American single malt whiskey is quickly becoming a big deal in the whiskey world. And last year was a notably stellar year for the style. On July 29th, American single malt (ASM) was officially and legally recognized as a designation of whiskey and huge brands started releasing their own versions of the whiskey nationwide. Moreover, as the style grows more widespread, it also grows more refined — which certainly benefits whisky lovers who don’t love paying taxes and tariffs on their Scotch.
With that said, the ASM whiskey scene is relatively young (with young whiskeys). Which begs the question, can ASM whiskeys really stand up to the tried and true classic single malts of Scotland? Friends, it’s time for another blind taste test to find out!
Look, the average age of an ASM whiskey is closer to four to five years compared to 12 years being the entry point for most single malt scotch. So the short answer to the above question is a resounding “no” — the style is simply operating at a different pace right now. Still, age isn’t everything when crafting a quality bottle of whiskey. That means there are a lot of opportunities in the ASM scene for stellar juice that can stand up to the old-school stuff from Scotland.
Our lineup today includes the following bottles:
- Baller Single Malt Whiskey by St. George Spirits
- Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie Scottish Barley
- Dead Guy Whiskey Stout Cask Finished American Single Malt Whiskey
- Glenmorangie The Quinta Ruban Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
- Westward American Single Malt Cask Strength
- The Glenrothes Whisky Maker’s Cut Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
- Broken Barrel Luciferous American Single Malt Whiskey
- The Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
- Jack Daniel’s Twice Barreled Special Release American Single Malt
- Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Legacy Series Chapter 3
When it comes to ranking these bottles, it’s pretty simple, folks. What tastes best? That’s it. I’m simply looking for the best-tasting whiskey so let’s dive right in.
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Part 1: The Tasting
Taste 1
Tasting Notes:
Nose: This whiskey opens with a nose that feels like breaking up a stem of lemongrass in your fingers before leaning into hints of maple, plum skins, and malty spice.
Palate: The palate is a silky sip that starts off with spiced prunes and stewed peaches next to woody maple syrup, a touch of marzipan, and a hint of burnt peach pits.
Finish: The end sweetens with a line of fresh mango flesh next to old charcoal drenched in plum wine with a whisper that lemongrass peaking back in late.
Initial Thoughts:
The nose on this is really promising with a good overall vibe to the palate. It was a little light in the end but it still held on through the finish with a nice profile. Translation, this was fine.
Taste 2
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Wildflowers and granola bars draw you in on the nose as a hint of brine and salted caramel linger on the back end with orange oils and softwood.
Palate: That brine becomes a full rush of seaspray as tart apples lead towards a Caro syrup mid-palate sweetness.
Finish: That sweetness fades into a spicy malt as sea salt and sweet oak dominated the finish.
Initial Thoughts:
This has a nice beginning, middle, and end. Overall, this was a satisfying pour of whiskey, albeit not a mind-blowingly amazing one.
Taste 3
Tasting Notes:
Nose: There’s a sense of something plasticky on the nose that leads to mild graininess with a hint of cherry and vanilla.
Palate: Red fruit roll-ups! That’s the plasticky vibe that translates on the taste next to mild winter spice, hints of “wood,” and a sense of Malt-O-Meal.
Finish: The finish is short and kind of just fades away with a whisper of sour cherry and milk chocolate.
Initial Thoughts:
Nah.
Taste 4
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose draws you in with a sense of burnt orange layered into dark chocolate and then melted over a singed marshmallow with a hint of malted vanilla cookie tying it all together.
Palate: That dark chocolate drives the palate with a hint of waxiness and woody winter spice next to whole black peppercorns, fresh tangerine, and a whisper of mint chocolate chip ice cream.
Finish: The dark chocolate, woody spice, bright orange, and sharp spearmint all collide on the finish with a sense of soft malted sweetness and faint old oak staves.
Initial Thoughts:
This is delicious. Seriously, this blows that last three pours out of the water. It’s complex, fun, and takes you on a journey with surprises and comforting notes. I want to actually drink this stuff instead of spit it out (I spit out whiskey after the finish, in order to not be drunk 24/7).
Taste 5
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Almond Roca and honey-dipped Graham Crackers greet you on the nose with a sense of almost sour espresso shots just kissed with red pepper and dark yet creamy chocolate.
Palate: That chocolate drives the palate toward Sesame Snaps before a dark chocolate and red berry tobacco leaf takes over with a hint of dry woody spice and old cedar braids.
Finish: The end has a deep sense of the honey hardened with sesame seeds next to a spiced malted oatmeal cookie with sharp cinnamon and clove.
Initial Thoughts:
This feels almost classic but very American (there’s a deep leathery sense and a much darker color). All of that aside, this is freaking tasty whiskey.
Taste 6
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose bursts forth with butterscotch. Once that fades, hints of worn leather, orange peels, and nutmeg mix underneath that butterscotch nose.
