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The 7 Best Whiskey Subscriptions

Sip the best of the best in Scotch, bourbon, and more.

Whisky Pour from a bottle into a cut glass tumbler
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Maybe you’re a whiskey (or whisky) drinker who, like me, researches bottles but still finds yourself staring at the wall of bottles in the store, locked in decision paralysis. Or you wish you had better access to bottles because you’re a super-fan of small producers or esoteric batches. Or you’re a whiskey neophyte wanting to broaden your palate and knowledge of the subject. Perhaps you’re looking for a special gift for a bourbon lover. In any of these cases, a whiskey subscription may be what you’re missing out on.

In researching the best whiskey subscriptions, I came across a lot of variety, from tasting drams to multi-bottle boxes. However you like to receive your rye, bourbon, Scotch, or other styles, there’s a subscription model built for you.

Compare the Best Whiskey Subscriptions

Company Starting Price Shipping Included? Bottles Per Delivery Delivery Area Frequency
Best Whiskey Subscription for Award-Winning Bourbon: Flaviar Champions of Bourbon $62 Yes 1 41 States Monthly
Best Whiskey Subscription for Variety: Taster's Club Whiskey of the Month Club $70 No 45 States Monthly
Best Whiskey Subscription for Small-Batch American Whiskey: Rackhouse Whiskey Club $89 Yes 1 43 States Monthly/Bi-Monthly 
Best Value Whiskey Subscription: Pour More Whiskey of the Month Club $50 No  1 45 States Bi-Monthly
Best Whiskey Subscription for Discovery: Blind Barrels $90 No 4 (50 ml) samples 45 States Quarterly, plus 1 bonus shipment for paying annually.
Best Whiskey Subscription for Serious Bourbon Collectors: Bourbon Central Bourbon Mystery Box $300 Yes  3-4 50 States 3-6 months for the lowest tier, every 6 months for the higher tiers.
Best Whisky Subscription for Scotch Enthusiasts: Scotch Malt Whisky Society Bottle of the Month $110 plus a $99 annual membership No 1 44 States Monthly

Top Picks

Best Whiskey Subscription for Award-Winning Bourbon:
Flaviar Whiskey Subscription at Flaviar $73
Jump to Review
Best Whiskey Subscription for Small-Batch American Whiskey:
Rackhouse Whiskey Club Subscription at Rackhousewhiskeyclub.com
Jump to Review
Best Whiskey Subscription for Serious Bourbon Collectors:
Bourbon Central Bourbon Mystery Box at Thebourboncentral.com
Jump to Review

Best Whiskey Subscription for Award-Winning Bourbon

Flaviar Whiskey Subscription

Flaviar Champions of Bourbon Subscription
Credit: Flaviar
Pros
  • It’s very beginner-friendly, and each bottle is a gold medal-winner or higher.

Cons
  • The focus on award-winners may filter out small or niche distillers that enthusiasts seek.

Flaviar is an excellent jumping-off point for beginners and whiskey explorers alike. The Champions of Bourbon subscription nets you a new bottle of award-winning whiskey each month, which is a great way to stock your bar cart, especially if, like me, you find yourself with decision paralysis when staring at bottles in the store. Flaviar’s whiskey experts navigate its vast selection of bottles, and this monthly subscription, as the name suggests, contains only gold medal or higher winners from various competitions.

The subscription includes a complimentary Flaviar Black membership, which unlocks discounts, access to limited or hard-to-find bottles, and a 90-minute-or-less whiskey delivery service. Pricing for a single delivery is $73, shipping included, but prepaying for three months lowers the monthly cost to $62. Flaviar also offers the option to gift subscriptions. Each membership level includes Flaviar Black, which offers discounts on bottles from the site and, on a limited basis, a 90-minute whiskey delivery to your door.

Other subscription packages include the Whiskey Academy — a three-class, 54-tasting pour journey (plus a surprise full bottle upon completion) towards becoming a whiskey aficionado; a Founder’s Picks monthly delivery of rare and hand-selected bottles across the spectrum; and a barrel share program. Black members also get access to purchase individual sample tasting boxes outside the subscription model. We’d be remiss not to mention Flaviar’s storied Advent calendar, a perennial winner for the best whiskey Advent calendar in our roundups, as a perfect sampling option.

