Tastes

It's unlike other Ardbegs in the lack of deep, rich smoked veg....but that's ok with me. The aromas and underlying peat is there from the start but it takes a minty mouthwash turn...still ok with me. There's a dry, chocolate or brownie hit that mixes and becomes a peppery butterscotch. The sharpness of the light sherry tang washes through then it rolls onto a really mellow Ardbeg finish. The sherry is the last thing that remains on the very back of my tounge, an almost artificial sweetener taste, perhaps my only complaint. For $60 I appreciate where this takes you. It's different from most Islay and especially Ardbeg. I'd say if you have the extra $20 grab Uigeadail, one of the greatest tastes to ever touch my lips...but On Oa is a solid, lighter Islay.

Got it for a little over $100 last year and finally was able to enjoy it. The sherry influence is quite apparent with bright, fruity flavors. This is very full bodied and has some hidden complexity in it after the initial sip. There's vanilla and rich chocolate, with some cake or bread backbone. There's a woody oak tang that offsets the sweetness by adding an acidic burn. There's an apple or stone fruit sweetness that rolls away from the tangy sherry and develops a fuller berry type dessert with maltiness. There's the sea air saltiness of other OP offerings but a fuller finish than others with a burning ash supplying the only hints of smoke, but very subtle. It's on the sweeter side than most but not a dessert sipper (thankfully). This is very good. Basically, the old OP 12 is great, especially for the price, and the 21 is a ramped up version that offers a more dramatic and sophisticated offering of flavors. Next to any over priced age statement Macallan or similar bottles I'd choose this every time for the same flavor profile. At just over $100 it's well worth it but at the current market prices above $300...is anything? Try this and buy this if you can.

Tastes like nothing. It's 40% so I didn't expect much but wow. Not a lot going on. Minimal nose. No initial taste upon a sip. At the exhale there's a hint of....scotch. Glad this was a gift and not a purchase. I wouldn't even recommend it for anyone new to scotch because this is a horrible expression of what should be the beginnings of a beautiful hobby.

Batch #67. I love me some Aberlour 18 so I've been really excited to try this. Saw it at $119 and knew I had to grab it before it keeps going up (was below $90 for awhile but definitely not anymore). Big sherry fruit with dark cherry and berry but also very spicy. I'm not a sherry forward fan but I like this profile. Deep, rich Christmas spices with hint of light banana. There's a roasty chocolate and cinnamon swell. It's hot with cinnamon and pepper. There's dried nuts and fruit. You can tell it's cask strength. I've happily rocked many casks without water but this actually needs it to me. The splash mellows the initial heat of alcohol and makes the hot finish much better. It also allows a nutty sweetness to stay on a decent finish. Exhale and get fudge and raisins. I still like the 18 more but they're much different sips. As a scotch 1st, bourbon 2nd guy, I can see a bourbon lover really enjoying this for the heat and spices. I'm excited to see what a few weeks do to it now that the bottle is open.

Alcohol forward. A bit hot. Not much depth or flavor. Comparable to a higher end Jack or Beam.

I'm really conflicted with this one. I love Islay. I love Lagavulin...although the Offerman offering really bothered me. The standard 16 is up there with Ardbeg Uigedial for my favorite single. I'm also not a fan of most sherry forward scotch. With that background I'll say the Distiller's was disappointing while at the same time also great, since I unfortunately have to compare it to the 16 and Uigedial as reference points. This edition is a toned down version of the 16 when it comes to smoke, earthiness, salt, and meat but it brings up the lightness of fruit and some sweetness. The initial taste is light and almost empty until some of the barrel kicks in with faint wood and high quality sherry. The sherry influence thankfully does not drown anything out but unfortunately also does not build huge depth and sophistication like it does in Uigedial, playing off the peat and smoke. In Distiller's, it helps highlight some plum, figs, and chocolate notes and really eases the dark, rich smoke. I just wish that it happened at first sip and lasted throughout. There's a caramel or marzipan richness that is present towards the end as you exhale. In this one the smoke builds up at the finish and lasts a bit longer than the 16, in a good way. It's like a small peat fire was extinguished with plum juice and still smoldered a bit. Overall, I really wanted this to blow me away but it didn't. I almost see this as an amazing alternative for someone who drinks the 16 and says, "that's too Islay" (I've never heard someone say this but would never drink with that person again if they did). I appreciate the sherry mellowing the smoke and peat but still long for what makes Lagavulin....Lagavulin. It's a delicious, complex sipper that is definitely worth a try. Honestly, right now I'd still take the 16 over this one, especially at $30-$40 less a bottle. This is the fruitier, less bold version and that might be appealing to many people. I will happily continue drinking this bottle and will gladly update my impression as I look forward to working through it. I'm giving it a 4.25 for good reason, but for my taste, this doesn't deliver in the elite range for me.

Can definitely taste the sherry influence with some bright, fruity tangs. There's some heavy oak, some slight earth, and only a hint of smoke. It has a tiny chocolate covered pretzels thing going on like it's region mate, Glen Scotia, but much lighter and with much less depth. There's a good malt influence but the sherry tang really washes everything out early. This is much fruitier than I hoped. There's a lot of bourbon profiles happening, especially the Four Roses cinnamon heat at the end. But then it quickly turns back to a tongue coating sherry stickiness. But it's also like a "diet" or "zero sugar" fakeness to it that lingers and lingers...like when I drank that Vitamin Water Zero accidentally that one time. I have to admit, Glen Scotia 15 is one of my favorite go-to sippers and made me really want to try another Campbeltown offering but this is not as sophisticated and too sherried for me. This isn't bad, especially for a 10 year expression, but I really expected deeper and richer "funk" from it, given what I've heard from others. Not to keep bringing up Glen Scotia as my Campbeltown flagship, but as an Islay lover, I appreciate Glen Scotia's take on an Islay puff and sea funk balanced with the chocolate pretzels, salt, and sugar cookies that it brings and hoped for a similar take here. Springbank 10 isn't memorable for me, which is what usually occurs when too much sherry is involved, so just a decent bottle to try for only $65.

Nutty & vanilla. A bit hot but fits the proof. Oak and char. It realy coats the mouth with a drying burn and heavy finish. Dark caramel and charred wood. There is a thin alcohol flavor that emerges and screams Beam in the middle, but maybe that's mental. Overall, I'd much rather spend around the same amount on Colonel E.H. Taylor SB, which is still by far my favorite bourbon and usually in the$50-$60 range.

Sweet, dark cherry. Apples roll into an oaky, vanilla, and honey richness. Leathery molasses finish with thick honey that lingers. Overall, a good one. Does it knock my socks off? No. Will I buy it again? Yes.