Ardbeg An Oa

A stunning color – much darker than the 10, with a burgundy hue. The nose is reminiscent of the Bunnahabhain 12, but it’s been over five years since I’ve had that, so I can’t explain how exactly. I smell cocoa, beeswax, gardenia, and a hint of seaweed. The palate is complicated – definitely the most delicate Ardbeg I’ve had. I taste raspberry jam, rooibos tea, chocolate, bright malt, and cigarette smoke. I say the palate is complicated because none of these notes strike me as delicate alone, but the way they partner together is truly impressive and unassuming. The mouthfeel is zingy, and red raspberry is again brought to mind. The finish brings honeycomb and smoke, with a rush of sea salt and that sweet-floral gardenia note again. It lingers to a slow burn in the chest, though, again, gentle in comparison to its siblings. Sweet char and malt stay on the palate long after the glass has emptied. An Oa is one to savor, to spur contemplation.

I don’t like this at all. I get a strong rubber, brine, seaweed, peat on the nose. Tasted just as bad, like rubber swamp water.

Not your typical Ardbeg. Boisterous aromas of strawberries and cream, mint chocolate, sherry, vanilla, kumquat, and herbs. Creamy and rich on the palate with plenty of berry fruit followed by a building fire of barrel spice, oak, and alcohol. The entire whiskey is imbued with a thin vein of peat smoke, lime ash, and black pepper much like the appearance of a Morbier cheese.

This takes peaty and Smokey to a whole new level. Finished the bottle one night around the fire. Delicious. The hangover wasn’t too bad either. Gsss