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Best whiskies for a highball

Which whiskies work best with soda or ginger ale, from light Japanese and Scotch blends to peated malts, how to build the drink, and live UK prices.

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For a highball, choose a light blend such as Suntory Whisky Toki, Johnnie Walker Red Label or Chivas Regal 12 if you want a clean, refreshing drink, and a peated malt such as Talisker 10 Year Old if you want the smoke to come through the soda. Bourbon and Irish blends suit ginger ale better than soda.

How to make a highball

  1. Fill a tall glass with ice and stir to chill it. Pour off any melted water.
  2. Add one measure of whisky (50ml is a common pour).
  3. Top with three to four times as much cold soda water, poured gently down the side of the glass to keep the bubbles.
  4. Stir once, lifting from the bottom, and add a strip of lemon peel.
How to make a highball, in four steps. The ratio is a starting point, not a rule. Step 1: fill a tall glass with ice and stir to chill it, then pour off any melted water. Step 2: add one measure of whisky; 50ml is a common pour. Step 3: top with three to four times as much cold soda water, poured gently down the side of the glass to keep the bubbles. For 50ml of whisky that is 150 to 200ml of soda. Step 4: stir once, lifting from the bottom, and add a strip of lemon peel. A whisky at 46% ABV can take more soda than one at 40%.

The ratio is a starting point, not a rule. A whisky at 46% ABV can take more soda than one at 40%. Very cold soda and plenty of ice keep the drink from going flat or watery. Light, unpeated whisky and grain whisky keep the drink clean; sherry-cask and peated malts give a heavier, more savoury highball.

Light blends

These are made to be mixed, and their lighter grain whisky stays fresh under soda.

Suntory Whisky Toki: £29.50 at Master of Malt. A 43% ABV Japanese blend of malt from Hakushu and Yamazaki with grain whisky from Chita. Suntory presents the highball as its signature serve.

The Chita Suntory Whisky 70cl: £49.49 at Master of Malt. A 43% ABV Japanese single grain whisky, lighter still than Toki.

Johnnie Walker Red Label: £21.19 at Master of Malt. A 40% ABV blended Scotch with no age statement, and Johnnie Walker’s entry-level blend.

Chivas Regal 12 Year Blended Scotch Whisky 70cl: £29.95 at Hard To Find Whisky. A 40% ABV blended Scotch with a 12-year age statement, so none of the whisky in it is younger than 12 years.

More flavour

Monkey Shoulder: £30.95 at Hard To Find Whisky. A 40% ABV blended malt of Speyside malts, with no grain whisky, so it is usually fuller than a standard blend.

Talisker 10 Year Old: £39.15 at Master of Malt. A 45.8% ABV peated single malt from the Isle of Skye. Its strength and pepper carry through soda well, so it can take the full four parts.

With ginger ale

Ginger ale is sweeter than soda, so it suits whiskies with a sweet or spicy base.

Jameson Irish Whiskey: £23.40 at Master of Malt. A 40% ABV Irish blend of pot still and grain whiskey, triple distilled at Midleton in County Cork.

Maker’s Mark Bourbon: £35.00 at The Whisky Shop. A 45% ABV Kentucky bourbon made with wheat rather than rye, so it is usually sweeter and less peppery under ginger.

Sources and review

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Questions

What is a whisky highball?
A long drink of whisky and chilled soda water, built over ice in a tall glass, often with a strip of lemon peel. In Japan it is the standard serve for Suntory’s Kakubin blend.
What ratio should I use?
Start with one part whisky to three or four parts soda, for example 50ml of whisky to 150 to 200ml of soda. Suntory’s suggested Toki highball uses one part whisky to three parts soda. A stronger whisky, such as one at 46% ABV, can take more soda.
Can I use ginger ale instead of soda?
Yes. Whisky and ginger ale is a sweeter, spicier long drink, and it suits bourbon (such as Jim Beam or Maker’s Mark) and Irish blends (such as Jameson) as well as blended Scotch.
Does a highball need an aged single malt?
No. Soda dilutes the whisky three or four times, which hides fine detail, so a 40% ABV blend such as Johnnie Walker Red Label or a 43% blend such as Suntory Whisky Toki works well. Smoky malts such as Talisker 10 Year Old make a good highball too if you want more flavour.

About the author

John Fegan

· Editor

Hailing from the land of haggis and deep-fried Mars bars, John was always going to find his way to whisky. He has run Uisge Beatha since 2015 and Whiskipedia.com since 2020.