A phenomenal whisky packing powerful peaty deliciousness, Ardbeg 10 Year Old is a favourite of many whisky lovers around the world. Produced on the Kildalton Coast of Islay, this single malt matures for a decade before being bottled without any chill-filtration. If you're after a whisky full of coastal air, smoke and more, this is exactly what you want.
A ridge of vanilla leads to mountain of peat capped with citrus fruits and circled by clouds of sea spray.
Sweet vanilla counterbalanced with lemon and lime followed by that surging Ardbeg smoke that we all know and love.
Long and glorious; sea salted caramel and beach bonfire smoke.
Precise balance, big smoke and non-chill filtered. This is why this is such a famous dram.
Didn't like this whiskey at all it doesn't taste good more like disinfectant really looking forward to having a tot had it for Christmas but it is undrinkable other people have tried and just not nice .
I've been working my way through the various single malts. I've had some Speysides, some Highlands, and almost all of the Islays. I've not had any of the other Island malts (Jura, Talisker, et al) or any of the Lowlands. From my experiences, I'll probably stick with the big 3 from Islay (Lagavulin, Laphroag, and Ardbeg). I'm not a huge fan of Bowmore, I really like Caol Ila, and I've yet to try a Bruichladdich. I'm not a sophisticated scotch drinker that can tell you every esoteric scent and taste, so I won't bore you with snobbery. I will say that Ardbeg 10 is becoming my go-to "daily" dram. Sure, I like Lagavulin 16 a bit better for its complexity, I might rate Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength just a bit higher, and I LOVE the Ardbeg Uigeadail...but dollar-for-dollar, the Ardbeg 10 is the best whisky on the market for my taste.
Ive had alot of scotch whiskys. For the longest time I was a dedicated drinker to Talisker. However after buying this I refuse to drink anything else. Its smokey and smooth, and has way to many more descriptive terms for me to list on here. Long story short BUY IT!
I'm not surprised, perse, by the negative reviews, but it is a bit disappointing. One should know prior to making a purchase, whether or not this would appease ones palate. Ok, on to the review. On the nose, there was kefir lime smothered in salted caramel, mired in smokey iodine. As I continued to peel back the layers of peat smoke, there arose sweet malty cereal notes and over-toasted marshmallow. With water, the smoke waned slightly, and the lime became more pronounced, along with more ooey, gooey marshmallow and dark brown sugar. On the palate, it is oily, viscous and oh so creamy. Sweet, sweet, sweet! Charred oak and wonderful fresh band-aids with chocolate covered espresso beans near the finish. With water, the espresso gave way to well-done key lime pie, witch hazel, and sea sprayed caramel cremes. The finish, well... it wasnt, if you catch me. It just didnt! Not for some time. The bittersweet cacao espresso beans are back, and the waves of sweet peat smoke mingle with seaweed smoke from a true New England beachfront calm bake including the brown bread. With water, it became a bit more creamy, and a tad shorter, but never ceased to amaze. I still can't get over the age of this whisky. It is an old soul this one. I love my Talisker 10, but it is indicative of its age, and a bit ill-tempered. This is a stunner, and I can't wait to see what else Ardbeg has in store!
I've heard Ardbeg isn't quite as good as it used to be. As I'm new to this islay I wish I could of had it in it's prime, great smokey flavor, iconic Briney finish, but the bitter dark chocolate notes unbalance it for me when water is added. For the same price point I will choose the Caol Ila 12 over this everytime. I can see why it has such strong following though, it's a great everyday dram.
