Tastes

Good, but George Dickel 12 is a better value for a wheated bourbon

Not a fan of speyside, but still a good example, and easy for new scotch drinkers.

I've had the original 10 year and single barrel. It earns its reputation as being a $30 whiskey that tastes much more expensive. Add water to bring out the caramel and vanilla sweetness otherwise it is mostly oak and slight leather

Oaky, with lots of vanilla. A little sharp around the edges. This is just young eagle rare

Surprisingly similar to buffalo trace for the price difference

Sweet and rich for sure, but still maintains the classic characteristics of a good bourbon. For its age it still has a fair bite. It is not overwhelmed by complexity, but that isn't always a bad thing. I would compare it to Eagle Rare, but a little less of a bargain.

As stated before, this is the only real choice for single malt islay under $50 (which it is half the price of). Plenty of peat smoke, but a little on the sweet side and lacks the dry after taste of many other islays.

Just getting into scotch. Really enjoy peat, so I heard Islay is the way to go. Seems incredibly overwhelmed by "seaweed." I expected it to be more well balanced than that based on ratings. Having said that, when s spash of water or single ice cube is added to it, it does bring out the inert flavors that bring that balance of sweetness and citrus forward. Truthfully, I would more likely pay half the price for McClelland's given the choice again.