ABV: 51,7 %
Origin: Islay
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 1
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is oaky and peaty. At first there’s a heavy impact from a hot burning woodfire with a sweet honey and vanilla baseline. Underneath a mineral rich peatiness struggles to keep up and it takes some time in the glass before the whole becomes balanced. There’s iodine and coastal notes floating around as well. With time the vanilla becomes more noticable. There’s black liquorice and a tiny hint of fresh fruits coming through from the back and with time the liquorice note becomes dominant. This is a great, heavily peated nose with a nice balance between the peat and oak.

Mouth: At first it’s spicy and mineral rich with top notes of fresh oak and honey. The iodine is very pronounced and it takes a few seconds before it’s pushed back by the sweetness, charred oak and peat. The whole is vanilla and liquorice heavy. In the center there’s a nice maltiness peeking through as well. The charred oak becomes quite sooty over time. There’s also a fresh fruitiness, leaning towards grilled pineapple, in the background.

Finish: It starts out with a joint surge of wood spices and ABV spicyness. The burning woodfire is covering most of the palate at this point and the iodine and coastal notes have taken a few steps back. The liquorice is now also residing in the back. After a few seconds there’s a smoky woodfire exterior and a fresh oak center with a tropical fruitiness within. The late finish becomes a bit too oaky. This is a great whisky which does a nice job of balancing extreme flavours against each other. Time in the glass before drinking is recommended.

Additional information
This was released for Ardbeg Day 2021. It’s aged for an undisclosed amount of time in heavily charred ex-bourbon barrels. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.