Supermarket Own Brand Single Malt Scotch Whisky: Are Any Actually Worth Drinking?

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It's a frighteningly obvious point, but Supermarket Sinlge Malt Whisky, in order to be called that, must be bottled in Scotland and come from one of two sources:

• Barrels matured at one of the Scottish distilleries
• Barrels of spirit distilled by one of the Scottish distilleries, and then matured by one of the Scottish independent bottlers

For more information on the difference between the two; see my article on Distillers Versus Independents.

Link: Distillers Versus Independents: Which Bottle to Buy

These own brand whisky's either carry vaguely Scottish sounding names like Glen Marnoch or Ben Bracken; but more often simply bare the Age Statement of the whisky and the region that the spirit was from:

• Highlands
• Islay
• Speyside

These regions suggest some intrinsic characteristics of the whisky in the bottle that bares the name of a specific region. For instance Speyside whisky should be lighter and sweeter than Islay, form which you'd expect peat and smokiness to be prominent on the nose and palate. To find out more about the Scottish regions, the distillers, and their whisky; see my article on A Guide to the Whisky Regions.

Link: Feature: A Guide to the Whisky Region's Part 01

Islay: The only major supermarket chain producing an own brand Islay Single Malt Whisky is Waitrose. This whisky is 12 yrs Old and bottled at 40% ABV. This means that it is chill filtered and probably had considerable colourant added to it. Being an Islay bottling his whisky must therefore have come from one of the handful of Islay distillers:

• Ardbeg
• Bowmore
• Bunnahbhain
• Caol Ila
• Kilcohman
• Lagavulin
• Laphroaig

I'd say its unquestionably Bowmore; not just due to the taste and style; but also due to the process of elimination. This is no 'peat monster'; so elemininate Ardbeg, Lagavulin, and Laphoaig; as well as Kilcohman. It doesn't fit the Caol Ila profile, and I also wonder if Diageo would have enough whisky spare to supply 12 yr Old to a large supermarket chain given that so much of it goes into Johnnie Walker. Bunnahabhain is a heavily sherried whisky with a limited capacity, and even more limited of peated whisky. That leaves Bowmore, who have the capacity to supply a supermarket chain, but this also has the sweetness and tropical fruits note combined with the light peaty, smokiness, as well as having a salty tang to it.

Worth Buying: At £20 it's not at all pricey for fashionable Islay whisky. It is considerably cheaper than the Bowmore 12 yr Old official bottling; though not as good. It is also cheaper than the Bowmore 9 yr Old; although this has deliberately gone for a more sherry cask influenced flavour. It's a good buy for a whisky novice that knows they like those Islay characteristics, but is not yet ready for a Laphroaig. With a price as low as this you could happily make a smokey 'Hot Toddy' anyway.

Link: To Buy Click Here

Highland: The Scottish Highlands, despite being a huge area have suprisingly few distilleries. This is of course if you discount the packed Speyside region off the West Coast which wee'll get into below. Again in this category you have another veritable whisky bargain; not because of the quality, but because the price is extremely reasonable. Waitrose 16 yr Old Highland Single Malt Whisky costs £25 and bottled at 40% ABV; so again this means that it is chill filtered and probably had considerable colourant added to it. The description tells of a Northern Hills distillery that has been making whisky for over 180 years. That suggests to me Ben Nevis. The tropical fruits, dark chocolate and coffee flavours are also consistent with the distillery style and the age seems to also come through a smidgen making it well worth considering if you're a novice drinker who isn't into traditional Islay characteristics.

Link: To Buy Click Here

Tesco do a Finest 12 yr Old Highland Single Malt Whisky which is provided by Whyte & MacKay. As anyone who has every seen a Richard Paterson video on You Tube will know, this puts the distillery well within the realms of possibility for Dalmore. The colour and the elements of sherried fruits and jam, dark chocolate and toffee caramel would certainly support the idea that its from Dalmore. As Dalmore will cost you about £40 online and in a whisky retailers approximately £50; it seems £25 for a much more readily available bottling is pretty reasonable business. As for the quality; well again its one of the better bottlings on the supermarket shelf. The official bottling of Dalmore 12 yr Old was one of the bottling's that first got me into whisky. Not bad for the price, not bad. Again the ABV is 40%; it is chill filtered, and don't expect that colour to be natural.

Sainsbury's do a Highland Single Malt Whisky as part of their 'Taste the Difference' range. It is however a Non Age Statement Whisky. As the competition is populated by Age Statement Whisky's from 12 yrs Old upwards, I decided to discount Sainsbury's from this process.

Link: To Buy Click Here

Speyside: I'd say (quite surprisingly) bottles of Speyside Single Malt Whisky seem to be the weakest region of the supermarket own brands. Also interestingly most of the bottling's are a classic American White Oak matured whisky, rather than influences from sherry casks (unlike the Highland above). The two whisky's i'll briefly mention are the Tesco Finest 12 yr Old Speyside Single Malt Whisky which is provided by again by Whyte & MacKay.This would likely make the distillery the considerably less sexy Tamnavulin which sits in the heart of Speyside and helps form the foundation of the Whyte & MacKay blends. It's alright; although Im not sure how it won a Silver Medal at the 2014 International Wines and Spirits Competition (IWSC). Must have been a lean year.

Link: To Buy Click Here

The other serious option is the Waitorse 12 yr Old Speyside Single Malt Whisky which is provided Ian McLeod Distiller. This whisky is from the Tamdhu distillery where most whisky ends up in Famous Grouse, J&M and Cutty Sark. It's the weakest of the Waitrose trio of bottling's, but at £20 still offers excellent value.

Link: To Buy Click Here

Conclusion: Own brand whisky's vary considerably in quality, and I've identified some of the very best in terms of quality and value. These recommendations are however aimed at a novice whisky drinker who is looking to have something enjoyable for their £20. If you are more of a whisky connoisseur then these bottling's may only serve to reinforce why you spent significantly more on the whisky you drink. If this is you then perhaps read through the Premium, Deluxe, and Luxury Dram series, which feature a in-depth examination of significantly higher quality whisky's.

On a final note; none of these whisky's are upto the quality of Glencaddam 10 yr Old; bottled at 46% unchillfiltered and displaying its natural colour. The best price on this whisky is £31 and is a significantly superior product to any on this list. This is (in my opinion) the best value Standard bottling on the market today.

The other serious option is the Waitorse 12 yr Old Speyside Single Malt Whisky which is provided Ian McLeod Distiller. This whisky is from the Tamdhu distillery where most whisky ends up in Famous Grouse, J&M and Cutty Sark. It's the weakest of the Waitrose trio of bottling's, but at £20 still offers excellent value.

Link: Whisky Bargains: Single Malt Whisky that Delivers

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