Tag Archives: Ardbeg April

Ardbeg April: Ardbeg Spectacular (46%, OB, Port Wine Casks & Bourbon Barrels, 2023)

For this third instalment of Ardbeg April, we can go green and totally sustainable, because in the previous review there is a sentence that I can recycle and expand upon with every review of an Ardbeg NAS special release, so here is the updated sentence: “A lot of Ardbeg special releases are different in many different ways. For instance, some of the ones (I previously reviewed) use casks that previously held different kinds of liquids, like fortified Wines of the Pedro Ximénez (Spain) or Marsala (Sicily) kind, probably anything other than Whisky matured in ex-Bourbon casks. Some have a more out of the box idea behind them, like BBQ casks (!), double charred casks, casks with toasted virgin oak lids (funny business with casks) or using a high density mash (funny business during production)”. Obviously there are more expressions, and the real list is much longer. All of the above are experiments from the mad professor Dr. B. Lumsden. Ardbeg Spectacular falls into the first category, since it is a blend of Whisky matured in Bourbon barrels as well as Whisky matured in Port casks. Port is a fortified Wine, from, you guessed it, Portugal. Bottled on November 14th 2023 and November 15th & 16th 2023, (for Feis Ile 2024). The back label of the bottling runs on the 15th and 16th have Shorty in the top right corner, whereas those bottled on the 14th have not. Shortie is Ardbeg’s Jack Russel Terrier pictured above, here on his official portrait.

Color: Light gold, without even the slightest pink hue.

Nose: Smoky, dusty and only mere hints of anything Wine like (apart from a hardly noticeable funky sulphur going on, matches). Smoky sharpness with soft and warming bonfire notes along with some minty notes. The sharpness you smell in the streets walking in the snow, and people burning wood in the fireplace. Mocha and milk chocolate. The whole much softer than Smokiverse. It seems to me these recent (modern?) Ardbegs are more based on smoke than peat. Sure the peat is never far away, but it seems to be a bit turned down in the mix. (Remember Lars Ulrich turning down Jason Newsted in the mix. “Turn him down until you can barely hear him, and then turn him down some more”). So, toned down peat, not very earthy and hints of burning newspaper. Still not a lot of Port like candy, yet there is some (I guess). Not a lot of red fruits in general. Funny enough, towards the finish I do pick up on some well dried orange skin. Well dried, so without the acidic bit. Also some fresh oak, slightly more peat and iodine. Should I again mention the marketing department? Why not, so here we go again (briefly). It seems to me they read somewhere that Port casks were used and came up with the “Spectacular” narrative. Based on the nose alone, let’s say, to cut the story short, not a lot of Port-like aromas can be found. But hey, I still have to taste it. I do have some humongous déjà vu right now, there seem to be some similarities in the construction and marketing between Spectacular and Smokiverse. So I now wonder, will this be the another big gulper? I should trademark this, oh great it already is, bummer.

Taste: On entry quite thin with the same liquorice notes Smokiverse has, just somewhat less of it. Barley with a more milky spirit, which makes me believe this is overall a younger Whisky than Smokiverse. Looking at the two initially it’s like both are very similar with the only difference being that spectacular saw one or two Port pipes. If there were more, I’m sure they are refills, and the heavy mash might be a difference, which also didn’t dominate in Smokiverse. The Port didn’t impair a lot of sweetness. The sweetness this has is more of the toffee kind, than it is fruity. However, after some extensive breathing, they start to differ more. Spectacular gains more wood, with a slightly bitter edge, some tar and a more powdery feel and finally some more (thin) red fruity notes, complete with some red fruit acidity. Although hardly noticeable, I’m now pretty sure the Port used must have been of the Vintage kind (red), since the back of my tongue picks up on some tannin’s. Also the smoke in the nose becomes more “tasty” with an added dimension from what seems to be cigarette smoke). A very interesting development. Dare I say it? Can I, can I? Yes, this is yet another big gulper, with bigger gulps this gains in complexity and overall body, remember the thin entry? This has been remedied by the bigger gulp.

Based on the colour (which is a very dangerous assumption), but also on experience (am I experienced?), it seems to me not a lot of Port casks found their way into the final product. A very understandable decision, since Port can easily overpower, giving the Whisky a sweet candy like taste.

I might seem highly critical of these NAS Ardbegs, but again, the nose of this is very good, but the taste stays behind a bit, also it seems to me to be somewhat less balanced. I did like Smokiverse and most of the others more, but the drinkability of Spectacular is a redeeming factor. These NAS-ers are nice additions across the board, but for what they are, maybe somewhat overpriced. The  higher proof standard bottlings Uigeadail an Corryvreckan are very reasonably priced, and maybe therefore the special NAS releases are getting some slack when they are compared to those. And to finish things off, no mention whatsoever about the kind of Port these casks held before. Based on the colour of the Whisky I would say White Port since it totally lacks the pink hue Red Port impairs. Still Red Port seems to be more likely, why would there otherwise be so much red used on the packaging? Confusing.

