Tastes

Nose: A rising; warm breeze of green apples, toffee, and a light oakiness are the first greetings this whiskey has for me. After a little more chit-chat (and a tiny, tiny dash of water) this pretty Irish lass shows me a bounty of tangerine, star anise, clove, and vanilla cream. Taste: What was once tart green apples evolves into honeycrisp apples and buttery vanilla shortbread. After some time and a little water, the initial spread is replaced with a wonderous buffet of blackberries, açaí, strawberries, lychee and honey all served on oaken platters. The body of this whiskey is thin but not watery, I would best describe it as silky.

Nose: Deep caramel, Swedish fish, coffee, and a smoky char. However, in some instances I found an inescapable note of formaldehyde that was really off-putting. Taste: sugar-free cherry coke, worthers coffee caramel, molasses, barrel char

Nose: An Oa begins with a powerful note of oily, dense peat smoke that can be somewhat difficult for the inexperienced to move past. Those who can are rewarded with a mineral salinity, bright flashes of lemon and cedar, with a beautiful finish of vanilla and anise. Taste: A smooth marble of smoke, oak, and butterscotch is my initial impression of An Oa on the tongue, with some edge eccentricities of barrel char and iodine. With a little bit of water to crack it open, you find a creamy center of honey and maple candied bacon with a dash of cayenne. Ardbeg An Oa has a lingering finish of rising smoke and smooth, sweet butterscotch with an oily, dense body.