Great reccomendations. Already have the Arran 10 and Deanston 12. Just visited Deanston last weekend. Great tour and absolutely great stuff and staff. They opened almost every bottle in the shop for me so i could try and they just kept asking "Oh do you want to try this one too? How about this one, wann try?" Absolut top service compared to other visitor centres. 👍👍👍
@@brownwaterboys8304Oh my... if you can, go buy it (at a reasonable price of course). In my world it is a worthy rival to the Springbank 10yo in terms of quality. Which you prefer is a matter of taste.
Have you tasted Glencadam 12 Portwood finish? It is much much better even than Glencadam 15 which Ralfy announced whisky of the year (don't remember which exactly)
Got all 3 of these mate, the anCnoc after you did the review ( thank you ). All 3 are belters. I have lined up for Christmas Day anCnoc 18yr, Caledonia Edradour 12 and Laphroaig cask strength batch 15. So all the best if I miss anything next week.
All three are great recommendations for 2024. Given the inflation driven pricing conditions, many scotch consumers have to come to a 10-12 year categories to look for good value such as these three. I would throw in Tobermory 10, Ledaig 10, Glencadam 10 and maybe a couple of others.
wow i actually have all 3 of those. And yes i would recommend all 3 of them. Deanston being my favorite, Arran a close second, and anCnoc also a great choice. Good job Ralfy :D
Ralfy, been watching you for over a decade, and will always be a fan. I’m also a film enthusiast and watched a movie recently where the villain was drinking Brora! Understated scene for that reason alone. Cheers my friend and God bless
I just dropped in to say hi, I used to watch your channel back when I was still interested in learning about malts. I gave up sipping a while back, I basically switched over to tea with lemon; not finding much value in alcohol these days. Good quality videos, wishing you the best!
I just want to start by saying thank you Ralfy for all your years of work, and dedication in sharing your years of whisky-wisdom here on YT. Your channel is one of the first I've subscribed to and have learned a lot from you over the years. I can't disagree with any of those 3 whiskies, I've tried all of them and have purchased at least one or more bottles of each! In my area however (Quebec, Canada) they now range in price between 80$ - 98$ which is starting to get a bit pricey, especially the Deanston 12, but I'd still buy it again. For my location, my personal list of 3 available, quality, sub-80$ single malt Scotches is; Ledaig 10, Glencadam 10, and Glen Scotia Double Cask. This last one just seems to fly below the radar as an affordable and obtainable introduction to Campbeltown style whisky. Especially since almost all Springbank products are now only available through lottery here 😞 Happy holidays and Slàinte Mhath!
@dave7920 - Great to see comments from Canada and compare with my area (PEI and Maritimes). Both the Arran (in PEI) and AnCnoc (in NS) are $65 - Deanston 12 is 100 (in NB). I guess I know my purchases next time while travelling!!
Thats Wonderful...Ive saved this video for reference next time im out for a bottle..Cant wait to try these offerings that i quite frankly did not know about..As always Ralfy i greatly appreciate your Malty Wisdom...;)...Cheers from East Tennessee...!!
You've been a great source of information throughout my whisky journey. Since my limit for a bottle is around 50 € my question is how much am I missing out compared to a more expensive bottle (like an 18/25 year old expression). How big is the difference really? Could be a topic for an extra, maybe 😉?
Good recommendations and as Ralfy said at the end of the video, the 18 year old versions of each of these are great. If you want to have a nice Christmas whiskey with your dad and granddad this season. Then they are much more affordable and available than something more well known. Happy holidays to all. 🎅
The Deanston 12 is my fave. I can Highly Reccomend it. Not just in this price bracket but in general. Usually priced on my usual retailer at £38 to £40. Im never without one ( or two) Arran 10 is just as good at a similar price. The Ancnoc used to be sold at Marks and Spencers for £29 a bottle not so long ago, its not really my cup of tea, but Its a good one to learn about the developement of flavour. Let me just add that Bunnahabhain Stiuireadair which is often discounted in supermarkets to £27 is an absolute corker! Dont be put off by the NAS. Its a great dram if the old wallet is a bit threadbare.
They are great and good value good quality just a little boringr for my palate I have grown as a whisky fan since I saw 👀 your first you tube blog thanks Ralph
Laphroig 10 is the “best value” malt in the US in my opinion. It’s the last Islay malt not skyrocket in price and is still a solid performer batch by batch. I see it for under $50, sometimes under $40 on sale on occasion.
You lucky malt masticator Ralfy . Here in Australia those three range from $107-$110 , and that’s in the “ we’re never beaten on price “ national grog store , that’s about £65 per bottle . They definitely are not in the affordable range here my friend .
