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Monarch of the Glen blended scotch whisky

Anyone tried this? I picked up a bottle of this yesterday - it was only $12 for the 8 year. Sometimes I think if I spend a little on some less expensive stuff it will make the more expensive stuff last longer. It's true, it works. But I thought why not? Turns out there's a plethora of blended scotch whiskys for under $20 I just never paid any attention to them. So I picked up a bottle and thought I'd give it a go. If worse comes to worse, I'll keep in my desk at the office and have some highballs on Fridays - like today. $12 for crying out loud!
 
I tried a smidgen on Tuesday and didn't think it was bad at all. Certainly I've had some better blends and although I prefer single malts it was definitely worth the $12. Much better than a lot of other offerings on the market.
 
I wanted to bump this thread about Monarch of the Glen scotch, because I was at my local Total Wine last week and the salesman in the scotch aisle was pushing this brand. He showed me the 15 year old (which was $21.99 and should have been my first clue) which had a blue label and said that a couple of their customers had bought this and said they liked it as well as Johnnie Walker Blue. Well, I'm a sucker and I bit on this and took home a bottle. I'm not one a scotch connoisseur by any means, but to my taster this wasn't even as good as JB Black. It was OK for what I paid for it, but it was hard to believe it had been aged for 15 years. It was just "meh" and it was OK mixed with ginger ale, but neat it was not my cuppa by any means. I also bought a bottle of Monkey Shoulder at the same time and it was significantly better at $1.00 more.

Those of you that shop at Total Wine - beware of their salesmen and what they recommend. I got bit by buying a 1.75 of some stuff they were pushing called Old Crofter and it was pretty rough. No aging info on the bottle, and I later found out it was a 3 year old blend. Again, it was OK with ginger ale. Of course, no one put a gun to my head and made me buy these two scotches. My fault entirely. I think the Monarch stuff if trying to trade on the TV show of the same name, as this appears to be a fairly new brand.

YMMV, of course.
 
I can't believe the SA told you it was on par with Johnny Walker. That's an outright lie. That said, I keep a bottle on hand at all times. It's not a sipping scotch but it's good for mixing. I use it to make Old Fashioned's and Whiskey Mary's and I quite like it. The real test to me is how you feel the next day after a few and Monarch doesn't give me a hangover. I saw Monkey Shoulder last time I was in there so based on your recommendation I'll give it a try next time. Total is good at providing a slew of price-point options and I recall there are several other blends in this price range. Monarch of the Glen is what is it is, for sure - an inexpensive blend but I think worth a bit more than it costs and better than most at that price.



I wanted to bump this thread about Monarch of the Glen scotch, because I was at my local Total Wine last week and the salesman in the scotch aisle was pushing this brand. He showed me the 15 year old (which was $21.99 and should have been my first clue) which had a blue label and said that a couple of their customers had bought this and said they liked it as well as Johnnie Walker Blue. Well, I'm a sucker and I bit on this and took home a bottle. I'm not one a scotch connoisseur by any means, but to my taster this wasn't even as good as JB Black. It was OK for what I paid for it, but it was hard to believe it had been aged for 15 years. It was just "meh" and it was OK mixed with ginger ale, but neat it was not my cuppa by any means. I also bought a bottle of Monkey Shoulder at the same time and it was significantly better at $1.00 more.

Those of you that shop at Total Wine - beware of their salesmen and what they recommend. I got bit by buying a 1.75 of some stuff they were pushing called Old Crofter and it was pretty rough. No aging info on the bottle, and I later found out it was a 3 year old blend. Again, it was OK with ginger ale. Of course, no one put a gun to my head and made me buy these two scotches. My fault entirely. I think the Monarch stuff if trying to trade on the TV show of the same name, as this appears to be a fairly new brand.

YMMV, of course.
 
Wow. I would go back and slap the SA right upside the head. Nothing is on par with JB Blue except JB Blue!

I wanted to bump this thread about Monarch of the Glen scotch, because I was at my local Total Wine last week and the salesman in the scotch aisle was pushing this brand. He showed me the 15 year old (which was $21.99 and should have been my first clue) which had a blue label and said that a couple of their customers had bought this and said they liked it as well as Johnnie Walker Blue. .

I can't believe the SA told you it was on par with Johnny Walker. That's an outright lie. .
 
:bored::bored:
Anyone tried this? I picked up a bottle of this yesterday - it was only $12 for the 8 year. Sometimes I think if I spend a little on some less expensive stuff it will make the more expensive stuff last longer. It's true, it works. But I thought why not? Turns out there's a plethora of blended scotch whiskys for under $20 I just never paid any attention to them. So I picked up a bottle and thought I'd give it a go. If worse comes to worse, I'll keep in my desk at the office and have some highballs on Fridays - like today. $12 for crying out loud!
 
Hi Larry,

How did you score a 750ml bottle of Monkey Shoulder for under $30? I would love to score some for that price ($23). I really enjoy it.
 
I wanted to bump this thread about Monarch of the Glen scotch, because I was at my local Total Wine last week and the salesman in the scotch aisle was pushing this brand. He showed me the 15 year old (which was $21.99 and should have been my first clue) which had a blue label and said that a couple of their customers had bought this and said they liked it as well as Johnnie Walker Blue. Well, I'm a sucker and I bit on this and took home a bottle. I'm not one a scotch connoisseur by any means, but to my taster this wasn't even as good as JB Black. It was OK for what I paid for it, but it was hard to believe it had been aged for 15 years. It was just "meh" and it was OK mixed with ginger ale, but neat it was not my cuppa by any means. I also bought a bottle of Monkey Shoulder at the same time and it was significantly better at $1.00 more.

Those of you that shop at Total Wine - beware of their salesmen and what they recommend. I got bit by buying a 1.75 of some stuff they were pushing called Old Crofter and it was pretty rough. No aging info on the bottle, and I later found out it was a 3 year old blend. Again, it was OK with ginger ale. Of course, no one put a gun to my head and made me buy these two scotches. My fault entirely. I think the Monarch stuff if trying to trade on the TV show of the same name, as this appears to be a fairly new brand.

YMMV, of course.
That's a bummer with the sales rep.

Hi Larry,

How did you score a 750ml bottle of Monkey Shoulder for under $30? I would love to score some for that price ($23). I really enjoy it.
Same here.
 
Hi Larry,

How did you score a 750ml bottle of Monkey Shoulder for under $30? I would love to score some for that price ($23). I really enjoy it.
Hi guys,

At my local Total Wine in North Texas, a 750 of Monkey Shoulder is $28.99. It was $6 cheaper when I posted my original thoughts back in 2013, but I just now looked on the TW website and that is the current price. Still a good value in my opinion.
 
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