All
Reviews
Articles

Want breaking news
in the wine world?

Want breaking news in the wine world?

Sign up for the
Beverage Industry Enthusiast
newsletter for a weekly
rundown on the latest.

Sign up for the Beverage Industry Enthusiast weekly newsletter

Please enter a valid email address

We will never share your email address

privacy policy
×
SUBSCRIBE TO
NEWSLETTERS

The latest wine reviews, trends and recipes plus special offers on wine storage and accessories
Please enter a valid email address
privacy policy
×
Please enter a valid email address
×
Thank You!

We've received your email address, and soon you will start getting exclusive offers and news from Wine Enthusiast.

Now you'll be the first to hear about:

  • Exclusive discount offers on wine accessories and storage
  • Wine Ratings
  • Food and cocktail recipes
  • Wine event invitations...and more!
×

×
  • Wine & Ratings
    • Wine Features
    • Ratings
    • The Enthusiast 100
    • 100 Wines Under $15
    • 100 Wines to Cellar
    • Cabernet Sauvignon
    • Pinot Noir
    • Malbec
    • Chardonnay
    • Champagne
  • Wine Basics
    • Featured Wine Basics
    • Red Wine
    • White Wine
    • Wine & Food Pairings
    • Wine Terms
    • Wine 101 Videos
  • Drinks
    • Featured Drinks
    • Spirit Ratings
    • Vodka
    • Tequila
    • Whiskey
    • Top 100 Spirits 2015
    • Cocktail Recipes
    • Beer and Cider Ratings
  • Food
    • Featured Food
    • Popular Recipes
    • Chefs & Trends
  • Travel
    • Featured Travel
    • Italy’s Seaside Paradise, Cinque Terre
    • Where To Eat and Drink in Hudson, NY
    • Wining and Dining on Spanish Slopes
  • Trade News
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
    • Print
    • Digital Editions
    • RSS
    • Tasting Guide App
  • Sign In / Sign Up
  • Read About Wine
  • Buy Wine Accessories
    Go to WineEnthusiast.com
  • Buy Wine
    Go to WineExpress.com
  • Gift Registry
    Go to ThirstyNest.com
 

Sign in

Not a member? Sign up

With an account

  • Sign in with Facebook
  • Sign in with Google

With your member account

Forgot password?
Sign in Cancel
 

Sign in

  • Sign in with Facebook
  • Sign in with Google Plus

Log In
Not a member?Sign up
Forgot password?
 

Sign up to leave a review!

Already a member? Sign in

With an account

  • Sign up with Facebook
  • Sign up with Google

Create a member account

Learn, discover and get special offers with our email newsletters.

Sign up Cancel privacy policy
 
 

Enter your email to retreive your password.

Remember your password? Sign in
Not a member? Sign up

Retrieve Cancel
 
Sign in
  • Wine & Ratings
      • Ratings
      • 100 Wines Under $15
      • Top 100 Wines to Cellar
      • The Enthusiast 100 of 2017
      • 2018 Vintage Chart
      • Cabernet Sauvignon
      • Pinot Noir
      • Malbec
      • Merlot
      • Zinfandel
      • Chardonnay
      • Sauvignon Blanc
      • Riesling
      • Champagne
      • Prosecco
    • The Wine Enthusiast Guide to Art & Wine
  • Wine Basics
      • Red Wine
      • White Wine
      • Wine & Food Pairings
      • Wine Terms
      • Wine 101 Videos
      • The Wine Enthusiast Podcast
      • Prosecco Superiore DOCG
    • How Amelia Fais Harnas Turns Painting with Wine into an Art Form
    • One on One with Philippe Starck
    • Illustrator Ralph Steadman on Wine and Label Design
  • Drinks
      • Spirit Ratings
      • Vodka
      • Tequila
      • Whiskey
      • Bourbon
      • Top 100 Spirits of 2017
      • Top 25 Beers
      • Cocktail Recipes
      • Beer and Cider Ratings
      • Drinks Videos
    • Simple Cocktail Recipes for Leftover Wine
    • Why It's Italian Craft Beer's Time to Shine
  • Food
      • Popular Recipes
      • Winter Pairing Guide
      • 100 Best Wine Restaurants
      • Chefs & Trends
      • Hosting
      • Wine and Cheese Pairing
      • Food Videos
    • Explore the Diverse Flavors of Modern Southern Cooking
    • Caramelized Fennel Salad with Blue Cheese and Red-Wine Cherries
    • The Complex Flavor of Beets
  • Travel
      • Top 10 Wine Getaways of 2018
      • Napa Valley Winery Guide
      • How to Tour Wine Country
      • California Travel Guide
      • Wine Lover's Guide to Spain
      • South America Travel Guide
      • Explore Languedoc
    • Top 10 Wine Getaways of 2018
    • How to Get the Most Out of Your Next Wine Vacation
    • Wine Bars Serving Up Beautiful Design
  • Trade News
      • Importer Connection
      • Wine Star Award Winners
      • Wine Star Awards Videos
      • Advertise
    • Wine Enthusiast's 2017 Wine Star Award Winners
    • Winemakers Hope Their Volcanic Vineyards Blow the Top Off Sales
    • Blended White Wines Fight for Fair Share of Retail Space
  • Subscribe
      • Digital
      • Print
      • Tasting Guide App

