<$250 Scotch for a Wedding Drinker

One of my best friends is getting married next month and the groomsmen want to get a bottle of scotch for us to drink beforehand while we get ready for the event.

Here are my criteria:
-Must be under $250
-Must NOT be peated
-Must NOT be a sherry-bomb (a little sherry is OK)
-Must be age stated (feel as though this gives more meaning to a special event than NAS, although I might be the minority here)
-Must be reasonably easy to purchase

A few that come to mind:
-Macallan 18 (although tends to be heavy on the sherry, the Fine Oak expression is a possibility)
-Glengoyne 21 (not had it, but others tell me it’s legit)
-Glenfarclas 25 (too much sherry?)
-Glenfiddich 21 Gran Reserva
-Balvenie 21 Portwood

Open to other suggestions as well.

Gordon & MacPhail Linkwood 21 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Speyside, Scotland

A bit over your price point but truly remarkable-Deanston - Single Malt Scotch 30 Year

I’m a big Highland Park 18 fan.

If Irish Whisky was on the table, I’d definitely go with Midleton Barry Crokett Legacy as that’s one of the best Whisky’s I’ve ever had.

Springbank 18 sounds like it’d fit all the criteria.

I got both the Oban 18 and Springbank 18 (as mentioned above) for my groomsmen. Fits the criteria and cost for both bottles should be at just about $250.

My vote is for the Balvenie.

Only had this once but I recall it was on the peatier side. Is that true or am I misremembering?

I’d go with mac18 of your choices. I’d like dalmore king Alexander 3 more but it’s NAS.

Balvenie 21 Portwood is one of my absolute favorites, wins my vote.

*we sell Balvenie along with most others listed by OP.

There is a hint of peat, but not like an Islay malt. They do make some that are explicitly stated as peated though, could that be what you had?

This inspired me to pour a dram of this from my collection. I forgot just how smooth and delicious this is. Great pour; great suggestion

Was yours the 47.6% or 43%?

Balvenie 21 Portwood. The peat is mild on the Springbank 18 but still there and you won’t like it if you want to avoid all peat. Or Macallan.

Naive question: Macallan is not considered a Sherry bomb?


Btw I just had the 18 Springbank and, yes, it has a tad of peat. All the other malts we tried with it were various versions of Islay malts. Peat in Springbank pales in comparison.

I’d honestly take almost anything current release from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society over anything mentioned so far. At that price point, you can hit pretty much anything except their super premium releases and there’s great interest in every bottle. Plus the names are fun, and might be just the ticket for a group of groomsmen if you can find one with a suggestive name. There’s a key online linking the numbers to distilleries so you can screen for peat. I don’t believe you have to be a member to buy from their website, but if you do, just PM me and I can help.

I’m NOT a fan of the Balvenie Portwood - I don’t like port/red wine finished scotches as I think they do no favors to fine malt. But clearly others disagree. And I really, really do not care for Macallan Fine Oak at any price.

You might be able to find Highland Park 17 year The Light for right around $250 - that is very good.

For instance, here is one I love, called Sultry Sweet Spicy Sensation:

It’s Mannachmore, 12 year. Not peated. You do have to be a member to buy, but, as I said, if you had interest I’d be happy to assist in placing an order. There’s another called “Expensive Perfume on a Fruity Tart” that is Aberlour - great name, no?

These are all single cask, at cask strength (a big plus in my opinion). No affiliation here, just a member and a fan.

That’s a great idea, Sarah, and perfect for whisky enthusiasts. However, I would imagine that the OP might be seeking a little bit of name recognition as well. Let’s face it: a novice would at last have some idea of a relatively well-know house name plus an obvious age statement.

I’m not arguing the truth of your statement, but where in the OP did he say anything about the friend or groomsmen being novices? I didn’t see a reason to assume he valued a label, since it wasn’t one of the stated criteria.

Springbank is peated. Avoid.

Oban is peated. Avoid.

The Glenfarclas probably is too sherried.

I’d suggest a Highland Park.

I’m also a huge fan of Sarah’s recommendation, as the SMWS knows what they’re doing when it comes to selecting casks.

I know the groom is far from a Scotch novice, but I can’t speak to the rest of the party (aside from myself). The select casks sound like a great idea, but the groomsmen have all preferred that we drink something “relative easy to obtain”, with the thought being the groom can reminisce on the bottle he drank on his wedding day and, should he choose to, could buy it again one day in the future.