No mention of Aldi brand..Glen Mornay...very good, £19-99

Smiled right through that, Jeff! 😁 What have you missed? 🤔 Black Bottle, but I’m biased! Slàinte, David. 😂👍🥃

Several years ago I saw Teacher's at the Toronto airport and it was down to 80 proof but here in the States it is still available at 86 proof. My favorite for decades!

I used to drink sooo much jw black. Definitely because of the talisker vibe. But then i fell out of love with talisker and jw. They took my brine away and i dont know why 😢

Absolutely loved it Jeff. JW Red is putrid stuff.... I tried it a few different ways and they all went down the sink ! Honestly I struggled with all of them (not tried the smokey Grouse) . Even the JW Black has gone 'off' I know we are looking at the elcheapo's ...but, I'd rather pay a few dollars more and grab the Naked Grouse or more and get the Prohibition Heh heh.... Again... great vid....Oh, is Dewars a budget whisky? Ta, AL

Cutty Sark seems to be a good budget blend

Nice rundown, Jeff! I also reviewed some of those budget bottles. I found two things were common: the nose was much better than the palate, and it would get worse the longer you left it in the glass. Let’s be honest, they aren’t designed to be enjoyed slowly 😂 Keep up the great work 👍 Cheers!

Lochlea should have you on commission Jeff, grabbed two now from your reviews!!!! lets hope it is as good as Cutty Sark Prohibition

Teachers has disappeared completely! I looked in the shops last night after watching this? WE NEED ANSWERS

Looking forward to the Johnnie Walker video as there are gems amongst the trash -- just like this video!!

Jeff this video slaps... ok, that's maybe a bit too on the nose but the video and topic is great! I'm a fan of Teacher's and a very outspoken lover of the Naked Malt(Naked Grouse). Thanks for shining a light on what we so often ignore. Cheers man 🥃

Cutty sark prohibition is a nice alternative.Cheers!

Cheap Whisky is the best whisky if that is all you can get. Damn Tax

Going to be scoping out this beauty!

An actual well thought out budget tasting rather than OTT reactions? Don't tell the rest of KZbin!

Awesome video bud and it’s good to see some of the old classics again too. I’ve not tried teachers in a good while but you’ve intrigued me on it again. Next whisky bar I’m in I’ll have a look and see if they have a bottle and order a dram. Slainte amigo

Teachers seems to have mysteriously disappeared from supermarket shelves which is unfortunate because it's always been a solid peaty blend.

Jeff, your bottle-caressing hand is tripping me out! FYI: Teacher's has disappeared from Australian shelves. In my experience, smoky cheapies tend to perform better than unpeated ones. More diamondy, definitely.

Red Label is so bad... I really wish the JW line started with Black. #takebacksmooth

Great entertainment. Not so much a review of budget Blends but of miniature bottles. Full 70cl bottles of these Blends do obviously change once opened and through oxidation, lose some of their astringency. They also take on more flavour. IMO, these miniature bottles will give you the same tasting experience as a bottle neck pour. Just compare a miniature to a dram poured from a 70cl bottle half empty and you'd think you were tasting two different whiskies from the same company.

I also 2nd that johnnie walker black has improved. I remember years ago it being too heavy on the coastal peat notes almost like a laphroaig, the recent pour i got from a bar was much more rounded with maltiness on the nose and palate.

How come ballentine’s never makes the blended review lineup?

I slapped the like button not only for the great video, but for the crash bandicoot sound effects too.

I'm surprised you didn't include Dewar's White Label.

I like the Smokey Black, great value for he money. For me the best budget whisky is the Dewars 12.

There's so many bottom shelfers you could do this 5 or 6 times over. As for here Grants & Teachers are approx. $17US so the best value of the bunch. Johnny Red is gasoline and Black is overpriced watered down Talisker/Caol Ila +grain. The Smoky Grouse is one I need to try as I like the Naked Grouse Blended Malt. My favorite Blends are Black Bull 12yo, Ballantine's Finest, and White Horse.

13 year old me having a teachers with my grandma on New Year’s Eve feels very validated :)

Hi Jeff, Famous grouse is no longer Edrington but William Grant now.

