Monkey Shoulder is a blended malt — a mix of single malts rather than a malt-and-grain blend — and it’s built with mixing in mind. As with every Dram Verdict review, I tasted it neat first, then with water, over ice and as a highball, because that’s how a lot of people will actually drink it. Neat, it’s smooth and easy but on the gentle side; as a highball, it really comes into its own. The bottle I reviewed was the 700ml, 40% version, while in the US it’s sold as a 750ml bottle at 43%. Checked in September 2026, a 750ml bottle was listed at $28.99 at the US retailer checked, and prices vary by state and store. It also makes an interesting side-by-side with Glenfiddich 12. For more from this category, see our Blended Malt reviews.
As a cocktail base: William Grant & Sons describes Monkey Shoulder as 100% malt whisky “made for mixing,” and that matches how it behaves behind the bar. Its mellow, creamy, vanilla-led malt character, with very little smoke, blends easily with other ingredients, which makes it easy to build a balanced, smooth and approachable cocktail that still tastes like Scotch. It doesn’t push strong smoke or heavy complexity into a drink; what it adds is malt richness, soft sweetness, roundness and cohesion — the same qualities that make it such a good highball. On the day I checked, it cost the same as Johnnie Walker Black Label; Black Label brings more depth to a cocktail, while Monkey Shoulder is the easier, more forgiving base when you want everything to come together smoothly.
