Ardbeg Drum

Not a scotch fan but this was pretty good

Thin and wispy, but strong banana and peat notes. Not the most successful special edition but it’s ardbeg, still better than a lot of swill out there

Very left-of-centre for Ardbeg. Did I just have a dram of Talisker/Talisker Storm? Very spicy on the nose. Overtook the normal smokey peat of Ardbeg I'd normally expect. Then an intense peppery peaty finish. Kind of Talisker Storm but on roids.

peat and sweat, pinapple

For the std version I am aligned with @Richard-ModernDrinking in his review of the committee. A friend and I tried this for free on Ardbeg day at our local retailer. They served up pineapple chocolate and a smoked fish and potato dish. Both combinations went very well with the whiskey. It's almost like you are combining a lighter grooves version with a spicy pineapple fruit combo. I liked it but less than the Kelpie or in fact any of the previous releases in recent history. I'm noticing a steady decrease in my liking for the Ardbeg day releases over the last few years 4.5, 4.25/4 and now 3.75. The rum influence was very subtle and this wasn't a memorable dram. I notice the pricing at 120 usd was again poor value. Interesting I see the committee ranked lower than the std but I think it maybe the type of reviewer for each category i.e. the committee releases generally being consumed by the more dedicated whiskey drinker.