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Ardbeg
Scotland
Single Malt
This stunning expression from Islay's Ardbeg distillery on the Kildalton Coast is named after a nearby loch (pronounced "Oog-a-dal"). It's the perfect example of how sweet and savoury notes can work together spectacularly - you'll find Ardbeg's maritime salinity intact here, combined with dried fruit notes imparted by time spent in sherry casks. Kind of like when you mix sweet popcorn and salty popcorn together, it results in something absolutely wonderful.
Multifaceted, notes of peat and little flourishes of dark sugar, freshly ground espresso beans, cereal notes and a most sophisticated tar.
Led by sweet, ripe fruit and black forest honey. A good helping of malt. The throne then usurped by a powerful peat and smoked barley.
Very long, caramel and malt weave their way through peat smoke and dark sugar and just a hint of fresh espresso coffee before it finally peters out.
Such deft balance! How wonderful to sample Ardbeg so beautifully complimented by sherry.
This took quite a while to get used to. I'm not sure I'll buy it again but it really was one heck of an experience. If you're a fan of smoky, slightly herby, sweet and aggressive whiskies then you really should buy one of these.
A Christmas gift for me. Recommended by a savvy whisky friend. Not disappointed. Yes, the Islay peat, smoke and salt but just a bit sweet. Added just a few drops of water to open up the flavour.
I think you need to update your tasting notes on this. This bares no resemblance to the last bottle I had a few years ago, or to the tasting notes above. The nose is faint. Just a little malt coming through. The pallet is very subtle for 54%. Mostly, I detect a sour note. The finish is long, mostly tasting watery, akin to something resembling Laphroaig. To me, Ardbeg was always signified by a tar and phenolic weirdness, very distinct from other Islays. Though the 10yo changed 10 years ago to be more subtle, Uigeadal still had that full on vibe, complemented by the sherry finish. Instead, this now tastes as if they have purged all that away - maybe by cutting away the foreshots and feints. What's left is something very akin to one of Laphroaig's budget offerings, only watery with it. Hearing that Ardbeg are adding new stills in order to double production, suggests to me volume and profit are now everything to them. LVMH may be coining it, but at at the cost of killing Ardbeg, in search of mass market appeal. A travesty.
Never been convinced by the Ardbeg marketing, or the ridiculous prices for the limited editions - but this really is pretty good.
BBQ bacon thing going on. A great experience, the bottle disappears pretty quick.