The Best Scotch, Tequila & Bourbon to Buy for Father’s Day

The GlenDronach, 21 Year Old

ABV

48%

Price

$370

This is the big, rich after-dinner Scotch of your dad’s dreams; matured in dry oloroso and sweet Pedro Ximénez sherry casks, and expertly assembled by master blender Dr Rachel Barrie.

The nose is all chocolate almonds, blackberry jam, tobacco and cocktail bitters, setting you up for a weighty palate of dried fruits, cocoa, bresaola and cedar wood. Brings to mind old sports cars, leatherbound books, and antique furniture.

The sort of stuff dads like.

Benromach 15 Year Old

ABV

43%

Price

$100

A bit of a time traveler, this one; distilled in the 21^st century, but tastes like something from a bygone era. It’s warm and rich, with huge umami and some industrial minerality like warm machinery, tool boxes and sooty smoke.

You’ll also find nice walnuts, almonds, and vanilla gleaned through ageing in a combination of sherry casks and bourbon barrels. Benromach often punches above its weight, and this is no exception.

Talisker, Magma 47 Year Old

ABV

48.8%

Price

$5,250

This bottling has all the tropical fruits and maritime character we love to find in old Talisker. The distillery’s hallmark notes of brine and white pepper are backed up here by guava, mandarin, grapefruit, concrete, soft peat and candle wax.

This was finished in casks toasted with basalt from the Isle of Skye. Whether those rocks made much of a difference is debatable, but it’s spectacular stuff either way. If you have the budget, this is a dram for the ages.

Dram5 Box

ABV

Various

Price

$125

Each of these natty yellow cubes contains five randomly selected miniatures of single cask Scotch whisky. You’re most likely to find the likes of a fruity young Blair Athol or similar, but if you’re lucky, you might just get a nice old Macallan or Ardbeg.

It’s a great introduction to the rewarding world of independently bottled whiskies and has the faint thrill of a dice roll about it. A great bit of fun.

Laphroaig, 14 Year Old, Willem by Willem

ABV

53.7%

Price

$167

This is what your dad needs if he likes smoky whisky and intense yet versatile character actors. Sweet sherry cask influence wraps nicely around coastal peat for a palate of campfire ashes, pine needles, bitter almonds, and dark chocolate, with hints of lemon and grilled meats.

Great stuff from a man whose repertoire includes Jesus of Nazareth, The Green Goblin and cinema’s scariest lighthouse keeper. Modern Laphroaig is in fine form.

Mezcal Reina, Espadín

ABV

43%

Price

$80

A great way to get your dad into mezcal from a producer that values traditional production and sustainable agriculture. This isn’t a super-funky or intensely smoky mezcal; rather, it’s precise and fresh and elegant with notes of lemon balm, tart green apples, and white stones.

You can sip this neat, you can pour it over a rock, or even make a Martini with it if you’re so inclined, and it’ll shine in every instance.

Ocho, Reposado Tequila

ABV

40%

Price

$70

This additive-free tequila from a single estate in the Highlands of Jalisco offers absurdly good value for money. Two months resting in American oak barrels brings welcome softness and subtle vanilla notes to a palate of cooked agave, cane syrup, flaked almonds and peppermint.

There’s lots of fun to be had throwing this in cocktails, but honestly it doesn’t need much more than a tasting glass and some time to be savored. 

Clase Azul México, San Luis Potosí

ABV

43%

Price

$360

The presentation may be particularly striking, but don’t assume this is all about the packaging. What you have here is a serious mezcal made with Agave Salmiana, cooked in stone ovens, distilled in small copper pot stills, and bottled without additives.

Expect waves of charred green pepper, pineapple, lime zest, and fine woodsmoke as well as an oily texture and hints of wildflower honey. An ideal choice for those spirit geek dads.

Tapatio, Añejo

ABV

40%

Price

$66

Aged tequilas represent a bit of a balancing act; too much oak and that crucial fresh agave character can become obscured. But when it works, the results can be fantastic.

After an average of 18 months in ex-bourbon barrels, this nicely mellow tequila gains layers of buttercream and vanilla notes but retains the green, grassy fruitiness of the agave plant.

A tequila to sip and share from one of Mexico’s great producers. 

Casa Dragones Blanco

ABV

40%

Price

$75

ABV: 40% | Price: $75

Everything about this tequila is geared towards lightness, elegance, and poise. Your hardcore agave heads might crave a little more earthiness and funk, but a nice combination of grapefruit, macadamia nut, and jasmine notes make this accessible and quite charming. Sip neat or sub in for the gin in your dad’s Negroni or G&T.

Michter’s US*1 Sour Mash Whiskey

ABV: 43% | Price: $35

ABV

43%

Price

$35

A great choice for American whiskey lovers who want to branch out. This Kentucky whiskey is distinct from bourbon in that it is made with less than 51% corn in the mashbill.