What’s Included: 1 (750 ml) bottle | Pricing: From $62/delivery, shipping included | Frequency: Monthly

Best Whiskey Subscription for Variety

Taster's Club Whiskey of the Month Club

Taster's Club Whiskey of the Month Club
Credit: Taster's Club
Pros
  • It offers a broad range of styles and grains, and the subscription model is straightforward.

Cons
  • The stylistic flexibility may not appeal to purists.

As the name suggests, upon subscribing to Taster’s Club, you’ll receive a bottle of whiskey every month to sip and enjoy. Although it has a club for almost every spirit category, the Whiskey of the Month Club offers the gamut of Scotch, rye, bourbon, and other global whiskeys. Membership starts at $70 per month, plus a flat shipping fee, with auto-renewal that you can cancel at any time. You can purchase gift subscriptions in three, six, or 12-month packages, with a one-time payment that includes shipping.

Other whiskey-centric memberships include bourbon and Scotch with similar pricing. Serious Scotch enthusiasts can step up to the Scotch Pro Club, which gets you access to small batch productions and hidden gems for $185 per month. Each bottle ships with digital tasting notes and information about each bottle and distillery.

What’s Included: 1 (750 ml) bottle  | Pricing: $70/month, plus shipping | Frequency: Monthly

Best Whiskey Subscription for Small-Batch American Whiskey

Rackhouse Whiskey Club Subscription

Rackhouse Whiskey Club Subscription
Credit: Rackhouse Whiskey Club
Pros
  • There’s a strong focus on small-batch and small-producer American styles, and the price includes shipping and handling.

Cons
  • It has one of the highest entry-level memberships.

The Rackhouse Club offers two membership levels: Gold and Platinum. Each level features a bi-monthly delivery of selected whiskey, bourbon, or rye, with the former entitling members to one bottle per shipment, and the latter two bottles. Pricing starts at $89 per shipment for Gold members and $129 for Platinum members, and both include shipping fees.

Every shipment comes with a gift selected by the distillery owner. Rackhouse specializes in small producer/small batch American-style whiskeys, and the potential subscription bottles seem a far cry from those you’d find in a big box liquor store. Instead of a subscription gift option, Rackhouse offers a two-bottle one-time gift box.

What’s Included: 1 (750 ml) bottle: | Pricing: From $89, shipping included | Frequency: Monthly/bi-monthly

Best Value Whiskey Subscription

Pour More Whiskey of the Month Club

Pour More Whiskey of the Month Club
Credit: Pour More
Pros
  • It’s the most affordable entry-level option, and the choice of monthly or bi-monthly deliveries offers members some flexibility.

Cons
  • The American focus may not appeal to Scotch, Irish, or world whiskey fans.

Like the Taster’s Club subscription, Pour More’s Whiskey of the Month Club covers multiple whiskey styles, although it seems to lean heavily into American spirits, such as sour mash and rye, for example. The base “Intro” subscription nets you a full bottle every month (or two months) for just $50 plus flat-fee shipping, making it the most economical subscription I’ve found — prepayment options of three, six, or 12 months lower the cost.

Pour More offers three subscription tiers, each offering a little more variety in the selection, with prices increasing accordingly; the top “Enthusiast” level reaches $130 per delivery. Giving subscriptions as a gift can be complicated because regular subscriptions often renew automatically, and people forget about them until a new charge appears. Pour More offers a one-time charge gift option to avoid unpleasant surprises like that.

What’s Included: 1 (750 ml) bottle | Pricing: From $50/month, plus shipping | Frequency: Monthly/bi-Monthly

Best Whiskey Subscription for Discovery

Blind Barrels Subscription

Blind Barrels Subscription
Credit: Blind Barrels
Pros
  • The anonymous labeling makes unbiased tasting easier.

Cons
  • It’s a quarterly delivery of small amounts, and full bottles are a separate purchase.

Although it also focuses on American styles and grains from craft distillers, Blind Barrels takes a slightly different approach to its subscription. Instead of a full bottle, members receive 50 milliliter samples of four different whiskeys every quarter. Each bottle is anonymous, simply labeled A, B, C, or D, and each has a QR code that takes you to a full description of that bottle, including the distillery, mash bill, age statement, and tasting notes. If you decide you’d like to purchase that bottle, membership includes a shipping discount for the bottles you’ve tasted. One-time shipments start at $90, including shipping. Quarterly subscriptions on auto-renewal lower the price to $80 per shipment, and an annual subscription further lowers the cost to $60 by including a bonus fifth tasting kit. The quarterly and annual subscriptions also give you member pricing on full-bottle purchases.

