Hey guys,

I am new at single malt whisky. By new I mean I have never had any. I have always been a fan of bourbon but recently started drinking some Johnie Walker Black and Green (I'm a huge fan of the green and I get it cheap at the local military exchange).

My wife bought me a fairly large gift certificate for the local spirits store and I'm trying to decide what to spend it on. I have $250 to work with and I'd like to get 4-5 whiskys that run the spectrum.

This is what I'm looking at so far:

Yamakazi 12yr
Macallan 12yr
Highland Park 12yr
Ardburg 10yr or Bowmore 12yr

What do you experts think? What suggestions would you make?