Greeting Mr Ralfy, and thank you for your informative video, I am a bit behind and catching up on your videos, down here in Australia, all 3 of them are above or at the right range if $100 I am afraid. I have them from 2 years ago and still half full. Every now and then, I have a sip. Okay, off to go to the next video😅
As always, this is a great video with excellent recommendations. Those of us who are passionate about single malt get asked often "what is a good single malt Scotch for someone just getting into Scotch?" Here in the USA a lot of bourbon drinkers ask me that. I always recommend Arran, AnCnoc, and Bunnahabain. Your addition of Deanston and Balblair just add choice to the list. I also often mention Glencadam and Loch Lomond. For all of these of course I'm suggesting the value rich 10 or 12 year old. This kind of content adds great value for folks, Ralfie! Thank you.
Hey Ralphy, bought the AnCnoc 12 based on your recommendation. What a well made drink! Very nice. Also, it's only about $60 in NZ which translates to 34 euros. Can enjoy quality stuff without breaking the bank. Something occured to me - you could also do food pairing videos as extras. Like most, I tend to have mildly salted nuts, cheese, crackers and sometimes salami with my drinks. But I hear chocolate pairs well with sherried stuff (not my cup of tea though). So there you go - some food for thought :)
Hi Ralfy, great video content again - I always enjoy your advice and insight. One observation I made on your recent 2 videos is that they are not sharp in focus partly. Particularly the Craigallachie one 13Y Armaniac - BR CH
Wow those are actually available here in Ontario Canada but after the government adds their taxation thievery none of those are affordable. Great video though.
Absolute great recommendations, thanks for your video! Actually sipping the AnCnoc while watching 😄🥃Agree the AnCnoc and the Arran are really easydrinkable, wonderful Single Malts. 👍🏻Haven‘t tried the Deanston..
My go-to Scotch is Loch Lomond 12. Very affordable, non-chill filtered, natural color and 46%. Under $40 here in the States, where I am. The other day, I was at my local spirits shop and there was a bottle of Compass Box Glasgow Blend. I've had it before and it isn't bad. Non-chill filtered and natural color, but only 43%, which is unusual at that proof. It is a good value. There is another that they don't carry anymore that I liked. It is Mossburn, which is a blended malt. Very inexpensive. They have Highland and Speyside variants. 46%, non-chill filtered and natural color. It's another one that you could get for under $40. There is good value in quality Scotch if you look around.
Ancnoc 12 used to be $40 where I am in the US, literally 4 years ago. Today with our rampant inflation and greedy government it’s up to $65 if/when I see it.
I've had 2 of 3 and oh wow. I wish I could find the ancnoc here in the states. I'll keep looking. But don't think it makes it here. Deanston is the funky one in a rough sense. and arran is fruity, roughly. Very very good. stuff. Just picked up some craigellachie 13. cant wait to try it.
Thank you so much for emphasizing quality and value together; “it’s not rocket science” exactly! Still too many producers IMHO have a very old mindset whereby they are content to sit back having put an exorbitant price on a bottle and wait for the customer. Thankfully younger people recognize that model is archaic. We can offer something creatively presented at a fair price and make our money in volume. As a result the economy of scale can help us while not compromising what is on offer. (You have pointed out regrettably as demand rises quality goes down). Let’s hope that does not happen as a result of your giving the new players a bump; that they have the intelligence to know they would be destroying their customer base; learn from the mistakes of others who as you pointed out are riding on past reputation.
Just havin a dram of Deanston 12 listening to your choices got to agree on the Deanston i'm goin to try the Arran I think its available here as i never had it before.
I bought these three because of your recommendations, and I like them all a lot. Thank you man! I would recommend Deanston Virgin Oak over the Deanston 12 for beginners. I would also add Glencadam 10, Tobermory 12 and Glengoyne 12. Btw, is there any chance for you to review Old Ballantruan 10? I think It is a very high quality peat bomb that is absolutely underrated because it comes from the Tomintoul distillery.
I couldn’t agree more this is how whisky should be presented 46% abv unchillfiltered and the quality of the dram speak for itself no flannel. Best form of marketing is word of mouth and producing good spirit.
