Scotch is, after all, a homegrown and much beloved spirit that shouldn’t be, but is, eclipsed in cocktail bars by spirits from much further afield. 

In the pockets of Scotch interest in UK bars, single malts have dominated the airwaves. Except, of course, for the force of nature that is Johnnie Walker, which was the bestseller in one in every five of the UK’s Best Bars. We’re mostly talking Johnnie Walker Black in this channel, though Ruby Black is too making strides. Its showcasing in Diageo’s World Class – perennially the competition bartenders prize most – keeps it at the fore of thinking. And sales: Walker is among the top two choices in almost a third of polled bars. 

If Johnnie Walker is the must-have blend, The Macallan is the single malt, can’t-go-without equivalent. Its sherry-finish profile makes it the kind of rich, single malt bartenders love (note that it topped our Bartenders’ Favourite list). 

There are dram-derived volumes here, but you do increasingly see The Macallan dipping its toe into cocktails, particularly at high-end hotel bars. 11% of our polled bars said the Edrington-owned brand is their bestselling Scotch, while a further 7% said it was the alternate pick. 

Monkey Shoulder, meanwhile, cuts a different figure – a bartenders’ brand through and through, it brings the fortitude of a malt profile without hitting bars’ budgets. The William Grant & Sons blended malt recorded as many house pours as The Macallan, but it was a case of house or nothing for most of those that stocked it. 

Having not appeared in last year’s list, the famous blend Chivas Regal makes a return to the stage. It was found to have been the house pour in 5% of bars while also featuring in bars’ top-two repertoires in a further 7%. Another of the big Speyside single malts is next, Glenmorangie, with 6% of house pours. It offers a lighter profile – certainly next to its LVMH stablemate Ardbeg (5%), which is all smoke and fire. Beam’s Laphroaig has similar numbers. It’s rarely a bestseller, but often on the back bar. 

Orkney favourite Highland Park, Skye’s Talisker and Islay’s unpeated Bruichladdich offer further back bar diversity in minority numbers.