Ardbeg Scorch

Maps used to say cool things like “Here be dragons!” Now they just say stuff like “Portugal.” Anyway, Ardbeg offers up a dragon-scorched barrel for their annual Ardbeg Day release. If smoke isn’t your thing, turn (and run) away now. The nose is hot. Burns. Coughed a little. Not my proudest moment. The palate is heavy on the ash, and the subtleties struggle to find their way through. Aggressive. Little bacon. Little clove. Lotta smoke. All of this mixed with branding that I just can’t get onboard with (and a $110 price tag) solidifies my love/hate with the ever-formidable Ardbeg. I’m 50/50 on the brand - half I really like and half I really don’t. Unfortunately this ventures into really don’t territory for me. (AT)

Blooming really opens this up.

Very smoky. Very smoky after taste.

Nose: ash, coriander, plastic Palate: subtle--not a lot there Finish: ash really builds, and lasts a long time. Tastes like the morning after smoking a cigar Disappointed in this one. Probably my last favorite Ardbeg. The extra barrel char overpowers, and makes this very one dimensional.

Disappointed by this. I’ve come to enjoy if not love the annual special releases as they allow Ardbeg an opportunity to showcase a different take on their ashy, smoky base spirit. I was very excited when they announced this release as I’d never had alligator but heard plenty of good things about it. It falls flat right out of the gate. Not a lot going on with the nose, you get some of the Ardbeg smoke with a hint of sweet bbq char. The arrival on the tongue is thin and muted when I was expecting perhaps an overly rowdy dram. It sits on the tongue a bit but fades quickly. Sweet bbq continues through the finish but it’s mild. They say happiness is reality minus expectations. And mine were set too high. I’ve come around a little on this since my first few disappointing tastes, and see some of the merits. The committee release was better IMO. I’ll be reviewing that separately but this is the rare case where I think the CR is clearly superior to the GR.