14 Value Spirits Under $25

These bottles deliver excellence without breaking the bank.
By Kara Newman
1of15
Back
  •  
Start

When it comes to spirits, it’s easy to be attracted to the luxury of high-end selections. While there’s nothing wrong with indulging in pricey, top-shelf pours, sometimes, you want more bang for your buck. 

To be clear, it is not just about finding what’s cheap; it’s about discovering what’s great, yet available at a reasonable price point. To narrow things down, we’ve defined “reasonable” as under $25 a bottle—but many of the spirits below deliver excellence for even less.

Although the goal is to keep quality front and center, it’s worth noting that many of the bottles in this category don’t skimp on quantity. Many of these spirits are packaged in bottles that hold a full liter, rather than the standard 750 milliliters.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Kirkland—the private label brand for bulk-product warehouse retailer Costco—topped all the other submissions in the quantity department, sending in startlingly enormous bottles holding as much as 1.75 liters (that’s more than two 750-ml bottles). Kirkland’s Tequila offerings were a particularly pleasant surprise on the value front. Indeed, that’s one worth keeping in mind for next year’s Cinco de Mayo party, when the urge suddenly hits to whip up margaritas for 50 of your closest friends.

But right now, when many of us are focused on party-going and gift-giving, it’s nice to be reminded that it’s possible to fill Thanksgiving punch bowls with plenty of good cheer, without completely emptying out your wallet.

—Kara Newman

95 Rain City Spirits DRIP Coffee Liqueur (USA; Rain City Spirits, Seattle, WA). Made with local cold-brewed coffee, cane sugar and Rain City’s vodka, this liqueur has a bold, authentic coffee aroma and flavor, with light sweetness and a slightly creamy mouthfeel. Just add cream for a head start on a white Russian-style cocktail. Best Buy.
abv: 26%       Price: $22

94 Damrak Amsterdam Gin (Holland; Lucas Bols USA, New York, NY). Versatile and crisp, this cocktail-ready gin offers a mild lemon peel aroma and mouth-filling notes of sweet, juicy grapefruit tempered by coriander and white pepper. Best Buy.
abv: 41.8%    Price: $23

94 Rain Cucumber Vodka (USA; Sazerac Co., Frankfort, KY). Light, fresh and just faintly sweet, this flavored vodka has spa-like notes of cucumber and lime peel. Smooth sipping, especially when chilled, and natural for spring/summer cocktails. Best Buy.
abv:
30%       Price: $17

94 Tequila Don Ramon Añejo (Mexico; ER Distributors, San Antonio, TX). Soft and well-structured, this aged Tequila mixes spicy and sweet to delightful effect. Long honey notes linger on the tongue, tapering off with a welcome touch of cayenne-ginger heat. Sip straight up or pair with Mexican dishes with bold flavors. Best Buy.
abv:
40%       Price: $24

93 Marie Brizard Orange Curaçao (France; The Other Wine and Spirits, Miami, FL). Made with Cognac and bitter orange from Haiti, this is an orange liqueur with a darker side. It has a deep amber hue and a robust, enticing orange-peel scent. On the palate, it’s appropriately thick and syrupy, bursting with orange peel and fruit, burnt orange peel, almond and vanilla. Would work particularly well to sweeten darker spirits like aged brandy or rye whiskey in cocktails. Best Buy.
abv: 30%       Price: $20

93 Prairie Wolf Spirits DARK (USA; Prairie Wolf Spirits, Oklahoma City, OK). This velvety, nut-brown craft coffee liqueur is reminiscent of sweetened coffee dosed with dried orange peel and maple. Made with Kona coffee beans roasted in Oklahoma, plus vanilla, molasses and cane sugar, it has a rounded, almost Bourbon-like alcohol feel that cuts through the sweetness for a balanced sip. Best Buy.

