Ardbeg Traigh Bhan 19 Year Batch 1 (2019)

Sweet smooth pineapple

Uncorked on New Years Eve 2019 as one of only two 19-year-old whiskies in my collection. It offers soft, rounded peat with some lightly fruited (pineapple) notes sitting on top of a heavy backdrop of salty sea air. The age is clear here and does a lot to mellow things out but also diminishes the peat smoke that makes Ardbeg great. A solid dram but one not worth the price of admission imo.

Nose: Stone fruits, white pepper, brine. There's a rich peat with beautiful threads of smoke. Oak, vanilla, icing. Oregano, basil. Black and green olives. Lemon oil, wintergreen. Charred poblanos. Bell peppers. Complex and cohesive. Unmistakably Ardbeg. Palate: Vanilla, oak, ash, peat. Icing - confectioner's sugar and cream. Tannic, with mild bitterness. Toasted oak. Toasted cereal grains with honey. Herbaceous and vegetal - tarry rope comes to mind. This gets into both Laphroaig and Lagavulin territory for me - some campfire ash and char notes as well as deep, rich, meaty character. The casks are on display, but in the best way possible. Finish begins with a bright, ashy kick alongside plums, figs, and vanilla. Slowly the fruit morphs into bananas, kiwis, and mangoes. Eventually everything settles into a honeyed toasted wheat bread, ash, brine, and light perfume. Other notes: This is my second glass of this and I'm not mad. This is Ardbeg at full tilt - the phenolic, complex, rich beast I've come to expect. A beautiful glass and one I believe everybody should experience.

Nose: Smoke, peat, earth, sherry, raisins. Cocoa, leather, coffee. Maduro tobacco. Figs. Cream cheese frosting. Mint, wintergreen, lemon oil. Dried thyme, basil. Slightly vegetal - green bell pepper, cucumber, celery. The sherry is contributing some beautiful sweetness - verging on cloying but not unappealingly so. Palate: Soft and round - earthy, peaty, with whisps of smoke. Peach, orange, mango, mint. Brown sugar and vanilla. Campfire ash. Creamy. Dates and figs. Apricots. Persimmons. Wintergreen. Lemon oil. Honeysuckle. Slight prickly alcohol, but not intrusive. Finish starts off with more of that sherry sweetness. There's a buildup into a splash of alcohol brightness. And then the tannins from the barrel coat your tongue and mouth and longer, along with dark stone fruits. Finish is long. Beautiful.

I love this scotch. Its peaty, but not too peaty

I re-signed my work contract for another 6 months tour of duty and so back down in my home town at my favourite whiskey bar where I spied this beauty and the Kilchoman STR on the shelf. $30 usd a pour better than spending $210 usd for a bottle. This is damn nice.. starts slow but then builds into a crescendo of awesome blended flavor. Definitely a 4.25 maybe 4.5. Vanilla, salted caramel (probably the mix of chutney I was eating at the time), peaty smoke and more. It has kick, richness and power. It definitely beat the Kilchoman.