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.