abv: 20%       Price: $22

93 Skyy Vodka (USA; Campari America, San Francisco, CA). Skyy is best known for its flavored vodkas, but this will please most unflavored vodka purists, too. Overall this vodka is neutral in aroma and flavor, with a hint of vanilla and a crisp, light finish. Best Buy.

abv: 40%       Price: $17

93 Tanqueray London Dry Gin (England; Diageo, New York, NY). Inside the recognizable green bottle, look for bold juniper plus notes of anise, lemon peel, and a faint white-floral touch, laced with black pepper heat. Overall, a clean, classic profile that’s just the ticket for gin & tonics. Best Buy.
abv: 47.3%    Price: $20

92 Bols Elderflower Liqueur (Holland; Lucas Bols USA, New York, NY). Relatively light and delicate, this liqueur has a pale gold hue and is fragranced with white flowers and citrus. It’s not overly sweet or heavy on the palate, showing subtle floral notes and a whisper of grapefruit peel. This nuanced liqueur would play well with gin or light rum in aperitif cocktails. Best Buy.
abv: 17%       Price: $18

92 The Fat Trout Blended Scotch Whisky (Scotland; BH Group USA Imports, Manhasset, NY). Bright gold in the glass, this whiskey offers vanilla and fresh-cut grass aromatics. It’s similarly light and fresh on the palate, with touches of oak, vanilla and a fleeting tropical fruit note, finishing with a faint salt-air touch. The label makes this bottle a fun gift for a favorite fishing enthusiast. Best Buy.
abv: 40%       Price: $25

92 Wild Turkey 81 Proof (USA; Campari America, San Francisco, CA). This Kentucky Bourbon is aged up to six to eight years in “alligator charred” barrels, yielding honey-vanilla aromatics and mouthwatering, rounded maple and vanilla notes that close out with clove and cinnamon spark. Best Buy.
abv: 40.5%    Price: $18

91 1800 Silver Tequila (Mexico; Proximo Spirits, Jersey City, NJ). Surprisingly floral and delicate, this workhorse silver Tequila has a pleasing agave aroma and a crisp, peppy flavor profile with touches of vanilla and white pepper. Margarita material. Best Buy.
abv: 40%       Price: $25

91 Espolon Tequila Reposado (Mexico; Campari America, San Francisco, CA). This light gold reposado balances vanilla sweetness with mild, zingy notes of mint, menthol and green pepper, finishing with a perky cayenne pepper tingle. Best Buy.
abv: 40%       Price: $25

91 George Dickel Tennessee Sour Mash Whiskey No. 8 (USA; Diageo Americas, Norwalk, CT). With its tawny hue, smooth caramel and maple notes braced up with a slight oaky edge and buttery finish, this is a whiskey to savor. Try it in a Manhattan. Best Buy.
abv: 40%       Price: $18 

Vinitaly 2018 Showcases in Italian Wine Trends
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
  • 11
  • 12
  • 13
  • 14
  • 15
Start
  • Vinitaly 2018 Showcases in Italian Wine Trends
  • Vinitaly Sees More Than 6% Increase in Accredited Buyers
  • California Cabernets for Your Cellar
1 of 15
Vinitaly 2018 Showcases in Italian Wine Trends
View All
Published on October 9, 2014
Back
SUBSCRIBE TO
NEWSLETTERS

The latest wine reviews, trends and recipes plus special offers on wine storage and accessories
Please enter a valid email address
privacy policy

Top Reads
  • 1
    What Does it Mean When the Same Grape has Different Names?
  • 2
    How California's Central Coast Winemakers are Making Grenache Their Own
  • 3
    How New Jersey is Producing Some of the Best Wines in the East
  • 4
    What’s Old is New Again: Garnacha of D.O.P. Cariñena
  • 5
    Wine Enthusiast Podcast: Volcanic Wines

You Might Like

from Zergnet

ZergNet
Subscribe for as little as $1.79 an Issue! $1.79 an Issue!
  • Privacy Policy
  • WINEMAG.COM
    • Wine & Ratings
    • Wine Basics
    • Drinks
    • Food
    • Travel
  • About Us
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contact Us
    • Career Opportunities
    • Charity Partners
    • Privacy Policy
  • Subscribe
    • Print
    • Digital
    • RSS
  • Trade
    • Advertise
    • Importer Connection
    • Beverage Industry Enthusiast
    • Wine Star Awards
    • Submit for Rating
    • Classifieds
Mobile App Links
Tasting Guide App

Search thousands of Wine, Beer and Spirits ratings from the editors of Wine Enthusiast in one amazingly simple and beautiful app.

Copyright ©2018 Wine Enthusiast Magazine. All rights reserved.
  • Wine Enthusiast
  • Wine Express
  • Home Page

The World in Your Glass