It’s matured in new American oak, so you can expect plenty of bourbon-ish vanilla, butter and brown sugar notes, but the underlying spirit is brilliantly fruity. Think apple pie dusted with cinnamon, maraschino cherries, and ripe plums. 

Nikka From the Barrel, 40^th Anniversary

ABV

51.4%

Price

$70

It’s been 40 years since this triumph of blending and clean, modern design arrived on shelves. At that ABV, it puts paid to the stereotypes about Japanese whiskies being all elegance and light.

This is a bold and confident dram with intense hits of dried mango, apricots, and warm spices. This celebratory edition has been married in oak a little longer than the original FTB, so it feels more substantial and well-integrated. Not to be missed.

Knob Creek, 2015 10 Year Old Single Barrel

ABV

62.6%

Price

$108

This single barrel bourbon was made at the venerable Jim Beam distillery in Clermont, Kentucky and bottled exclusively for UK retailer The Whisky Exchange (US delivery available).

Even at that formidable bottling strength, this boasts comforting notes of pancakes with maple syrup, nutmeg, and crème caramel with blackcurrants and fresh mint tea. Remind your dad it’s okay to add a few dashes of water; this whiskey can handle it.   

Komagatake Single Malt Japanese Whisky

ABV

45%

Price

$130

Even yer da’s drinking Japanese whisky these days, but chances are he’s probably sticking mostly to the bigger brands. Mars is no newcomer to the Japanese whisky scene, but it’s lesser-known here, so this’ll earn your points for getting him something a bit different.

The nose is pure tropical fruit, with kiwi, banana, and pineapple, while the palate has a citrussy freshness and subtle oak spices. It’s light in character, but heavy on flavor.

Boann, 2021 4 Year Old The Heart Cut

ABV

61.7%

Price

$70

A fascinating single cask selected by indie darlings The Heart Cut. Boann distillery in Co Meath is notable for reviving ancient traditional recipes for Irish pot still whiskey (like single malt, but made with a mix of cereals) to great effect.

This one was aged in a sweet Moscatel cask, so It’s young and oak-forward, but very charming. Not least for its youthful intensity and notes of dried fruit, stewed red berries and earthy spices.

Black Tot Historic Solera

ABV

46.2%

Price

$74

A masterpiece of a blend, comprising rums from Guyana, Barbados and Jamaica, aged in oloroso and Pedro Ximenez sherry casks, and married in a solera system for integration and consistency.

You could spend all night unpicking these notes of prunes and raisins, old Armagnac and aged cigars, chocolate and plum wine. Or just swap 50ml of Black Tot in for the rye whiskey in a Manhattan and have fun with it. They’re both great options.

Berry Bros. & Rudd, Jamaican Rum Clarendon 2008

ABV

55%

Price

$116

Funky Jamaican rum is a bit like bitter liqueurs or smoky Scotch; an acquired taste that can easily turn into an obsession. This single cask selected by the ever-reliable spirits buyers at Berry Bros. & Rudd has a gasoline-style nose, like Austrian Riesling, leading into a dry but nicely fatty palate with apricot juice, a few lychees, and some quinces.

It’s seriously drinkable; a grown-up rum, perfect for the old man.   

Doorly’s, 14 Year Old Barbados Rum

ABV

48%

Price

$89

A great gift for rum lovers looking to level up their collection. This blend of pot and column-distilled rums from one of the most celebrated producers in Barbados is filled with notes of apple tart, salted liquorice, coconut and spicy olive oil, alongside soft herbs, apricots and vanilla.

There’s no added sugar in this one, no coloring, and no flavorings – just molasses rum, exactly as it should be.

The Last Drop, 25 Year Old Trinidad Rum

ABV

65.2%

Price

$2,500

Trinidad’s Caroni distillery fell to ruin in 2002, so this bottling from The Last Drop really is one of the final examples of its fascinating rum we’ll ever see.

Some Caronis from those later vintages can be a little challenging, but this one’s a real joy.

Pine nuts, dried papaya, stem ginger, aged black tea, lemon balm, aged white wines – it just goes on forever. A taste of another time and place, atypical and unforgettable.

Hampden Estate, HLCF 2023 for The Whisky Exchange

ABV

64.6%

Price

$170

Now we’re in real Jamaican funk territory. Hampden Estate has been distilling since the mid-18^th century and is beloved around the world for its distinctive intensity.

This one was aged in a single sherry cask and bottled by Italian rum specialists Velier for The Whisky Exchange. You’ll want to add a bit of water, but once you do, you’ll get notes of tutti frutti ice cream, warm vinyl, hot earth, bubble gum, candied peel, fruit cake and dried pineapples.

There’s no added sugar in this one, no coloring, and no flavorings – just molasses rum, exactly as it should be.