Tastes

Enjoying this one. Lots of cinnamon and baking spice. Heat but not overbearing.

Layered. Excellent. Salty, peppery, dark fruits, tangy, limestone. Top 10 dram for me. Wish id had a whole bottle and not just a dram.

I might need to raise this score upon further reflection. It smells and tastes divine: springbank barnyard funk rested for 18 years in bourbon and sherry casks. It tastes old. Musty. Ripe red fruits. Juicy and long aftertaste. The price for this is all over the place which is the only qualifier in my review. If you can get this at retail anywhere less than $200 it’s a steal. But if you are thinking of paying more, I’d buy 2 12yr cask strengths or 3-4 10yrs instead. It’s a big step up from the 15 but the price is getting ahead of itself in the US at least.

Nose: salt, orchard fruits and a hint of citrus (lime). Buttery popcorn. Palate: apples, malt, acidic citrus. Mild curdled yoghurt funk comes out in the development. Medium finish, mild alcohol burn due to the proof. May need to open this up a bit and/or add a few drops of water to let more tastes surface.

Disappointed by this. I’ve come to enjoy if not love the annual special releases as they allow Ardbeg an opportunity to showcase a different take on their ashy, smoky base spirit. I was very excited when they announced this release as I’d never had alligator but heard plenty of good things about it. It falls flat right out of the gate. Not a lot going on with the nose, you get some of the Ardbeg smoke with a hint of sweet bbq char. The arrival on the tongue is thin and muted when I was expecting perhaps an overly rowdy dram. It sits on the tongue a bit but fades quickly. Sweet bbq continues through the finish but it’s mild. They say happiness is reality minus expectations. And mine were set too high. I’ve come around a little on this since my first few disappointing tastes, and see some of the merits. The committee release was better IMO. I’ll be reviewing that separately but this is the rare case where I think the CR is clearly superior to the GR.

A very good, balanced bourbon. Getting a lot of spearmint on the nose and finish which made me wonder how much rye Might be in the mash bill. Consensus seems to be: not much. Less than 10%. Huh. Well that’s what I’m getting anyway. Lots of it. Also getting some peanuts on the palate. This one is more wood and rye spice than sweetness which is probably why I like it so much

Where’s the peat? The smoke? The islay? Perhaps mellowed by the 15 years in the barrel…yes, there’s wood spice and tannin in there to be sure. That’s quite nice actually. Perhaps it’s been filtered and colored and watered away…unfortunately true on all counts. This initially tastes more like bourbon than scotch, all vanilla and caramel with a slight bit of salt and smoke on the finish to remind you that you are in fact in the Hebrides. For me and probably many others Bowmore is the forgotten islay stepchild and they don’t do themselves any favors with this product.

Sherry blunts the usual smoke and salt of the base 10yr but in a pleasant way. Candied apples, sea salt, and dark fruits. Great dram you could drink all day. Nose: glazed bbq meats and pineapple on the nose, like a Hawaiian luau. Palate: see above.

I’m coming back to this as I’m sure my thoughts will change over the bottle. I’ll probably change the score a few times. I have to admit I’m not sure I want to drink the entire bottle. But it’s extremely unique. There’s a rose water and perfumed taste that lingers with you for awhile. Nose: plum and pepper. Get some licorice on the finish. More notes to come.

Lovely peated sherry. Top notch for the price. This edition takes a nice blend up a notch with the extra abv and time in the marrying cask. I’m on my second bottle and might get a third. It’s a daily drinker I always seem to come back to.