Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Glenfiddich 12📌 PinGlenfiddich 12 Year OldThe world's best-selling single malt Scotch. Soft, fruity, lightly oaked, no peat. The bottle every Scotch beginner is told to start with, and rightly so. Triangle bottle, twelve years, three reasons to own one.ABV40%CountryScotland (Speyside)DistilleryGlenfiddich, DufftownOwnerWilliam Grant & SonsFounded1887StyleSingle Malt Scotch (Speyside)Price band$45-55 (US) / AU$80-95Best mixerSoda waterWhat it tastes likeSoft pear and apple, light vanilla and oak, a hint of malt. No peat. Drinks like a polite, well-mannered Scotch. Perfect for someone who finds Islay malts too smoky and Speyside is the right answer.Drinks beautifully neat

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Crown Royal📌 PinCrown RoyalCanadian whisky in a purple velvet bag. Smooth, light, slightly sweet. The bottle every Canadian has owned. Brilliant in a Crown and Coke, surprisingly excellent in a Manhattan, and the only whisky that comes pre-wrapped in its own gift bag.ABV40%CountryCanadaDistilleryGimli, ManitobaOwnerDiageoFounded1939StyleBlended Canadian WhiskyPrice band$30-35 (US) / AU$55-65Best mixerCola or ginger aleWhat it tastes likeSoft caramel and vanilla, hint of toasted oak, a faint rye spice underneath. Canadian whisky is built smoother than bourbon by design (corn, rye, and malted barley distilled separately, then blended). Crown Royal is the textbook

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Bushmills📌 PinBushmills OriginalThe other Irish whiskey. Triple-distilled, slightly drier than Jameson, made at the world's oldest licensed distillery (1608). Smoother than bourbon, easier than Scotch. The bottle every Northern Irishman swears by.ABV40%CountryNorthern IrelandDistilleryOld Bushmills, County AntrimOwnerProximo SpiritsFounded1608StyleBlended Irish WhiskeyPrice band$25-30 (US) / AU$50-55Best mixerGinger ale or apple juiceWhat it tastes likeCleaner and slightly drier than Jameson. Vanilla, honey, light grain, a faint malt character that Jameson lacks. Triple-distilled like all Irish whiskey, so smooth, no peat.Bushmills Black Bush is the upgrade: same base spirit but more sherry-cask aging, much richer. Worth the

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Wild Turkey 101📌 PinWild Turkey 10150.5 percent ABV bourbon at a budget price. Loud, oaky, slightly funky. The bourbon Hunter S. Thompson drank, the bourbon Matthew McConaughey advertises, the bourbon every cocktail bar pours when the recipe needs volume. Brilliant value.ABV50.5%CountryUSA (Kentucky)DistilleryWild Turkey, LawrenceburgOwnerCampari GroupFounded1869StyleHigh-rye BourbonPrice band$25-30 (US) / AU$55-65Best mixerCola or gingerWhat it tastes likeBig oak, brown sugar, toasted corn, a noticeable rye spice. The 50.5 percent ABV is the personality: louder, hotter, more concentrated than 40 percent bourbons. Slight funk on the back end that some drinkers love and others

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Bulleit Bourbon📌 PinBulleit BourbonHigh-rye bourbon, the closest most home bars get to a proper rye whiskey. Spicy, oaky, drier than most bourbons. The bottle every Manhattan and Sazerac wants. The pharmacy-bottle shape is half the appeal.ABV45%CountryUSA (Kentucky)DistilleryMade by Diageo (formerly contract distilled)OwnerDiageoFounded1987StyleHigh-rye bourbon (~28% rye)Price band$30-35 (US) / AU$60-70Best mixerGinger aleWhat it tastes likeRye spice up front, then caramel and oak underneath, finishing peppery and slightly grassy. Bulleit's mashbill runs about 28 percent rye (most bourbons are 8 to 15 percent), so it drinks much closer to rye whiskey than to wheated