Most people start with basic whiskies like these. For the most part, they are approachable and relatively inoffensive, and they work well as mixers. Many decades ago, my first were Chivas Regal 12-year, Knob Creek bourbon, and Old Overholt rye. I've since outgrown Chivas Regal 12, though every now and then it sounds good. I still like Knob Creek, and the 12-year version and store picks are great. It's been a while since I've had Old Overholt, but I hear that there are premium versions now that might be worth trying. Johnnie Walker Red isn't all that great, but Johnnie Walker Black makes a good rusty nail. The absurdly expensive Johnnie Walker Blue is rather bland and inoffensive - at that price, it should have a lot more going on. I like the Black better than the Blue. Not too long ago, I picked up a bottle of Johnnie Walker high rye. The flavor is atypical for Scotch whisky, and as rye whisky goes, it is rather mild, but it isn't quite like anything else I have in my collection. It's good for the price, and it has its uses. The basic blends I currently have in my collection are Dewar's 12-year, Tullamore D.E.W., and Suntory Toki. These are good as mixers or if I'm in the mood for whisky on the rocks. Tullamore is very light and mild, as is typical of basic Irish whiskey, while Dewar's and Toki are more flavorful.

Ballantines

Islay mist?

You forgot the White Horse and the Sir Edwards 12. Some pretty good whisky there for the price. Also Dewar' WL and of course the two I will never put in my mouth again JB "Rare" and Ballantines "Finest" 😅

Best, cheapest whisky I’ve had was Drummer 5 yo. It was already cheap at £5, but saw it on offer at B1T1. What’s the worst that could happen, right? So I got a pair. Sweet, some fruits, slight smoke, short finish. Of course, not mind blowing, but at that price?! Bonus points for the age statement!

Very cool and fun, some selfless anguish for science there. It's a great unexplored niche. How about you tackle the bracket just above next, -the least expensive blends that claim craft? Maybe less miniatures around of those..

I agree that the Johnnie Walker Red is the worst. I vowed never to let it touch my lips again, but I visited my dad once and it was all he had in the house, so I tried it again. It was still horrible but was sweeter, as if they decided to use sweetness to mitigate all the rawness. However, a turd is still a turd even if you sprinkle it with sugar.

Where is Hankey Bannister?

I've drunk them a few times each, bells maybe more than the others but famous grouse is pretty vile stuff, the first time I bought a bottle I thought I'd been ripped off with a fake as it was so bad, never could remember what happened to the rest of the bottle I couldn't even give away, tried a small bottle years later and realised that I'd not been had, it's just filth. The smoky black is almost as bad but usually on discount somewhere, but found out that it makes great Margaritas, no kidding. Its a shame Dewars white label isn't easily available over here, friend just picked me up a litre for $10 in some far flung airport. Easily my favourite cheap bottle of whisky.

Interesting. My first JW Red from a few years back was as you described it - grim with a plastic note. Never wanted to drink it ever again. Had a another try recently from a 1l bottle and it was fine but very bland and light. Different batches or more tolerant nowadays? I don't know. Don't need it but my last experience wasn't bad at least.

Affordable and accessible Whisky - What have I missed in this video?

Cheers Jeff, fun content & don't you think if you have some CS Whisky available any of these blends can be ramped up a notch😂

Great video, Jeff! The little hand sliding up and down the bottles cracked me up! 🤣 Loved the grouse ad, perfectly balanced! I haven't tried Teachers or Smoky Grouse. JW Black got me into whisky, and I won't say no to a dram if it's offered. Famous Grouse is OK, but I find it lacking in the mid-palate. Grants is OK on ice. Another OK one is Ballantines 12-year-old. Cheers!

White horse is still a great seller in SA.

Yo Jeff. Did a blind budget whisky tasting with some friends a few weeks back. Bells came in 1st place for us , 2nd: Lidl Abrachan, 3rd: Whyte and Mackay, 4th Grants tw, 5th Famous Grouse which 5/6 of us thought was far more bland than the other offerings when tried side by side. We couldn't find Teachers in any supermarkets down here in the south otherwise we would've grabbed that too. I'm glad however that we didn't bring any Johnnie Walker Red to the evening. Fun to watch this vid. Cheers

I agree with the assessments here. Famous grouse is fine, johnnie red is heinous. Teachers recently disappeared here too. I have no idea what a mice sweet or a pick and mix is though.

Well done Jeff, you took one for the team there! - thankfully actually having to (or wanting to) drink any of these is a memory from long in the past for me - would rather have a pint of girly flavoured cider than any of these.

Hi Jeff, trying some standard blends, good on you. I used to like Teachers ( Dad always had a bottle of Teachers at home). Now, I’m sorry to say it’s rubbish. My uncle was a big famous Grouse fan. Both my Dad and uncle were brand loyal, don’t know why. Anyway, good video Jeff. Slàinte

4:35 if I could subscribe and join the Bottle Slappers club for a 2nd time I would😂, fair play to you for putting yourself through these!

Where's Whyte & Mackay? Pretty much agree with you though with your list.

Bells is the worst blended whisky I've ever tasted. Tastes like licking a bag of old coppers

Thanks for doing affordable and accessible ones. Great job.