While the booming popularity of a good dram has sent the price of premium, age-statement bottles into the stratosphere, you don’t need to remortgage your house for a decent pour. The best supermarket whiskies now include some genuinely excellent bottles at prices that won’t make you wince.
If you’re hunting for a crowd-pleasing gift or something to sip in the sun, there’s no need to spend big to secure a decent bottle. To help separate the genuinely good-value whiskies from the underwhelming options, we asked industry experts to share the supermarket buys worth adding to your trolley.
While it’s easy to assume higher prices guarantee better quality, affordable supermarket whiskies can be surprisingly impressive. Aldi, for example, has seen several of its own-label expressions ranked among the best in the world, while Lidl has previously picked up gold at the World Whiskies Awards. “You can find great whisky available at almost every price point,” says Billy Abbott, author of a Philosophy of Whisky. “While more affordable whiskies will often not have the bells and whistles of more expensive bottles, you can find great quality wherever you look.”
Whisky’s growing popularity has also encouraged supermarkets to raise their game. A booming cocktail culture, helped along by the younger generation’s rediscovery of classics such as the old fashioned, has turned whisky into one of the most in-demand spirits. As a result, the bottles sitting alongside your weekly shop are now better than ever.
Broadly speaking, there are five main types of whisky: Scottish scotch, Irish whiskey, American whiskey, Canadian whisky and Japanese whisky. Production methods differ by region, offering single malts, blends, cask-strength, and peated varieties. Blended and Irish whiskeys are widely enjoyed for their smoothness, while American bourbon has surged in popularity recently, with its sweeter flavour making it an accessible choice for newcomers.
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Meet the experts
Joanne Gould is a journalist with a decade of experience writing about food and drink. She’s written about every type of whisky there is for dozens of publications, from scotch and single malt to blended and bourbon.
Jonathan Hatchman is a whisky expert with years under his belt reviewing the best spirits, with tests of the best Japanese whiskies, bourbon, and rye.
Aidy Smith is an award-winning TV presenter, broadcaster and journalist. He is the presenter of Amazon Prime’s award-winning drinks-themed travel series The Three Drinkers and is frequently heard across TV and radio.
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