Ardbeg Wee Beastie

A little too much smoke, added a splash of water to mellow it out

Smoky, smooth, light, a little simple

With this, I will officially have covered Ardbeg’s entire core range. Thanks to @PBMichiganWolverine for the sample. This has truly been one of the best core ranges in all of whisky. Let’s see if Wee Beastie can round it out the right way. Nose: Big-time vanilla custard. Cinnamon red hots. Sea salt, brine, and seaweed. Campfire smoke and peat. Band-aid and iodine. Chestnut, toasted almond, and cashew. Lemon citrus and black pepper. Oak. Palate: Grapefruit and lemon citrus. Ash, campfire smoke, and peat. Brine, sea salt, and seaweed. Bandaid, iodine, and tennis ball. Dark chocolate. Vanilla custard. Honey and toffee. Black bean, red pepper chili. Mint. Apple cider. Not-quite-ripe banana. Black pepper and oak. Finish: Ash, campfire smoke, peat. Sea salt, seaweed, brine. Black bean, red pepper chili. Dark chocolate. Custard. Black pepper, cinnamon, and oak. Moderate-long finish. Wee Beastie is a fitting name for this one. It’s young, yet it is undeniably a power puncher. And it’s a quality malt. A bit brash at times, but offers plenty of depth and character. The VFM is another major plus with this one. $45 is a small price to pay for a bottle of this caliber. So much so that I’ve boosted this from a 3.75 to a 4.25 with VFM as a final consideration. Thank you again to @PBMichiganWolverine — this completes the set you sent me. Some damn good whiskies in there. Unlike the other samples, this is an easily accessible whisky. And a solid one at that, so I’ll be buying a bottle to bolster this review.

Young, fresh, joyfull flavor, peaty taste more than nose, not long aftertaste, a bit shallow overall

Very smoky/peaty. Maybe even too much. I did like the way it sat on my tongue and I could handle small amounts of it in an evening.