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The Top 10 Best Scotch Whisky Picks You Can't Miss

Written by Emma C | Updated March 2023

If you’re a Scotch fan, you’re likely always on the hunt for the best bottles for your home bar that taste great and impress your guests. But, sometimes, with the seemingly endless options and types of Scotch out there, it’s not so easy to know what’s fantastic vs mediocre. That’s exactly why we’re here to help with these top 10 best scotch whisky picks on the market. From smoky to sweet and everything in between, this list has you covered with top bottles from all corners of Scotland’s five Scotch whisky regions. Cheers!

Taster's Club Top 10 Best Scotch Whisky Picks

1. Glendronach Revival Aged 15 Years

In flavor, the Glendronach Revival expression offers sumptuous notes of dark fruits, rich chocolate, and manuka honey with an enveloping, memorable finish worthy of this monumental malt’s history. Natural in color, this luxuriously sherried Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky is bottled at 46% ABV.

2. Aberfeldy 12 Year

Aberfeldy’s classic Highland 12 Year Old single malt scotch whisky is a creamy, sweet honeyed dram with notes of fruit and spices, plus lots of vanilla and just a hint of smoke. It’s a laid-back Scotch whisky you can enjoy and linger with all afternoon or evening.

3. Bowmore 15 Year Darkest

Matured first in bourbon barrels then Oloroso casks, there's no finer example of a sherry cask finish than Bowmore’s 15 Year Old. It's the final three years spent in Oloroso sherry casks that gives this balanced Scotch its rich, deep mahogany color, syrupy look, and robust warming finish. On the nose, you’ll get sweet acidity of bright red fruit, with a bit of vegetation and sea salt underneath along with plum, maple syrup, and smokey goodness. Then, you’ll taste a complex combination of cola, peppercorn, more of that red fruit, wood, and some peat smoke. The texture or mouthfeel is full and syrupy yet not heavy, and the spirit finishes long, malty, and smokey.

4. Glenfarclas 25 Year

Amber in color with deep gold highlights, the classic, award-winning Glenfarclas 25 Year is intensely full-bodied and gives complex aromas of honey, ground coffee, marmalade, and nutty sherry, along with balanced oak and sherry flavors along with a dry, dark chocolate malt. It makes a great after-dinner whisky as it’s so rich and full, almost a dessert in itself, with a finish that goes on forever.

5. Lagavulin 16 Year

Go ahead and discover the distinct flavors of the islands of Scotland – southern Islay in particular – with a swill of Lagavulin 16 Year Old Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky. First released in the early 1990s, this 86 proof whisky has an intense, full-bodied flavor reminiscent of a driftwood fire at dusk. The rich taste of dry peat smoke with strong maritime notes results in a complex dram complemented by a long, elegant finish.

6. Ardbeg 10 Year

Ardbeg’s Ten Year Old is revered around the world as the peatiest, smokiest, most complex single malt of them all. Yet it does not flaunt the peat. Rather, it gives way to the natural sweetness of the malt to produce a whisky of perfect balance. Named World Whisky of the Year in 2008.

7. Compass Box Hedonism

The inspiration behind the Hedonism Whiskey is just that – pleasure, enjoyment, and a celebration of that ideal marriage between distilled spirit and high-quality oak maturation. The aromas and flavorful hints of vanilla, caramel and delicate fruitiness with accents of coconut on the finish. This is a whisky that will appeal to both the ardent enthusiast and newcomers to whisky alike.

8. Glenmorangie Signet

Glenmorangie’s Signet begins with a chocolate malt spirit, made just once a year in the distillery’s giraffe-high stills. Over the years, its power is tempered with rare and treasured casks: Bourbon for creaminess, sherry for sweetness, and the spice of virgin charred oak, all balanced by some of the oldest whiskey around. The result is a velvet explosion of flavor, including bursts of bitter mocha, sizzling spice, and waves of dark chocolate, mellowed by smooth butterscotch.

9. Talisker 10 Year

Talisker’s 10 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky will help you experience the tale told by the tides. Intense and full-bodied, this 91.6 proof whisky has a strong smoke, barley-malt taste, and rich, dried-fruit sweetness. Distilled by the sea on the shores of the Isle of Skye in Scotland, centuries of local distilling tradition and the rugged environment are what make the whisky so unique. This bottle earned a double gold medal at the 2020 San Francisco World Spirits Competition and 94 points at the 2019 Ultimate Spirits Challenge.

10. Port Charlotte 10

Port Charlotte 10 Year Old heavily peated islay single malt scotch whisky is conceived, distilled matured, and bottled only on Islay. Made from 100% Scottish barley, it is trickle-distilled through tall, narrow-necked stills for a balanced, heathery style of barbeque smoke.

This fantastic list of top 10 best scotch whisky options is a super easy go-to whenever you’re having people over or when you just simply need to unwind. But, if you’re looking for something more or different, a membership to our Scotch Club is equally great. Each month you’ll get a surprise bottle of something new – and while you won’t know what’s coming, you can always count on it being a top-quality pick.

Look no further than Taster’s Club for the best Scotch Subscription Club!

We’ll take you on a personalized bourbon journey by curating amazing bottles from award-winning distilleries from Kentucky and beyond, delivering them straight to your door each month.