A great whisky bar is built around the back-bar shelves, not the cocktail menu. Eight hundred bottles minimum. A staff who can talk through Islay peat, high-rye Bourbon, and Japanese Yamazaki without becoming smug. A list that makes you reach for something you'd never have ordered. The 20 below all qualify. From Tokyo's Campbelltoun Loch (where rare Yamazaki sells out monthly) to Edinburgh's Bow Bar (the Old Town's quietest dram), these are the rooms where whisky actually gets discussed, not just poured.
The 20 best whisky bars in the world
01 · Tokyo
Yurakucho
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Whisky · Iconic
Iconic Yurakucho whisky bar with rare Scotch and Japanese whiskies.
Order: A pour of rare Yamazaki
02 · New York
Flatiron
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Whisky library · Iconic
Iconic Flatiron whisky bar with 1,000+ bottles.
Order: A pour from the rare-whisky shelf
03 · London
Shoreditch
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Iconic · Whisky tree
Iconic Shoreditch whisky bar with the famous whisky tree.
Order: A pour from the tree
04 · Edinburgh
Old Town
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Iconic · Whisky
Iconic Old Town whisky pub.
Order: A dram of Islay
05 · Sydney
CBD
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Whisky · Iconic
Iconic CBD whisky-led basement bar.
Order: A high-rye Manhattan
06 · Paris
9th
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Whisky · Iconic
Iconic 9th-arrondissement whisky bar.
Order: A pour of rare Glenfarclas
07 · Hong Kong
Lan Kwai Fong
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Whisky · Members
Iconic Lan Kwai Fong members whisky club.
Order: A pour from the rare-whisky cellar
08 · Singapore
Bras Basah
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Whisky · Iconic
Iconic Bras Basah whisky bar with 1,500+ bottles.
Order: A pour from the rare-whisky shelf
09 · Chicago
Lincoln Park
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Iconic · Whisky · Punk
Iconic Lincoln Park whisky punk bar with 800+ whiskies.
Order: A pour of rare Kentucky
10 · Los Angeles
Downtown
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Whisky · Iconic
Iconic Downtown whisky bar with 700+ whiskies.
Order: A high-rye Manhattan
Iconic Scotch and Japanese whisky temples
11 · San Francisco
Embarcadero
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American whisky · Iconic
Charles Phan's iconic Embarcadero American whisky bar.
Order: A pour of rare Bourbon
12 · Tokyo
Shibuya
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Whisky · Iconic
Iconic Shibuya counter with serious whisky and cocktails.
Order: A pour of rare Hakushu
13 · London
Soho
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Whisky merchant · Iconic
Iconic 1964 Soho whisky merchant with downstairs bar.
Order: A pour from the merchant's selection
14 · Glasgow
Hope Street
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Whisky · Iconic
Iconic Glasgow whisky pub with 700+ whiskies.
Order: A dram of Highland
15 · New York
Lower East Side
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Whisky · Tiny
Tiny LES whisky bar with 700+ whiskies.
Order: A flight of rare Bourbon
16 · Melbourne
CBD
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Iconic · Whisky
Iconic CBD whisky bar with 750+ whiskies.
Order: A flight of three Australian whiskies
17 · Dublin
Nassau Street
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Whisky · Modern
Modern Nassau Street Irish whiskey bar.
Order: A pour of rare Redbreast
18 · Montreal
Little Burgundy
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Whisky · Iconic
Iconic Little Burgundy whisky pub with 250+ whiskies.
Order: A dram of Speyside
19 · Vancouver
Gastown
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Cocktails · Whisky
Iconic Gastown cocktail bar with serious whisky list.
Order: A high-rye Manhattan
20 · Copenhagen
Nørrebro
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Iconic · Whisky
Iconic Nørrebro wine and whisky merchant with bar.
Order: A pour from the merchant's selection
The full guide, city by city
Each entry below is a deep dive into the best 10 bars in that city — picked by editors who live there.
Browse the full whisky-bar indexWhisky bars by city — every featured venue has a profile.
See the full list
What makes a great whisky bar
Forget the cocktail list. The best whisky bars work because of what's open behind the bar tonight, not what's still sealed. The 20 above all do that. Campbelltoun Loch and The Auld Alliance represent the rare-Scotch end. Black Rock and Milroy's the new wave. Edinburgh and Glasgow the Scottish heartland. The American entries the Bourbon and rye revival. Pick the room that matches the dram you want.
