As i been telling you lately, Ardbeg's latest special releases are a hit or miss. They have produced some great, breathtaking whiskies, as well as other boring, underwhelming expressions. This have gained a strong critic against excessively marketed bottlings that did not reach their potential. This year, Ardbeg released two very different whiskies: one was the amazing "BizarreBQ" which almost everyone i know seemed to love; and also this, the more expensive one, the official committee of 2023, called "Heavy Vapours". The story behind it, is that Dr. Lumdsen took out one of the purifiers from one of stills, changing the whole density of the vapours that will condensate to turn into Ardbeg's iconic spirit. Of course, the label says that this will make this dram the most "full blown" Ardbeg ever.... Bottled at 50.2%abv. On the nose, it starts with Ardbeg's herbal peat. Moss and grapefruit juice. A fresh can of new tennis balls, dim ashes. It feels "hairy" on the nose. Mold in a wall. On the palate i get vainilla ice cream, herbal notes, ashes. It is very gentle and a little yeasty; nothing heavy or full blown here. Aftertaste is the best part. A pair of cotton socks, very herbal. Elegant, nice, friendly on the palate (i don't know if that is what i am looking for in an Ardbeg). Dry. It actually feels like licking the top of a cooking pot, the condensation feeling here is real. Cotton shirts, tennis balls. Overall, i don't think this is the worst Ardbeg ever, and i don't think this is the best one either. A very fair, unenthusiastic whisky that many will enjoy without too many problems. It is a nice whisky that doesn't live to a committee release expectation, and that is a problem here. My score for it is a super honest 88 over 100 which makes it an enjoyable dram that i will soon forget.