Ardbeg Scorch

Less oily, peaty, smoky, nice tasting, easy drink, very smoky long finish

Salted caramel

Rating: 17/23 I don't remember what the gimmick was here. I'd guess either rum barrels or toasted barrels or charred barrels. N: After a couple of minutes, I start smelling Ardbeg tar mixed with something a tad sweet. Blackstrap molasses? A hint of toastiness comes out, then it becomes herbal with a definite dry tilt to it. I get black and white pepper, though more black. A touch of anise. A little bit of roast meat eventually makes its way in. That rich sweetness gradually builds and I start getting more molasses from it and faint hints of green banana. It also gets a tad vegetal. Tar, sweet molasses (almost with occasion hints of maple), spices, and smoked meat are the big things I get here. And it definitely seems a bit toasty. P: Much richer with more toasty character than Ardbeg Arrrrrdbeg has. There's that usual tar with some added smoke, but there's also a little sweetness that makes me think faintly of molasses. This is sweeter and a bit less complex than Ardbeg Ten is. It's maybe fuller, but not by a ton. Between the two, I'd actually guess that this is younger. There's also some more harshness. Giving this some time on my tongue, I do get some decent complexity. Tar mixes with smoke, mixes with iodine, gives way to caramelly barrel, adds in a touch of vanilla, carries its floral note back through the peat, and into some minerals and brine. A nice layer of smoked meat with toasty wood. Hints of dungeness crab. Eventually oaky with a big flavor of new oak vanilla. F:Toasty, peaty, smoky, vanilla. Not a super complex finish, but a tasty one with enough going on. This isn't as fruity as Ardbeg 10 and now that I try them side by side, I get more bourbon character from Ardbeg 10 as well. The Ardbeg 10 is a touch sweeter but less full. It also has less of a burn and has some more complexity though. This is also more refined than Ardbeg An Oa. I much prefer the sweet vanilla here to the An Oa's weird barbecue/campfire flavor. That said, the vanilla sweetness here does still mess with the maturity, though nice brown sugar, smoky, and fruity (candied orange) complexities do come out. This is sort of like a single barrel offering that was made well but didn't quite hit the mark. Still, this is at least a 16. At most, this might be an 18. I find Laphroiag 10 (17) to be a tad better than this, but not tremendously superior. So I'm looking at a 16 or 17. I'm a little torn, but I think that there's enough complexity for the 17. Thank you @PBMichiganWolverine for sharing a sample of this! I was glad to get to try it after missing my chance to find it in the wild.

Nose: peaty, a bit medicinal. Campfire, cherry Taste: spicy, sherried, red wine, black licorice, salty Wood: sherry, red wine? It’s fine but the elements don’t mesh that well. Would try something else by the distillery but probably don’t need to get this one again Distillery? * Longrow red * Pinot noir?

The name suggests a hardcore dram, but it's surprisingly sweet and smooth. Anyway, you can't go wrong with an Ardbeg.