Palate: The palate is nutmeg-forward with a spicy orange zest kissed with dark chocolate and vanilla.
Finish: The end feels a bit like eggnog laced with orange zest and vanilla with a spicy warmth.
Initial Thoughts:
This was another “fine” whiskey. Nothing wrong at all with the flavor profile — it simply is fine.
Taste 7
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose opens with a sense of fresh squash with a good dose of winter spices, light caramel, and wet malts rounding things out.
Palate: The taste has a moment more of that fresh squash before hitting a note that’s — I swear — cornmeal-encrusted fried catfish served on a banana leaf plate with cranberry sauce and a light sense of pumpkin ale and toasted coconut.
Finish: The end lingers through the fall-inspired spices and ales vibes with a sweet squash cut with brown sugar and honey fold into a light tobacco leaf vibe.
Initial Thoughts:
This is a pretty bold whiskey with spicy vibes. It’s good but didn’t jump out at me.
Taste 8
Tasting Notes:
Nose: The nose is openly complex from the first inhalation with a matrix of sticky toffee pudding spices — cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg — next to dried red berries with a slight earthiness, a touch of salted toffee candies, and a whisper of vanilla wafers.
Palate: The palate opens with a chocolate maltiness next to a bowl of fresh and tropical fruits — pineapple, tart apples, sweet pears, plums, bruised bananas — with a mild nuttiness, sharp orange zest, and subtle winter spices.
Finish: There’s a light mustiness on the back end that leads to soft and moist pipe tobacco with a thin layer of orchard fruits and stewed figs.
Initial Thoughts:
This is another great whiskey. It’s clearly a winner with a deep complexity that’s refreshing and fun to taste. It’s really good.
Taste 9
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Light milk chocolate powder malts greet you on the nose with soft leather, a hint of cedar, fresh gingerbread, a hint of fresh wicker canes, oatmeal cookie dough, a whisper of spearmint, and some sweet ice tea powder.
Palate: The palate opens up with a sense of sour red fruit with a rich vanilla foundation that leads to woody spices with a mild essence of pine sap and saddle soap before a vanilla white cake sweetness and soft mouthfeel kick in.
Finish: The mid-palate expands toward higher ABV buzziness with a note of almond shell and coconut shell next to Mounds bars and fresh leather on the finish with a fleeting sense of cream soda just kissed with orange-chocolate syrup.
Initial Thoughts:
This is bold and really delivers a broad and deep flavor profile. I liked this a lot but it wasn’t as refined as some of the other sips on the panel today.
Taste 10
Tasting Notes:
Nose: Butterscotch and sour cherry lead to a woody sense of cinnamon bark and vanilla pods with a hint of blackberry jam over apple-cinnamon toast.
Palate: There’s a hint of stewed pear with raisins, cloves, and more of that woody cinnamon that leads to creamy apple pie filling with a hint of prune and winter spice.
Finish: The end is thin-ish with a sense of honey-coated malt cookies next to apple chips and rum-soaked raisins.
Initial Thoughts:
This was perfectly fine but a tad thin.
Part 2: The Ranking
10. Dead Guy Whiskey Stout Cask Finished American Single Malt Whiskey — Taste 3
ABV: 48.5%
Average Price: $88
The Whiskey:
This is the new version of Rogue’s famed Rolling Thunder Stouted Whiskey. The single malt is made by the Oregon brewer and then finished in Rogue’s beloved stout casks before proofing and bottling.
Bottom Line:
This wasn’t off, but it wasn’t going to beat any Scotch whiskies either. It’s just too young and rough tasting to reach those big Scotch-y heights.
9. The Glenrothes Whisky Maker’s Cut Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky — Taste 6
ABV: 48.8%
Average Price: $86
The Whisky:
The bulbous bottle from The Glenrothes is all about the sherry. The expression spends an undisclosed amount of years in first-fill sherry casks. When those barrels are just right, the whisky is then batched and vatted before being proofed down only slightly.
Bottom Line:
This was a tad too light overall. That said, I can see this working wonders in a cocktail — which will bandage over that thinness nicely — since we’re still talking about a whisky with a solid flavor profile.
8. Baller Single Malt Whiskey by St. George Spirits — Taste 1
ABV: 47%
Average Price: $56
The Whiskey:
This single malt from St. George Spirits out in California is beloved. The juice is made from 100% malted and lightly roasted barley with an eye toward Japanese traditions. The whiskey spends three to four years in ex-bourbon and ex-French wine casks before vatting and re-barreling into umeshu casks (Japanese plum wine that the team at St. George makes themselves) for a final rest. Finally, the whiskey is blended and just touched with local proofing water before bottling.
Bottom Line:
This was nice, but a little too heavy on the citrus in the end. It wasn’t one-note per se but it was flirting with the notion. Still, this would be great in a highball with an orange or grapefruit twist.