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Buffalo Trace📌 PinBuffalo Trace BourbonThe bourbon that does everything well at a price that makes no sense. Buffalo Trace is the cocktail bartender's house bourbon for a reason: balanced rye-led mashbill, 45% ABV, smooth enough to sip, loud enough to push through any cocktail. The bottle to start with.ABV45%CountryUSA (Kentucky)DistilleryBuffalo Trace, Frankfort, KYOwnerSazerac CompanyFounded1773 (oldest continuously operating)StyleBourbon (rye-led mashbill #1)Price band$30-35 (US) / AU$70-90Best mixerSoda or gingerWhat it tastes likeCaramel and vanilla up front, brown sugar and oak in the middle, a slight rye spice on the finish. Balanced is the word.

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Maker's Mark📌 PinMaker's MarkWheated bourbon. Soft, sweet, and the bottle every cocktail-curious newcomer should have at home. The red wax is iconic for a reason: this is the gateway bourbon, easy to drink without losing the bourbon character.ABV45%CountryUSA (Kentucky)DistilleryMaker's Mark, Loretto, KYOwnerBeam SuntoryFounded1953StyleWheated BourbonPrice band$30-35 (US) / AU$60-70Best mixerGinger aleWhat it tastes likeSweet from the wheat (most bourbons use rye for the second grain; Maker's uses red winter wheat instead). Vanilla, caramel, soft baking-spice. No aggressive oak, no rye spice. The 45% ABV gives it just enough push.Drinks beautifully neat or with

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Johnnie Walker📌 PinJohnnie Walker Black LabelThe default ordering Scotch in any bar, anywhere. Twelve-year-old blended Scotch, smoky enough to feel like Scotch, smooth enough to drink without flinching. Black Label is the bottle every Scotch drinker has owned twice over.ABV40%CountryScotlandDistilleryMulti (Diageo blend)OwnerDiageoFounded1820 (label since 1909)StyleBlended Scotch (12yo)Price band$35-45 (US) / AU$70-85Best mixerSoda waterWhat it tastes likeSmoke first, but soft smoke (think campfire from a distance, not Laphroaig). Then dried fruit, vanilla, a touch of orange peel, the malty backbone of the blend. The 12-year aging adds depth without losing accessibility.Drinks easy neat

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Jack Daniel's📌 PinJack Daniel's Old No. 7Tennessee whiskey, charcoal-mellowed, the bottle every American bar in the world has on the shelf. Smoother than bourbon, sweeter than Scotch, perfect with cola. The honest workhorse of American whiskey.ABV40%CountryUSA (Tennessee)DistilleryLynchburg, TennesseeOwnerBrown-FormanFounded1866StyleTennessee WhiskeyPrice band$25-30 (US) / AU$50-60Best mixerColaWhat it tastes likeSweet up front: vanilla, banana, caramel, toasted corn. Soft underneath, no aggressive oak. The Lincoln County Process (charcoal-filtering before barreling) takes off the rough edges that bourbon keeps.Drinks easy neat or on ice. Drinks even easier with Coke, which is why Jack and Coke is one

Drink Lab › Bottle Library › Whiskey › Jameson📌 PinJameson Irish WhiskeySmooth, easy, and absolutely everywhere. Jameson is the world's best-selling Irish whiskey for a reason: it goes down in a Picklebacks at the dive bar and in a Whiskey Sour at the cocktail bar. Triple-distilled, no peat, no fuss.ABV40%CountryIrelandDistilleryMidleton, County CorkOwnerPernod RicardFounded1780StyleBlended Irish WhiskeyPrice band$25-30 (US) / AU$50-55Best mixerGinger aleWhat it tastes likeSmooth. Lightly sweet. Vanilla and pot still grain at the front, a hint of toasted oak underneath, no smoke whatsoever. The triple distillation and Irish style produce a much softer whiskey than Scotch or bourbon.Drinks easily neat