Chairman’s reserve- St Lucia rum, is one of my very favorite!!! Kurt and Sweeney is great… But if you want to talk what your going to find on the grocery store shelf or at a liquor store, Sailor Jerry’s is really good. but one of the cheapest ones out there is also one of my favorites too and it’s called Admiral Nelson’s
Yes, I had that one several years ago. I even visited the distillery when I was there. Their spiced rum is quite good, too. I still prefer the Zacapa 23 over it. I know of Sailor Jerry’s, but I am unfamiliar with Admiral Nelson’s rum. I got an amazing Venezuelan rum, while in Aruba, many years ago, but when I went back, I could not find it, and it is not available in the states, Cacique 18, it was a special release 18 year old, quite nice, had notes reminiscent of a fine Cognac, but just a bit sweeter, and a lot less expensive than a Cognac would be of that quality. It was about $35 15 years ago.
Sticking with my more economical theme, I like this one:
And this one:
You know…you could have quit buying Coke. 
She’d of used the Vernors instead…
Zacapa 23… I will have to try it.
I was no expert on Single Malt Scotch, I just knew the big names, so I drank the Glenlivet & Glenfiddich 12 year olds. Then A friend turned me on to the Macallan 18 year old (a graduation gift), shortly thereafter then we went on a cruise ship with 10 different single malt scotches. So of course I spend the week doing a full factorial concept selection matrix (with clip board and bar tenders assistance) and determined that at least for me, the 12 year old Glenfiddich was the best “normal” Single malt. $35 bucks anywhere.
Costco sometimes has the 15 year old “Solara” from Glenfiddich, which is superb and in the $60 range.
Laphroag tastes like an ash tray (Peaty my foot).
Anybody can find a great expensive scotch, bourbon or wine, the challenge is to find a great affordable scotch.
BTW it takes me 20 minutes to drink one shot.
**I dont like Scotch. HOWEVER, back in the late 70s I spent a summer in Europe studying Astronomy and Geology. Found this wonderful drink called Glenmorange. It was around $4.00-5.00 a bottle. We drank it like water and it was delicious. Almost like a light oil. In a month I must have drank 7 or 8 bottles of that elixer and it was delicious.
Times and tastes change. I am now a bourbon man, dont even care for Scotch anymore however there will always be a warm place in my heart for the Glenmorangie. If offered I would drink it without hesitation just for the nostalgia. Same goes with Benedictine. Some things just become tradition.
My wife and I went to a “Beer, Bourbon and BBQ” event last summer and had a grand time sampling the wares of the various distilleries, then we went to another one and had an equally enjoyable time and discovered my wife is a bourbon girl. We took a little “staycation” to Luray, VA and found a wonderful distillery there and they handed us a MAP and a challenge to visit 10 distilleries before Dec 31 and you get a t-shirt (The Virginia Spirits Trail). It has been a pleasure and a learning experience to understand the differences between Scotch, Bourbon and Whiskey as wells as how closely Gin, Rum and Vodka are distilled. Essentially with a single still you can make any of the above.
We were at this place in Williamsburg called the 8 Shires where they make things as close as possible to the 1700’s version of what would be bourbon or whiskey or rum and gin. Their claim to fame is that the well from the Jamestown Colony went dry and they capped it in 1608 a few years ago they discovered the well and extracted 10 gallons of water. This distillery took the 10 gallons of water and reverse distilled a batch of whiskey. The day we showed up there was a man and his wife who took the tour with us that were enthralled by the story of the 1608 whiskey. We all ended up in the tasting room to sample our flights of the distilleries offering. This guy wanted to taste the 1608 (@$1200 for a very small bottle) and they have 2 available for retail sale. The rules for tasting rooms are very specific in VA and you are not allowed to have more than 3oz of liquor in a visit. There were probably 10 of us there at the time and the gentleman asked for our attention and stated that he was going to buy both 1608 bottles and would like to share one of them with us. Aside from the toasts and accolades to the host OH MY GOOD GOOGLY GOO that was without question the single finest drink I have ever tasted in my life and I have been to Scotland and Kantukeeey. If I ever taste something that wonderful again I will know I am in heaven. This was a much different result from the first time I tasted Dom Perignon (sp) by a benefactor which I thought tasted like cat piss.
Cheers,
Craig6
Unlike you, I am unable to compare it to cat piss. 
However, I agree that it is well-overrated. I had it once years ago, a friend bought a bottle to celebrate. It was good, you could taste that it was aged well, but you could buy a Champagne of similar or better quality for about 1/3 the cost.
We did one of those 2 year ago on a trip to NC. We also found it interesting.
No doubt it was good, though it is not likely the same as it was originally as it wasn’t until the late 1800s that whiskies were aged in oak, mostly they were not even aged. I am sure you will experience at least another you will also highly enjoy.
I gather you and your wife got the t-shirts?
Yes, it does take a long time to experience and appreciate a good dram. What is “affordable” does differ based upon what one is willing and able to pay. 
There are some nice bottles under $50, and some very nice ones under $100, over $100, you will be less likely to find a “bad” bottle, but that is solely based on personal preference.
