There are loads of whiskies I like, but I need more context to recommend something. Are you just starting to drink whisky? What do you like? Are you looking for budget or exotic stuff?

I've tasted some great Japanese whiskies, but I don't know the range of stuff there well at all. Nikka has a bar under their office in Tokyo, and I went when I was in town last year to try their range:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/6jzabttfzjyk0ea/nikka.jpg?dl=0

I left the country with a bottle of Nikka Yoichi, which is good, but not nearly as good as some of the ones from that tasting, most of which I believe are exclusively bottled for exactly that menu item. So if the question is, "Do I like Japanese whisky?" I can roundly say, "Yes." If the question is if I can recommend any, I'd have to say, "Not really."

Brand new to this! And not even sure my taste buds are discerning enough to get into it, but I'd like to try. Not sure where to start. Was guessing that a wide variety of exotic options would be great, so I don't get bored and quit early, but then again I may not be able to appreciate those yet.

Got a bottle of Suntory Yamazaki 12 Year as a gift a while back and really enjoyed it, although it was a bit sweet.

If you're new at this, it'd be better to get a range of stuff that's not super expensive and compare them. In addition to the couple I mentioned above, these are some good low-end Scotches:

Laguvulin 16, Talisker 10, Glenmorangie 10, Aberlour 10

For bourbon, Buffalo Trace is a great deal (it's not an amazing whisky, but it's great for its price). 1776 Bourbon is quite good, and not very expensive. Bushmills 10 is a nice, relatively cheap, Irish single malt.

Getting out into more exotic stuff doesn't make sense until you've developed your taste for the stuff a bit more since it's expensive. If there's a whisky festival of some sort in your area, at least if they work like the one in Berlin, they're a great place to try a bunch of stuff since 2 cl costs about 1/20th of the bottle price, so you can try a jigger from a €100 bottle usually for €5, or low-end stuff for €2. It's very rare that I'd drop €100 or more on something I hadn't previously tasted, and at said festival, I'll usually try 6-8 exotic whiskies, and then buy a bottle or two.

I can't remember if I've tried the Suntory Yamazaki, but several of the Japanese (and Taiwanese) whiskies I've tried are a bit sweeter; a bit more like a good bourbon.

I could second Nikka. My girlfriend has a bottle of the Nikka Coffee Grain that she covets and I'm not to go near it unless she offers. haha

https://www.nikka.com/eng/products/grain/coffeygrain.html

(Though personally I still gravitate toward Scotch if I have a choice)

Suntory Hibiki 21 if you can get your hands on it. Hibiki Master's Select is pretty good too. The opposite of peaty/smoky, so subject to taste.