What’s Included: 4 (50 ml) tasting samples | Pricing: From $60 | Frequency: Quarterly

Best Whiskey Subscription for Serious Bourbon Collectors

Bourbon Central Bourbon Mystery Box

Bourbon Central Bourbon Mystery Box
Credit: Bourbon Central
Pros
  • This is an excellent means for diehard enthusiasts to sample hard-to-find bottles.

Cons
  • The price could be prohibitively high for some.

For hardcore bourbon and rye enthusiasts, there really isn’t a better choice than the Bourbon Mystery Box. The boxes are available in four levels, each with a guaranteed value greater than the package price. The starting level, Classic, at $300 includes three to four bottles; the Reserve steps up with the same three to four-bottle delivery, but with one or more of those on allocation, for $500; and the Vault further ups the ante with exclusively allocated bottles for $800. These prices reflect a one-time purchase, and each is available for twice-yearly subscriptions at a 5% discount. Each box comes with detailed tasting notes and a chance to win a bottle of Van Winkle.

What’s Included: 3-4 (750 ml) bottles | Pricing: from $300 | Frequency: Every 6 months

Best Whisky Subscription for Scotch Enthusiasts

Scotch Malt Whisky Society Bottle of the Month Club

Scotch Malt Whisky Society Bottle of the Month Club
Credit: Scotch Malt Whisky Society
Pros
  • This is a true blind tasting experience with a dedicated focus on Scotch Whisky.

Cons
  • Some might find the anonymous labeling frustrating.

So far, most subscription clubs have emphasized American styles and grains. But Scotch drinkers, your time has come. The Scotch Malt Whisky Society’s Bottle of the Month Club is here for you. SMWS sells green-bottle whisky, hiding the small producers’ names but highlighting the region, aging methods, and a general flavor category. Every bottle from SMWS is a true blind tasting. The price is the cost of the bottle (typically between $110 and $250) plus shipping and handling fees. SMWS is membership-based, and a required $99 annual fee gets you access to the Bottle of the Month.

What’s Included:1 (750 ml) bottle | Pricing: From $110 plus shipping | Frequency: Monthly

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is whiskey made from?

    What unites all types of whiskey is grain. Whether it's barley, corn, wheat, rye, rice, or a combination, all whiskey is made by fermenting and then distilling some kind of grain. (It's often, but not always, aged afterward in wooden barrels.)


    What differentiates one kind of whiskey from another is the kind of grains used, the specific location or region of production, and how it is aged. Single malt Scotch, for example, has to be made in Scotland, from 100 percent barley, and it has to spend at least 3 years in an oak barrel.

  • What is the difference between whiskey and bourbon?

    All bourbon is whiskey, but not all whiskey is bourbon. Whiskey is a broad category that covers any distilled spirit made from grain, while bourbon is one specific kind of whiskey. By law, anything labeled as bourbon must contain a mix of grain that's at least 51 percent corn, must be made in the United States, and must spend at least some time in a charred new oak container. (There are some other technical rules about distillation and aging proof, too.)


    Kentucky is the center of bourbon production and home to many large distilleries, but it is a myth that bourbon can only originate in Kentucky. Bourbon can come from anywhere in the U.S. as long as it meets the other requirements.

  • Do all states allow whiskey delivery?

    No, but many do. Thanks to the legacy of Prohibition, every state in the U.S. has slightly different laws about buying and selling alcohol. Shipping alcohol is mostly legal, but the rules depend on exactly where the alcohol is going and the sender’s location. You should double-check the company's website and policies to make sure it can ship to the recipient's location.


    No matter what, alcohol cannot go to a P.O. Box; it has to be sent to a physical location where someone over 21 can sign for the package.

Our Expertise

  • Greg Baker is a former chef and restaurant owner with over four decades of experience in food, drink, hospitality, and adjacent spaces. He’s designed and consulted on multiple bar programs. For this article, he researched 15 whiskey subscription options and evaluated them based on variety, price, and delivery convenience to arrive at this list.
  • Will Franke is a Chicago-based writer and blogger who specializes in travel, food, and beverage. He contributed the FAQ to this piece.
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