7. Broken Barrel Luciferous American Single Malt Whiskey — Taste 7
ABV: 61.3%
Average Price: $56
The Whiskey:
This whiskey is made from 100% Indiana single malt whiskey. Those barrels are then re-barreled into Amaro and French oak casks for final maturation. The final blend is a mix of 80% Amaro barrels and 20% French oak before and bottling at cask strength.
Bottom Line:
This was fine but a little hot on the palate today. That heat didn’t blow out the flavor profile, but I kind of wanted a rock to calm it down a bit. That then leads me to believe this would be very well suited to highballs and cocktails more than sipping.
6. Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Legacy Series Chapter 3 — Taste 10
ABV: 48%
Average Price: $130
The Whisky:
This special edition version of Glengoyne is made from a batch of American oak barrels that held sherry. Those barrels are married and then proofed to create an iconic Glengoyne flavor profile for this expression.
Bottom Line:
This was a perfectly fine single malt. It’s easy on the palate but delivers a classic unpeated sweet malt vibe. It’s easy to see this being an easy sipper or a nice cocktail base.
5. Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie Scottish Barley — Taste 2
ABV: 50%
Average Price: $56
The Whisky:
Bruichladdich’s philosophy on whisky making is pretty unique. Each batch highlights local, unpeated Scottish barley that’s fermented and distilled. That juice then goes into some combination of ex-bourbon, ex-sherry, and ex-wine casks for a varied amount of time. That means each batch is unique. Bruichladdich then provides a code on their bottles so that you can go to their website and find out what makes the bottle in your hand special.
Bottom Line:
This is a really nice, classic single malt. It feels like an easy on-the-rocks sipper that also would help make any Scotch cocktail pop.
4. Jack Daniel’s Twice Barreled Special Release American Single Malt — Taste 9
ABV: 52.85%
Average Price: $69
The Whiskey:
This brand-new whiskey from Jack Daniel’s is made with a 100% malted barley mash bill. Those grains are milled and mashed with Jack’s famed cave spring water right in Lynchburg, Tennessee. That mash is then fermented with Jack’s own yeast and then distilled before the long process of charcoal mellowing/filtration. The hot juice is run through ten feet of sugar maple charcoal and is then filled into new American white oak barrels for a several-year rest. Finally, those barrels were vatted and re-barreled in Olorosso sherry casks for a final maturation before bottling as-is at cask strength.
Bottom Line:
This was really tasty. It wasn’t as refined as the next three but had a great overall flavor profile. It’s definitely in the easy-sipper category.
3. Westward American Single Malt Cask Strength — Taste 5
ABV: 62.5%
Average Price: $92
The Whiskey:
Westward Whiskey — out in Portland, Oregon — is really starting to come into its own, especially as its whiskey gets older. This expression is a prime example of Westward’s prowess that’s made in-house from top to bottom and mellowed in new American oak until it’s just right for cask-strength bottling as-is.
Bottom Line:
This is excellent whiskey. It wasn’t quite as soft and supple as the next two entries, but it still ruled. I can see sipping this on a single rock and being very happy. At the same time, I can see this making one hell of a cocktail too.
2. The Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky — Taste 8
ABV: 44%
Average Price: $199
The Whisky:
This Highland whisky is a no-age-statement version of The Dalmore. The juice is made from Golden barley that grows on the island in the rich and very coastal soils. The ground malted barley is mixed with pure water from the Cromarty Firth nearby during the mashing process. After a couple of times through pot stills, the hot whisky is loaded into ex-bourbon casks, 30-year-old Matusalem Oloroso Sherry butts, and former Cabernet Sauvignon from the Saint-Estèphe appellation of Bordeaux. After 10 to 15 years, those barrels are vatted, the whiskey is proofed, and it’s bottled.
Bottom Line:
This was a banger from top to bottom. It’s a damn near perfect sipper. The only reason it’s not number one is that the next pour had that little more to it. But only barely.
1. Glenmorangie The Quinta Ruban Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky — Taste 4
ABV: 46%
Average Price: $46
The Whisky:
Glenmorangie’s 14-Year expression spends 10 years resting in used American oak casks. Those barrels are vatted and the whisky is re-barreled into Quinta Ruban port wine casks from Portugal for another four years of mellowing before batching, proofing, and bottling as-is.
Bottom Line:
This is delicious whisky. It’s delightfully complex while delivering a fantastic profile to the palate. It’s also a wonderful sipper all on its own. It’s just a winner all around and an incredible value.
Part 3: Final Thoughts
I’d argue that the top three are all basically tied. That’s especially true if you’re looking for a great sipper to add to your bar cart. Each one is just stellar.
The only bottles I’d avoid as the bottom two. The rest are perfectly fine but lean more toward mixers than satisfying sippers, which is perfectly fine and with merit. Still, that top three is a killer’s row of great single malt.
As for American single malts versus Scotch single malts. Well, as I mentioned in the intro, it all just depends on how well the whiskey is built. There are some great American single malts that do live up to great Scotch single malts. You just have to know where to look.