Ardbeg Wee Beastie

Very briny, asphalt and fire, raw burn, soft fudge or salted caramel at the end

Tasting this from a 200ml bottle in the Monsters of Smoke box collection. Nosing doesn't really reveal much to me other than smoke and peat. In the mouth I get peaty smoke and oily mouthfeel and taste. Color of straw and a little sweetness in the swallow to blend with the smoke and peat. But aftertaste leaves me with a dull sensation from the thin but oily coating. Obviously any Whisky this young and junior in the family of very storied whiskys of Ardbeg will suffer by comparison. It is meant to fill a certain spot in the line-up and I think it succeeds, so far as it goes. Makes the most sense to me as it is presented in the Box collection, as a stepping stone. Most new Ardbeg drinkers should skip this one though and go right to An Oa if you want to get a very good sense of what the distillery is really all about. And it only gets better the further up you go thankfully. Box set of 3 200mls $49.99 in PA. Contains Wee Beastie, An Oa and 10 yr. I'll give the Wee Beastie a 3.25 but that is really being kind to an Islay House whose products fill my cabinet.

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