40°
Distillery : Ardbeg - Islay
Bourbon Barrels
Original Bottling
Core Range
Single Malt
Launched in 1997
Uncoloured
Lightly Peated
In 1997, The Glenmorangie Company had just bought the Ardbeg distillery, which was undergoing extensive renovation. In the meantime, the best thing to do was to reopen the old stocks and bottle them. This is how this 17-year-old whisky came into being, one of the first bottlings to be launched after the reopening in 1997. It is reduced to 40% ABV and chill-filtered, which is extremely rare for Ardbeg. Very quickly, the liquid must have been aged for more than 17 years, as the distillery was completely closed between 1981 and 1989. So, from 2000 onwards, the whisky was at least 18 years old, and it aged with each additional year. In 2004, it was at least 22 years old, which is starting to be interesting for a product that is sold as a 17-year-old. But that's when it became too complicated, and they discontinued it. In the years that followed, this bottling became increasingly legendary, until it was resurrected for a limited edition in 2024, twenty years later. But that's another story. The other distinctive feature of this whisky is that unpeated barley was used, combined with peated barley, resulting in a lightly peated nectar, which is also a rarity. All these elements make this stuff mythical, and I'm very happy to be able to enjoy a dram of it.
Let's Taste It :
Mellow nose, bread dough, marzipan, bit of peat, vanilla cream and toasted wheat, varnished wood, egg custard, a pinch of icing sugar. In the background, powerful iodine, but also some exotic fruits, pineapple, papaya, mango, lemon sorbet. Tart Tatin, heather honey, crystalline shades of salt. On the palate, it is obviously a little light, but delicately fruity, silky, pistachio Turkish delight, rose water, coconut pulp, a hint of limestone, perfectly controlled spices, nutmeg, tarragon, horseradish. Dried figs. A deeply herbaceous peat gradually comes to the fore. Long finish with a certain power, slightly bitter wood, cola nuts.
In Short,
The nose is truly fantastic. I've never experienced anything like it with this distillery. It's light, airy, very fruity, supple and subtle. The peat is barely noticeable, no medicinal notes, tar or other oddities. However, there are some typical elements, such as herbaceous notes, lemon, iodine, and a smoothness that develops when the glass is left to rest for a long time. Unfortunately, it is watery on the palate and finish, as the reduction to 40% ABV detracts from the texture of the product. At cask strength, it would have been an exceptional masterpiece. As it is, only the nose is incredible. The rest is very interesting, I would say, but nothing more. It is therefore difficult to give a rating, it is sublime with major flaws. Apparently, you have to be careful, as the last batches were of questionable quality, whereas the first ones are magnificent. I must have had one of the first ones. Today, this gem sells for an extremely high price, but I understand why. I get the impression that Ardbeg was very different before the closure, which is what I had already been told, and now I can see that this seems to be the case.
Score : 89
To Be Listened While Sipping :
Red House Painters - Drop
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