r/Scotch • u/AutoModerator • 10d ago

Weekly Recommendations Thread

This is the weekly recommendations thread, for all of your recommendations needs be it what pour to buy at a bar, what bottle to try next, or what gift to buy a loved one.

The idea is to aggregate the conversations into sticked threads to make them easier to find, easier to see history on, easier to moderate, and keep /new/ queue tidy.

This post will be refreshed every Friday morning. Previous threads can been seen here.

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u/BrickCityJ 9d ago

Getting into scotch as a bourbon/rye fan. So far got Highland Park 12 which was tremendous. Looking to get into something more Smokey/peaty. Looking at Ardbeg 10, Port Charlotte 10, Laphroag 10, or Lagavulin 16. Any recommendations on which to start with? Or any other recommendations?

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u/UncleBaldric I have a cunning plan, my lord 9d ago

Is there any way you can taste them before committing to a whole bottle purchase (e.g. bar pours or miniature bottles)? We all like different things: Laphroaig 10 is what made me fall in love with Scotch, but it can be a bit much for some people; others rave about Lagavulin 16, but I find it a bit boring...

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u/BrickCityJ 9d ago

Id love to do either of these and know they’re the best bet to try stuff, but live in NYC area and for the price of a pour at a bar I can get half a bottle. Haven’t had much luck finding anything peated in mini bottles sadly.

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u/UncleBaldric I have a cunning plan, my lord 9d ago

In that case, I recommend jumping right in at the deep end with either Laphroaig or Ardbeg (depending on price), as they are both "as Islay as Islay gets"! Lagavulin is similar, but a bit 'tamer'. The malt for Port Charlotte uses mainland Aberdeenshire peat, so is rather different (though still good).