5 Drams I Can Recommend to Whisky Drinkers on a Budget

Whisky can be expensive, but it doesn’t always have to be. Looking for a premium-quality dram for a very reasonable price? You’ve come to the right place.

Let’s be real here, being a whisky enthusiast isn’t exactly the world’s cheapest hobby (yes, whisky enthusiasm is indeed a hobby, and that’s a hill I’ll happily die upon). If there’s one thing that more than a decade in the spirits biz has taught me however, it’s the fact that quality drams needn’t break the bank.

With everybody now feeling the economic pinch more than ever (I think the word ‘pinch’ is doing a lot of heavy lifting at this stage), finding affordable treats is becoming increasingly difficult. Yes, there are plenty of whiskies out there that cost thousands of pounds, if not more, but at the same time, that doesn’t mean that all premium quality whiskies have to cost an arm and a leg, either.

There are heaps of budget-friendly drams out there that are not only of exceptional quality, but also kind to the bank balance too. To prove it, I’ll be making a few recommendations below. Just to be clear, this isn’t about finding the cheapest whiskies in the shops, this is about value-for-money, quality, and affordability.

With that said, here are 5 drams I can recommend to whisky drinkers on a budget.

The Glenlee Blended

The first whisky I have for you today is a blended dram from The Glenlee.

Produced in honour of, and named after, The Glenlee, a ship built in 1896 that sailed around the globe four times, it’s a whisky a lot of people will be surprised by. It’s also one that has not yet received the recognition which I feel it deserves. That will probably change as time progresses.

The Glenlee ship may have been left to rust in the 1980s, but it was recently restored to its former glory where it stands proudly next to Glasgow Harbour’s Maritime Museum. It’s a vessel well worth checking out.

Do you know what else is worth checking out? This blended Scotch. Matured in a combination of Spanish oak and American casks for 3 years, it has a great honeyed toffee nose, a zingy, creamy, and fruity palate, and lengthy, smooth, vanilla and malt-forward finish.

Oh, and FYI, this will set you back less than twenty-five quid, with a bottle coming in at roughly £23 – £24.99 as of this writing.

Teaninich 10 Year Old 2010 The Wild Scotland Collection Deerstalker

I’ve a lot of love for independent bottlings as you can probably imagine, so this is a dram that I’ve a lot of time for.

The Teaninich 10 Year Old Deerstalker is an independent Highlands single malt distilled in 2010 by Teaninich and bottled a decade later by Deerstalker as part of their The Wild Scotland Collection. I love this dram, not only because of the taste, but also because of the label and packaging, which features a fantastic-looking Pine Marten standing proudly in the heart of the rugged Highlands.

With tart and fruity notes of apple crumble, coupled with buttery Scottish shortbread, vanilla custard slice, and zingy citrus, there’s a lot to love about this dram, including the price (roughly £48).

Dewar’s 8 Year Old Japanese Smooth

Here’s another blended Scotch recommendation, this time in the form of Dewar’s 8 Year Old Japanese Smooth.

This is a very unique whisky, in that it has been matured in Japanese Mizunara oak casks. Mizunara (Quercus crispula) oak casks are extremely rare, and very expensive. They’re made from Mizunara oak, a protected species of oak native to Japan. It’s a highly porous oak with a much higher water content. Because of its unique structure, it imparts a number of different flavours and notes into the whisky. Typically, Mizunara oak imparts spicy tropical flavours, with toasted coconut being one of the most prominent.

As you might expect, this dram features prominent notes of pineapple coconut upside down cake, toasted oak, stewed plums, cinnamon sugar, and sandalwood. There’s also a gentle spiciness to it, with subtle red berry undertones. At 40% ABV, it’s also as smooth as you’d expect for a blended dram, particularly from Dewar’s.

If you fancy something a bit different, you can currently pick up a bottle of this for roughly £30 – £32.

Laphroaig 10 Year Old Cask Strength

So, far, the drams on my list today have been decidedly smoke-free, for the most part at least. That’s all well and good, but what about peated dram fans looking for a quality tipple that isn’t going to break the bank? Enter Laphroaig 10 Year Old Cask Strength.

Coming to you from one of Islay’s most prestigious distilleries, this is a peaty juggernaut with all of the tell-tale tasting notes of a quality Islay expression. You’ve got the earthiness, you get the smoke, you get the salty, coastal brininess, you get the medicinal undertones, and there’s plenty of citrus notes too, all balanced beautifully with a subtle fruity spiciness and an incredibly lengthy finish.

A bottle will currently set you back around £47 – £49, which for a cask strength dram of this quality, is incredible value for money in my opinion.

GreatDrams Founders’ Choice Blended Scotch Whisky

Finally, from the GreatDrams Tales From the Barrel Collection I can wholeheartedly recommend our GreatDrams Founders’ Choice Blended Scotch Whisky.

This gold medal-winning Speyside dram is a small batch release featuring prominent sherry and vanilla notes, with caramelised pineapple, a subtle smokiness, and a bold, complex, savoury richness. It’s a fantastic sipper, yet works equally as well on ice, in a cocktail, or even with a mixer on a fine summer’s day.

For a mere £45, this award-winning dram can be yours. Call me biased if you wish, but in this day and age, that kind of value-for-money is hard to come by.

Tags: BudgetdramsWhisky Drinkers

Greg

My name is Greg, and I’m a brand strategy consultant, writer, speaker, host and judge specialising in premium spirits. My mission is to experience, share and inspire with everything great about whisky, whiskey, gin, beer and fine dining through my writing, my brand building and my whisky tastings.