Points: 85

Ardbeg April: Ardbeg Smokiverse (48.3%, OB, High Gravity Mashing, 2025)

Last week we started off Ardbeg April with the “new” Ardbeg 17yo. This time around we are going to have a look at one of the many Ardbeg NAS bottlings.  This bottling was released to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Ardbeg Committee. A lot of Ardbeg special releases are different in many different ways. For instance, some of the ones I previously reviewed use casks that previously held different kinds of liquids, like several fortified Wines of the Pedro Ximenez or Marsala kind. Some have a more out of the box idea behind them, like BBQ casks (!), double charred casks or casks with toasted virgin oak lids.

This Smokiverse is one of these out of the box ones. No funny business with casks this time, but funny business with mashing. This time we are talking about high gravity mashing, which means that the wort is highly concentrated or more dense and subsequently contains more (acetate) esters, giving flavour, or better, which áre the flavour. Less water, more grain, and to cut a long story short, this would result in a more (tropical) fruity and maybe sweeter Ardbeg. Also no mention at all about the casks used on the box or the label, so lets assume (refill) Bourbon casks before starting off, careful with that assumption, Eugene…

Color: Straw.

Nose: Some smoke, with citrussy yellow fruits, so definitely fruity. Recognizable Ardbeg peat, earthy and funky. Also a little bit of funky organics going on within the peat smell. Fans of Ardbeg will recognize it immediately. Hints of burnt plastic, like melting cables. Luckily a mere hint, because if this would have been a more dominating smell, we would be in for a problematic journey. Hints of sulphur in the smell. Tea and moss. Is it overly fruity? No, I wouldn’t say so. Based on the marketing I expected slightly more fruit. The fruit, by the way, is all citrus, I have a hard time finding any kind of tropical fruit in it, and most definitely no ripe tropical fruit. All in all, the nose is quite restrained and also a bit simple. It doesn’t attack my nose when it nears the glass. It helps to warm the glass inside in your hand for a while, to get more out of it. Warming mocha pastry type of smell, maybe even mocha cake made with cream. For me a well behaved Ardbeg. The focus here lies on the dense mash, and with that the fruit, yet the name focuses on smoke. I have to admit that the smoke has a larger role in this one than even the peat does. For me these two definitely do no define this Ardbeg, both don’t dominate the nose of this Ardbeg, something else almost does. Please read on. I guess the marketing department read a story about it, in stead of tasting it. Personally, I would have used images of alone drinker in an armchair and a fireplace instead of a galaxy. I guess the galaxy came in when someone read the word “gravity”, not bothering to ask someone with a nose how this actually smells. But hey, I might be way ahead of myself here, I’m rambling, ranting almost, without even tasting it, so let’s do that now, shall we?

Taste: Well, “nutty” was the first wordt that sprang to mind when tasting this for the first time. Smoke and liquorice next, liquorice is a main marker, it pops up everywhere, and is especially present in the finish and aftertaste, aided again by some smoke. Slightly sweet, but not in a fruity way, yet more like a sweetness coming from the liquorice. The taste is a bit thin again, so again, I feel this is an Ardbeg that needs a bigger gulp, like the 17yo from the previous review did. By the way, this review is written on a entirely different day than that of the 17 yo’s, in case you might wonder. The next sip was indeed a bigger gulp, and yes that’s it, this brings it out way better! I immediately poured some more in my glass. Proper gulping needs more volume. If you have one open, and you are reading this, please join me. The bigger gulp offers us much more depth, more sweetness and yes more liquorice. The whole comes together way better, also achieving a better balance. Chewy sweetness and yes finally, with more ripe fruits as well, with this tiny smoky backbone holding it al together. Interesting development.

48.3% ABV is slightly higher than most of these NAS bottlings which are bottled at 46% ABV I believe. I also understand why. This well behaved Ardbeg needed a bit of a boost, only, 48.3% ABV is still not enough, it’s still too quiet and maybe too well behaved, or it is what it is and we need to accept that this is its nice character. Letting it stand for a while, more of the Islay traits emerge, smoke, peat and tar. The Ardbeg smoke we all know, but not more or different from other Ardbegs, so to especially use the word “smoke”in the name is in my opinion slightly misplaced. Let it go, it’s not important really.

This almost turned out to be a review of a marketing idea instead of the Whisky. I’m sorry for that. Don’t worry, this is only a minor distraction. This is again most definitely not a bad Ardbeg, like many of the other special NAS releases, that somehow get a lot of negative reviews. Granted, Uigeadail and Corryvreckan are very, very good, high in ABV and cost (much) less. And the Ten is not bad either. Still I like Smokiverse. It’s a contemplative Malt, not one for a (big) group of people to have together, but one for you by yourself in your armchair before a cosy fire. To finish things off, haters will be haters, but for me this “yet another NAS” has more than enough interesting things that I like.

