Ardbeg An Oa

I received this one as a 30th birthday gift last year so it holds a special reverence every time I drink it. The Ardbeg Ten is a classic, but it’s also a lot if you’re not in the right mood. The medicinal side of the peated malts, particularly in Ardbeg and Laphroig (or Octomore if you’re in a higher tax bracket than I am) can be a turn off to most folks. That’s where I feel like this expression from Ardbeg shines. The peat is still there. On the nose, on the palate, and on the finish it lingers plenty long. This is Ardbeg after all. But there’s a roundness to this relatively young spirit (no age statement provided) that makes it more accessible than the standard Ten. This is likely due to the PX sherry cask influence, which gives the standard Ardbeg a sticky, sweet roundness that oddly complements the peat. Some folks think that peat and sherry don’t mix and exist at two different ends of the single malt spectrum, but this malt (among others...) proves that wrong, and in the right hands, the combination of the two elements can create something magical.

Shelley’s back door. Is an Ardbeg night. This one is smokier and peatiet than the 10 yr. smooth.