hi mja
your question to me is a bit funny as whiskey is first a generic name and second the term whiskey takes in about five different types of beverage
first there is japanese whiskey and no its not a form of sake or rice wine it is a true whiskey and comes in a single and blended version then there is the american version which is a rye whiskey ( and bourbon s not a whiskey so all the bourbans above are not in the same group) the american can be single or blended and they have alot of different tastes
then you have the scotch whiskey which I like now this come in alot of different styles and there are more types of whiskey in scotland then there are types of champaine and there are all very different if you wish to you can go to abedeen and the scotch house sell a nip for 1 pound and they have over 6 to 700 different scotchs on display
and no have not tried them all.
chivas is a blend from the house of strathalvin and I like single malts for this house glenlivit is again a single malt but they do a blend
I drink the scottish way a nip with a dribble of water 5mil max and straight and you wont see coke going even in the same fridge.
irish whiskey is very different again as it is made or was from potatoe peel and so had a rough taste but a long slow glowagain there are hundreds for irish whiskeys
for me the best blend is grouse lowest but best for value then johnny black and the more chivas 18
if I was going for ta blue I would go for a 21 year old single malt
and then you did ask what is the best whiskey
well if you get a chance try a 25 years old single malt straight out of a new tapped 25 year old keg
you can olny get it from the distillery so you have to go to japan, us scotland or ireland or as I like to call it by its true name of eire ( and eire was its name before it was overrun and forced to change its name to ireland.
the last of the five is the eastern states that do make whiskeys in poland and russia but never tried them.
your question is like saying which is the best wine
nearly impossible to answer
what I will say is that scotch is one of the best drinks I like to drink and neat
the best american one I have had is crown special reserve and it was a 18 yr single and was a very nice drop.
for me I enjoy drinking scotch.
and I hope one day you get a chnace to go on a 4 day scotch trip just going from one distillery to another and doing the same as wine tasters do tasting scotch.
I have done it and was for me just great
but you have to really like your scotch and understand the differences that different items make to the taste.
hope this helps
and if you wish I can taste test a bottle to make sure it has been made to the companies specs just in case you got a faulty bottle.