Points: 86

 

Ardbeg April: Ardbeg 17yo (40%, OB, Committee Exclusive, 2023)

The first of April is no joke this time. It is the start of Ardbeg April, one month which will be solely dedicated to some more recent bottlings of Ardbeg. Since there are already quite a few Ardbeg’s reviewed on these pages, the history of Ardbeg has already mostly been covered. For this review we first have to go back to 1996 when Ardbeg was put on sale and was bought by Glenmorangie Plc. for £7 million just a year later. Ardbeg distillery was in a bit of a state, so quite some renovations were necessary for which money was dearly needed. Also because of this, the most recent fase of Ardbeg’s modern history starts in 1997. Not only did Glenmorangie buy the distillery in that year (February 27th), with Dr. Bill Lumsden entering the Ardbeg scene, but also production was restarted (June 25th) and to bring in some money Ardbeg 17yo was released quickly thereafter.

Bottled at a mere 40% ABV (for the domestic market?), yet luckily there also was a 43% ABV version (for other markets or travel retail?). I tried several of both, and the extra 3% most definitely made a difference. Other landmarks were the releases of the 10yo (TEN) in 2000, Uigeadail in 2003 and Corryvreckan in 2008. These three form the true current backbone of the range. There are obviously a lot more releases since 1997, but in the day, these three together with the 17yo were “Ardbeg”. Alas the 17yo was discontinued in 2004, most likely, since Ardbeg was distilling intermittently, not a lot of stock for a 17yo was available anymore, hence the move to two NAS bottlings for the core range, though both boasted a higher strength than deemed normal for a core range. But hey, fans of Ardbeg are not normal folk. Then came 2023, the rebirth of the 17yo, return of a legend, bottled again at 40% ABV and commanding a hefty price. Both parameters made me pass up on a bottle of my own, but I did participate in a bottle-share with Nico and also Andy was so kind to provide me with a sample.

On the back of the box it is mentioned that for this release Dr. Bill Lumsden meticulously crafted this new 17yo to mirror the original, that is quite the statement, because the original 17yo has quite a reputation and proved to be highly popular and the available Whiskies at Ardbeg to create the original are very different from the Whiskies available today. I guess the original 17yo is a hard act to follow. For Ardbeg 17yo, Whiskies were used that matured in Bourbon and Sherry casks.

Color: Straw

Nose: Lightly peated, lively and very fruity. Light overall, so I guess the reduction to 40% ABV did its trick here as well, but I maybe getting ahead of myself here. Pour it and keep it under a lid for a moment, and then smell, works wonders. Comparing the old 10yo to the old 17yo. the 10yo was always more raw, peaty, just more of a beast. The old 17yo, was a way more refined and elegant Ardbeg. The smell of this new one is definitely soft, fruity and elegant, ther is a lot coming up from my glass. Pretty pleased with this one so far. Is it the same as the old 17yo? Hard to say without a head to head. Its been a really long time ago I had one full sized bottle open on my lectern. Does it smell like an older bottling? Sure, yes I believe so. So based on the nose alone I would say well done, getting this profile from more modern stock. Very soft and sweet smoke, combined with an almost sweet and citrussy fruitiness. After some breathing Iodine becomes noticeable. Very distant and very soft wood note (slightly salty smelling, yes salt has a smell as well). It is even more dusty than it is woody. Again, still very lively and fresh. The reduction is also noticeable that even after extensive breathing not a lot is happening anymore. No oozing of layers. Well balanced it is though. Extensive breathing also brings out more of a modern feel. Very nice nose. Well done.

Taste: First sip is almost like drinking water, I was prepared for some reduction, but not as much as this. OK, reset my expectations and palate and try again (just in case this is a big gulper, I splashed a little more in my glass for the second sip). Update: it is a big gulper, definitely! (This means, don’t drink this in small sips, this doesn’t work). The nose was quite “big” so this greeting was kind of unexpected. Second sip/gulp, still very thin. Slightly sweet, old peat, crushed beetle, slightly smoky and fruity again, exactly the same as the nose. Hints of cold black tea with yellow marmelade. Also hints of latex paint (minus the solvents) and a nice herbal note. Hot butter on toast. Again well balanced, but so thin. Funny enough the taste is more complex than the nose, especially when you let it sit for a while. Liquorice enters the finish, or better the aftertaste, it becomes apparent right after swallowing. Not a hard one to review.

Releasing this as a committee exclusive makes sense. This is for fans of Ardbeg (count me in). I’m a defender of all the NAS special releases, and believe me, I’ve got a lot of defending to do, even in my own Whisky-club. And just to annoy these people, then next review will be just one of those. The public in general probably haven’t tasted the old version, nor would pay the price. Aficionado’s have and will, and even better we even forgive them the reduction for historical reasons. I really like the experiment and seeing a 17yo again, and am happy I could try this. Will I buy it? Probably not, I guess the bottle-share suffices. No modern stock just doesn’t work at 40% ABV like older stock can, Great to get and older profile on the nose, but taste-wise I probably would have decided against 40% ABV even when the old 17yo was bottled at that strength, and please don’t tell me that is what the public wanted… This commands quite a hefty price, I wonder what an old 17yo bottled at 43% would cost at auction? Also, this new 17yo is a big gulper, as mentioned above, so be prepared you will finish your expensive bottle pretty quickly.

Points: 86 (It might be better than this, but it’s so thin!)

Thanks Andy: this was from your sample! I needed the lot in one sitting, also because I accidentally poured a little bit of it on my keyboard, sorry!