With Father's Day less than two weeks off, there's been some excellent news for people looking to pick up a bottle of good whisky for less.
The results of the world-renowned Spirits Business Scotch Whisky Masters are in, and between them Aldi and Lidl own-label whiskies won eight gold medals.
And in even better news, the winning spirits come in at a fraction of the cost of some of their more famous rivals.
First, looking to standard blended whiskies, Aldi won gold for its Highland Black 8 Years Old and Highland Earl Blended Scotch Whisky, while Lidl picked up a gold medal for its Queen Margot 3 Years Old and a silver for its Glen Orchy 5 Years Old.
“They all went in slightly different directions, but were really decent whiskies for under £20," said judge Matt Chambers, co‐founder of the Whisky for Everyone blog.
Moving on to single malts, Aldi and Lidl both won gold in the Highland and Islands category - which rewards smoother, subtler tastes - with their Glen Marnoch Highland Single Malt (Aldi) and Ben Bracken Highland Single Malt (Lidl).
The Glen Marnoch Highland Single Malt had “lots of honey on the nose” according to judges while the Ben Bracken Highland Single Malt carried a “hint of candied citrus”.
There were also gold medals for both in the Speyside single malt category - which rewards more floral whiskies - for their Glen Marnoch Speyside Single Malt (Aldi) and Ben Bracken Speyside Single Malt (Lidl).
Judges praised the “apple, cinnamon” of the Glen Marnoch and the“soft and sweet” Ben Bracken.
Fans of punchier, peatier Islay whiskies won't be disappointed either - with Lidl winning gold for its Ben Bracken Islay Single Malt and Aldi picking up silver for its Glen Marnoch Islay Single Malt.
Judges described the Ben Bracken Islay Single Malt as having a “pinch of green chilli” on the palate and while the Glen Marnoch Islay Single Malt was described as having a “soft, gentle” charachter.
