But try Laphroaig, my personal favorite. It's an Islay malt without being too Islay, I think. They make a 30 and a 15, but my favorite is the 10. A little iodinish and sweet, but a nice well-rounded Scotch flavor. I much prefer it to Lagavulin, which tastes like paint thinner to me. On the other hand, my husband likes the Lagavulin better. You could throw a rock from one distillery and hit the other, if you had a major league arm . . .
Laphroaig is excellent, as is the Speyburn and several others. I think at this level it's not "better" so much as "personal preference." I just settled on the Macallan as my personal favorite, probably because it was my introduction to "the good stuff."
I hardly claim to be an expert. I just enjoy the things that I've been privelaged to learn.
Of course, I'm always open to new experiences <g>