There are calibers I like and calibers I shoot most. They aren't the same thing.
I just have a never-ending respect for the .44 Special. Its magnum cousin seems like an overkill round to me, and one that carries more oomph than is needed in almost every situation. If I would only shoot soft loads in a .44 magnum, why not just rely on the parent round? From 1908 to 1955 it was THE cartridge in the S&W world, and only a few guys with long distances around their houses and a perceived need to drop deer with a wheelgun at 600 yards thought otherwise.
But when I buy guns for my collection, I really seem to load up on .38s and .22s. So I'd have to go with .38 Special and .22 LR for basic shooting.
I'll just observe in passing that these rounds perform best for me in prewar and postwar transitional revolvers.
As a footnote, I really like general shooting with .32 Long, .38 S&W, and .45 ACP (in a 1917), but they don't count as favorites.