Best Brahms Third Symphony

Well as a Brahms freak I think you do have two of the best .
A very nice 3rd is the Charles Mackerras on Telarc CD-80450 with the Scottish Chamber Orch, His genius and the smaller force are just plain lovely .
Another fine one is Alsop with the London Phil . on Naxos, . She is a great conductor .

It is unusual , IMO in a good way .That size and sometime single violin to a part is the sort of sound Brahms would have heard in his day .

Only big Orchestra that played that way was the Leipzig Gewandhaus under Masur.
Till the DDR fell all the players and Masur were alums of the Leipzig
Conservatory and were taught to play in that 1850’s style off the original
scores annotated by their former conductor , Mendelssohn.
IMO both Brahms and especially Schumann sound better this way .
I never recommend Masur and the Gewandhaus knowing it is an acquired taste , but it is one I acquired hearing them live many times .

As rcprince said, very refreshing .