The anCnoc is ~5$ less than the deanston for me and only half as good. I actually blended it with some other bottles and it was a great base. and FWIW, love the arran
Deanston 12 is a consistently great whisky. I haven't tried anything from acnoc or arran yet.. might have to, though considering how highly rated arran is
@@r.j.wheels6755 Yeah, it's inexcusable that a whisky with this kind of price to quality ratio isn't more widely praised by the community. I was shocked it wasn't even nominated in the OSWAs...Again!?! It's different, but as good as anything coming out of Campbeltown and has a lot in common with better versions of Mortlach. And the fact that Dewar's/Bacardi has kept the prices down, especially in these days of eye-watering inflation, needs to be commended. Sadly, the bottles recommended by Ralfy in this video are all $15-20+ more than Craigellechie 13, and not as available where I live; so that factors in as well ✌️ Update: AnCnoc 12 is about the same price, but again, not nearly as available where I live. I'd have to hunt hard to track down a bottle ✌️
@@MrChristopherMolloy I agree it is underrated. And I’ve been on the hunt, and I mean looking hard, for the Deanston and many other of these great whiskies, and they are nowhere to be found anywhere remotely close to me either. And if I am lucky enough to find a good one, I go back to get another and it’s disappeared for all of eternity, never to return again. I’ve learned to by 2 at a time now if it’s one I really want.
@@r.j.wheels6755 Yep! As for Deanston, it too isn't as available as it was a few years ago. Retailers are displacing Scotch with Tequila, and what shelf space is left is reserved for the best sellers. Very frustrating.
Unfortunately, here in California, none of these is priced anywhere near what they are in the UK. The Ancnoc 12 is theoretically $52, but really hard to find. And the other two are at least $60. So more like £48 at current exchange rates (plus we pay an extra 9-10% sales tax, unlike in the UK where the VAT is included in the retail price). Even though the 25% US tariff on Scotch whisky went away in 2021, prices really didn't go down at all. This is why I'm drinking much less Scotch whisky. Quality rums, American whiskies, and Armagnacs are way better values here in the USA!
I think Arran is just okay. It's an island that doesn't give its whiskeys a maritime character. 87 dollars for NAS Sauternes cask, and I'm having to use it in old fashioneds to enjoy it. LOVE AnCnoc.
Hi Ralfy, great recommendations! I've sent you a question through Instagram asking for your help to decide among several single malt brands I've seen on a shop here in Uruguay. There's not so much variety over here, so I'll have to decide among those brands. Could you help me decide which to buy? Some of them are way high priced, so maybe a descendant ranking from the best to the not so good ones would help.
Arran 10 is as good as it gets in the €30 category. I shall be trying the Deanston VirginOak before going for the 12. AnCnoc is not crafty enough for me. For a few dollars more I’d choose the Craigellachie 13. Or the Aberlour 12 ncf.
Ralfy you should've mentioned the luxury brands like Hermes...talk about profit..whats a handbag? 20k? a scarf what? 3000$ US? Indeed with this perspective even a 200$ US bottle which can bring people together for a laugh and a few indescribably savoury hours ....is priceless...now someone will say, "Well...I can throw a scarf on and prance around or maybe even have a tumble for laughs!" To that I would say "What? damn yer eye!"
Ancnoc 12... Nice, but once you've grown fondly familiar with 46% and non chill filtered, I find this lacking. Arran 10, top notch 👌 5th bottle in and all fantastic. Deanston 12, I found it to be less smooth and than Arran but OK. I'd pay that bit more and buy the Glencadam 10, Delightful dram that's crept up in price.
It sure does depend on where you live. I live in Japan. I used to enjoy Arran 10 quite often before Ralfy made it his Whisky of the Year. I could easily find it for about 3800 yen (plus tax). Now it's almost always over 7000 yen. I basically can't drink it anymore. The other two whiskys here are still under 5000 yen (barely). Personally, I'm just getting priced out of the single malt market, period. For now, I can at least usually still get Loch Lomond 12 for around 4000 yen or so. I know Ralfy isn't a huge fan of it, but it is a decent malt that is 46% and un-chillfiltered. You can't always get what you want these days. You have to make do with the best of what you can afford.
I would add Glen Garioch 12yo at 48% ABV, Glencadam 10yo at 46% ABV and Glen Elgin 12yo at 43% ABV. Frankly anCnoc is not a Speyside whisky, they call it Eastern Highland whisky and the style is much closer to Glencadam and Glen Garioch, i.e. Eastern Highlands ;-)
these are no doubt good , but indy bottlings are way better ,, but as you say - getting hold of most indies is hard for some people as only around 300 lots per cask there is not enough to supply all shops ;; so having consistent reliable offerings like these is important ;;
Hi Ralfy I’ve been a follow for years buy I can’t understand why you don’t mention the price you paid for the drams ???? This is most important for us.
I believe it's not that relevant to his global reach through his channel as he lives on the Isle of Man and mostly buys whisky in the UK from specialist shops. Also he is not a bargain hunter, so he might miss some hard discounts online or offers in duty frees. Also his current recommendations may not be alligned with the current offers.