When drinking Scotch, the measure is called a dram, which technically is 1/8 fluid ounces, but for Scotch it is however much you happen to pour. As the spirit is strong, especially cask-strength, about 1 - 1.5 ounces is a typical dram, less than that is a “wee bit”, and more is a healthy or good dram.
Slàinte mhath!
Aei lass and laddie, now here is a true thread our forefathers would have gotten behind. I do enjoy a wee dram of whisky in the evening. As stated so well above; all whisky is good and the varied pallets of each one from corn, rye, Scotch to Irish and Canadian to Kentucky there is one out there for each and everyone of us. I love a single malt scotch and if you have not tried an Irish single malt you should!!! Start with “Telling” it’s very good. Now a few of my friends have commented on Japanese distilled whiskey. I have not found one yet that warrants a second taste yet. Now for you bourbon drinkers if you can get your hands on a bottle of “Ghost Owl” bottled in Oregon, it’s a delight. My go to standby scotch has and always been either Glenmorange 10yr and Arbelor 10yr…neet.
I don’t know what a dram is, but when someone is handing me their glass, or I hold up an empty one, I ask them how many fingers they want. Usual answer is 2. It is an easy visual concept that everyone seems to grasp.
I’d rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy.
That depends on the glass. Scotch drinkers that I know, and whisky bars I have been to, do not use double old-fashioned glasses, but glasses designed for Scotch that have wide bases and narrower necks. Your “two fingers” is for old movies and those that drink Bourbon. It is considered about 2 ounces.
This is the type of glass I am referring to, and pouring “two fingers” in it would be much more than 2 ounces.
Give Bill Grant’s Glenfiddich 14 a try it’s my usual go-to single malt. Whenever I’m introducing a novice to the malts–or wish a special treat for myself–I’ll set up a flight of three jiggers to include the MacAllen, the Glenfiddich or Oban, and the marvelous Laphroaig . The sequentially deeper journey into the peat–sipping and declaiming/discussing all the way–usually takes me about and hour to an hour and a half. Great fun.
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For starters, I’d say you might pick something more like Aberlour or the MacAllen. The Laphroaig is powerfully peaty and something to grow into rather than to try and be surprised and disappointed.
Laphroaig grew on me pretty quick, I split a bottle with an English barkeep after hours the first time I tried it. I don’t know how, but I got up a couple hours later and rode from Westbury, England past Stonehenge, thru the Chunnel, and on to Paderborn, Germany. It was a rough day … thank goodness it was only the 750ml bottle!
Yes, I don’t believe peat is an acquired taste, either you like it or you don’t, and there is more than one type/taste, so it can be quite interesting. Lighter styles may be good for those starting out, but not because of lack of peat, but to aid in learning the flavors in Scotch. It’s kind of like when you start drinking wine, you don’t typically start with the most powerful and flavorful.
I do enjoy a number of single malts that are not single cask or cask-strength. However, as I have experienced many styles and flavors, I have mostly moved on to single cask, single malts, as each one is a singular taste experience and the true expression of the spirit. There is no Master of Malt mixing the casks to create a flavor profile. Whatever spirit is in the cask goes in the bottle. The only decision is when or if to bottle it.
Another benefit of cask-strength Scotch is that without the distiller adding water to the Scotch before it is bottled, all the flavors of the Scotch are in the bottle. No flavors or nose are lost during bottling. You can add as little or as much water as you want. Many are so good and smooth full-strength that water is a mere after-thought, just to experience the changes that occur with the addition of water. When the Scotch in the bottle is already watered-down, you lose that experience.
As water is added, it releases flavors and scents that might not have been discernible when at full-strength. To have a proper experience with a cask-strength Scotch, it takes a long time. The Scotch needs time to show itself as water is added a few drops at a time, and for you to nose and taste the different nuances as the water is slowly added.
I have read that Masters of Malt, as they are tasting, continue to add water to the Scotch to the point where it gets to about 20% alcohol. A typical cask-strength Scotch starts at about 60% or more of alcohol. The younger ones, such as a 7 year old often are in the mid-60s in percentage of alcohol, where a very old Scotch might only be in the upper 40s or low 50s in percentage of alcohol. There are many factors that play into how much alcohol remains in a cask over time.
A number of the Aberlour Scotches are also peated, but less so compared to Islay Scotch that is noted for their peat monsters. They also use a lot of sherry casks. Their A’Bunadh series, cask-strength, aged in Oloroso sherry butts, was amazing up to about batch 61, then it seemed to be living on its laurels. Macallan, in my opinion, is over-priced. They also chill-filter and color their Scotch. They do have some good Scotch, but there are many others at least as good and a much better value.
I have no affinity for Glenfiddich. I have had a number of their offerings, up to quite expensive (over $200), but none I found desirable, nor exciting. I have had a couple from Oban and have enjoyed those. There are many Scotch distilleries that rarely release their own production, typically used in blends, or ones that are now closed, but an independent bottler or another distiller bought their casks. Getting a single malt, cask-strength from one of those can be quite the experience, and can blow away the big labels, and be much better priced.