampy bogs and burned. The smoke imbues the whiskey with a rich dimension that confounds some and utterly entices others. Of all the peated Scotches, Ardbeg is my favorite for the slightly sea-salty undercurrents that wash around my palate with the notes of oak and pear.
Ardbeg has a slightly smoother, slightly smokier complexation compared to Laphroaig 10 Year. The Laphroaig (pronounced la-FROYG) is another favorite of mine for its deep, smoky flavor, edged out only slightly by the Ardbeg.
Scotch and bourbon had a baby – Kings County Peated Bourbon
Here’s one you don’t see every day. A sweet, corn-rich bourbon distilled in the Kentucky tradition married with the smoky, savory qualities of scotch. When I visited this New York City distillery and heard they’d Frankensteined two of my favorite things in the world, I was pouring a glass quicker than a Kentucky hillsman could squeeze into a kilt.
All the warm vanilla and woody oak flavors of a good bourbon are there, offset by the savory qualities of peat smoke that heighten the earthy flavors of the wood casks that give this whiskey its deep amber color. Truly unique, any fan of both bourbon and scotch should give it a try.
Sweet, non-smoky scotch for mixing cocktails – Monkey Shoulder
No, you can’t get drunk from looking at pictures of whiskey. Your violently sober eyes don’t deceive you; those are indeed metal monkeys glued onto the bottle. Named for a repetitive stress injury incurred by those working in the whiskey industry, Monkey Shoulder lacks the strong, smoky flavor of scotches that use peat. Instead, what you find in this bottle is a mellow character of spiced oak, vanilla, and zesty orange marmalade flavors.
At this price point, it makes a fine sipper but excels as a mixer for cocktails. Its lack of peat makes it more of a versatile crowd pleaser that won’t put off the scotch haters, and it never threatens to overwhelm the ingredients in that Rusty Nail you’re mixing up.
The sleeper bourbon hit – Russell’s Reserve 10 Year Old Bourbon
Lots of whiskeys won’t carry an age statement on their labels. Who knows how quickly they’re pulled from their oak casks to sell? But Russell’s isn’t “lots of whiskeys.” It’s aged for 10 years, sucking out every bit of caramel flavor from the wood before it’s bottled.
My favorite element is the green bananas at play on the palate here. I, for one, love it. Not overly sweet, there’s a coupling of sweet fruit and pleasant woodiness on the nose, distinct from the bourbon-standard vanilla-oak. Sweet, and yet with a counterbalance of slightly peppery rye, Russell’s Reserve is one of my go-to bourbons.
The wild champion of Shots – Wild Turkey 101
Not good with numbers? Who cares. All you’ve gotta know about that “101” on the label is that it refers to proof. Divide proof by two and you get the alcohol percentage. So you’ve got that right—Wild Turkey 101 is 50.5% alcohol. And it’s a kicker. Aged for six to eight years, you’d expect this bourbon to mellow out a bit more than it has, but part of that kick comes from the alcohol content. This one’ll put hair on your chest (we have a guide for that, by the way).
Of all the more affordable bourbons, this one is my clear favorite. It’s aged for longer, giving it a complexity and depth of flavor that the others don’t have. I won’t name and shame because it’s easy to pick on the lower-shelf whiskeys, but they’re all heat and no flavor. Wild Turkey 101 is packed with the usual bourbon spread of sweet caramel, vanilla, and oak notes. Cut it with an ice cube or a few drops of water if the alcohol is a bit much for you.
Strong but sweet – Baker’s 7
Ever been kicked in the face by a gentle giant with a sweet side? Yeah, me neither… That’s Baker’s 7, though. At 53.5% alcohol, the distillery barely waters it down when bottling. You may wish to cut it with water or an ice cube, but I drink it neat because it’s smooooother than J.B. Smoove.
Seven years spent aging in the cask gives this bourbon a one of the most complex, detailed flavor profiles of any I’ve tried: cinnamon, oak, apricot, and even a hint of roasted coffee, plus the usual vanilla and caramel. A bottle like this is an investment in time. It’d be a crime to shoot this as a shot or even to mix it into a cocktail. You enjoy this in a glass, either alone or with friends (or a lover), and let yourself fall away into every sip.
Bourbon kissed by the Deep blue – Jefferson’s Ocean Aged at Sea
Count me among the skeptics who smirked disbelievingly when Kentucky Artistry Distillery said they were storing a bunch of barrels of Jefferson’s Bourbon aboard research vessels to improve flavor. I thought it was a gimmick to jack up the price. Well, let me plainly announce I was wrong. This bourbon is absolutely delicious. One whiff of the glass brought up to the nose, and oh man, it has some of the best scent of any bourbon I’ve tried.
And as all whiskeys age very slowly after you open them, Jefferson’s Ocean just gets better with age. More so than most whiskeys I’ve had. Smoother, sweeter. The flavors magnify and ripen with time, making this bottle a fantastic investment in your whiskey funds.
