
September 28, 2017

Ardbeg NAS

That would be Ardbeg. Agreed, could have been Laphroaig, but no, it’s Ardbeg… (what a waste of electrons, S.!)

Ardbeg ‘An Oa’ (46%, OB, 2017)

This new baby’s now part of Ardbeg’s core range. It’s been composed using a variety of casks, namely Pedro Ximenez (aargh), charred new oak, and bourbon (phew!) Sadly, it’s NAS, so probably very young. Colour: straw. Nose: fine, really. The PX never gets in the way, but indeed you feel this modern oakiness, with some ginger, sweet cinnamon and vanilla… Behind that, a rather mentholy profile, a few cough drops, and a spoonful of lemon marmalade. Rather modern style, quite uncomplicated, but fine. Whiffs of fresh seaweed in the background, which is obviously nice. Mouth: same feeling overall, one will feel that it’s not very complex and that it’s been a tad doctored (in the best sense of that word), but the combination brings a feeling of mezcal reposado, which isn’t bad at all. All-spice, bitter grapefruit, a little muscovado sugar, and more marmalade. Finish: medium, rather soft, with sweet oak spices and a little praline. Oh and soft mezcal. The lemons are back in the aftertaste, and would come together with a little cardamom. Comments: certainly not the wildest Ardbeg ever, and neither is it the most complex, or the peatiest, but despite the oak treatment that feels a bit, I rather like it. But yeah, I prefer the faithful Ten. SGP:555 - 85 points.

We needed a sparring partner, and thought that…

Ardbeg 'Uigeadail' (54.2%, OB, +/-2017)

Ah Uigeadail! Used to be glorious when they were still adding old casks and good sherry, and in my book, it was still glorious around 2013 (WF 92). Let’s see if anything changed… Colour: pale gold. Uigie is getting paler and paler… Nose: it’s probably narrower than its older bros and sisters, and rather less expressive, perhaps less ‘black’, perhaps peatier, and certainly less sherried. There’s still this feeling of bacon infused in lapsang souchong, though… With water: tarry ropes. That’s very Ardbeg. Mouth (neat): there’s been some modernisation happening, once again, as the oak feels more, with its cortege of spices (always the same culprits, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom)… The rest remains really nice, although some complexity may have been lost along the years. More lapsang than smoked fish and camphor, if you see what I mean. With water: same feeling, but bigger. A little bitter oak, and a little more chocolate, which is very Uigeadail indeed. Finish: rather medium, which is surprising. Liquorice and salted lemon juice in the aftertaste. Comments: fewer subtleties, but this famous expression is still a lovely peater. Just not a glorious one that stands out anymore. SGP:457 - 86 points.

Check the index of all Ardbeg I've tasted so far