I know you’re a man of taste and so I want to direct you to Nikka, my fav Japanese distillery. Both of the Coffey whiskies (~$75) live in my rotation at all times; I prefer the malt to the grain but both are incredible. My wife’s dad put me on to their From The Barrel bottle and that’s one that I’ve bought for new jobs, when we got married, and when we had our daughter — special moments for a ~$100 bottle. If you’re looking for something you don’t have to mix but can if needed, Nikka Days is the best entry point to simple sipping Japanese whisky at ~$50. (If you mix anything with the Coffey ones or From the Barrel I will drive to you and chug the rest of the bottle.) The only thing to consider with Japanese is the fluctuating prices; they cannot keep up with production post covid so the prices all might be +/-$10 from what I quoted. Enjoy!