Single Malt
Scotland
Oak
The Committee Release of Ardbeg Alligator, so named for the barrels it was aged in; the American oak casks were given such an intense char, the resulting charcoal surface resembled alligator skin! This stuff is very special indeed - one of the best Ardbeg whiskies we've ever had the pleasure of trying.
This bottle was part of a private collection - if you'd like more detailed photos just get in touch!
Quite lemony against the obvious peat on the nose, and very, very sweet. It’s soooooo creamy and buttery; we get lemon curd, then peach, particularly peach skins, then a little bit of red currant and some latte coffee with just a sprinkling of ginger, black pepper and mace. On the back-end of the nose, there’s a decent hit of Barbecued goodness that put us in mind of a really, really good rack of ribs (can you guess where the inspiration for last week’s feast came from?).
Big creamy sweetness, the expected hit of vanilla comes later. We get peaches in syrup, maple syrup, and then onto citrus, with zest, pith and fruit. Blood oranges, and grapefruit late palate. This has a huge maltiness, with ginger, fivespice and Crêpes Suzette.
Confectioners’ sugar, lemon meringue pie and vanilla cream. Subtle smoke integrates very well.
Wowser. Not at all what we were expecting from a cask that’s received such aggressive treatment. This is by far and away the sweetest, most approachable and most drinkable Ardbeg we’ve had in years. At the same time though, the sweetness hides a BBQ-y, Chocolatey complexity the likes of which we’ve not experienced for quite a while.
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One of the best releases from Ardbeg, to bad it's hard to come by nowadays..
wow!
I liked alligator allot. But the current price is way out of line with the quality of this malt.
I like also these expression a lot.
Sorry, this one is not to my liking, left a bitter after taste. Glad I bought 3cl taster bottle rather than spending money on full bottle. Not a patch on Ugeadail, in my opinion.
