LeeEvolved
Ardbeg Dark Cove
Single Malt — Islay, Scotland
Reviewed
February 16, 2017 (edited June 12, 2019)
The story and name behind this NAS offering is very reminiscent of the old moonshiners from the American South: Islanders waiting until the cover of darkness along the rocky coasts of Islay to run supplies onshore for the distilling of fresh "hooch".
Ardbeg says this is the darkest whisky they've ever released and from what I've seen they are correct. Instead of the typical, straw yellow this one is a deeper, golden color. It's oily and produces a ton of long, skinny legs on the Glencairn. It smells just like every other Ardbeg: salty and smoky, albeit a bit sweeter.
The smoke is, at first, restrained on the tongue. The sherry cask influence takes the stage, front and center, which is a bit different from most other Ardbegs I've had. It feels like a melted toffee candy has been folded inside an oily rag that was used to tamp out a campfire. Very rich, but not overly complex.
The finish is also muted, for an Ardbeg, but incredibly smooth. The smoke is complimented by a slight bitterness and heat so that it doesn't just wash away. It lingers on until the burn from the alcohol evaporates.
Overall, I don't necessarily think this was a big departure from your standard Ardbeg offering. It's not experimentally blended like Uigeadail or Corryvreckan, it's on par with the 10 year old. Which begs the question "why was this a special release?". It would make sense if this was whisky that's younger than 10 years and they are trying to get some NAS product out there that's more on par with the base juice. That's where this "fails"- I shouldn't have to pay $100 for something so close to the 10 year old in flavor. It's good stuff, just too boring for a special release. I think that's why it's still sitting on a lot of store shelves. I wish I had left it there as well. The 10 year is a 4 star whisky to me, so I'm subtracting 1 because I had to pay way too much for this bottle. I think that's fair.
Cheers, my friends.
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@Olorin - I’ve heard remarkable things for the Committee Edition of Dark Cove. I think I’d pay the extra and seek out a bottle of that instead of sticking with the standard. I didn’t see enough here to warrant the higher price tag, but maybe the CE is significantly better. Cheers, and thanks for the kind words.
@LeeEvolved "It feels like a melted toffee candy has been folded inside an oily rag that was used to tamp out a campfire." This was excellent! So creative and descriptive! Your review was very helpful to me in prioritizing my next Ardbeg purchase.
Even though I'm completely shocked because the LR and CR are my all time favorite whiskys, I love reading because it's such a subjective hobby.
The thing that has me torn now- I'm actively searching for the Supernova release. I've heard great things about that one and the price on the secondary market seems to indicate it's the real deal. But, I agree with everything you guys have added here and I'm scared to pull the trigger on a $350+ special release. I realize it was released a few years ago so it was probably a safer bet that it truly is worthy of the "Special Release" labeling. Can anyone vouch for the Supernova?
The committee release is leagues better.
'It feels like a melted toffee candy has been folded inside an oily rag that was used to tamp out a campfire,' Hah! Best word picture I've read in a long time! Great review. Cheers!
Spot on review! I had Ardbeg Dark Cove in a tasting session along with Ardbeg 10, Uigeadail and Corryvreckan, and I found this dram to be the least impressive. I am not a friend of NAS expressions, but in my opinion the Uigeadail is the best of the range and worth its price tag. Ardbeg 10 does the job and the Corryvreckan is an interesting alternative, although I'd probably not buy a bottle. Many of the 'special releases' are simply not on par with the core range - they are for the collectors market, not necessarily to drink.
I think you're spot on. In my opinion, I think Ardbeg has a fundamental problem that their core range of Corry, Uigi, and 10 are by far better than any special release (outside the ultra high end 17 and 21). So...why bother buying the special release when the 10, Corry, or Uigi will be better?
This is, generally speaking, the main gripe with NAS whisky: "I am not totally sure what I am getting, yet I am paying more whilst I can get their staple at a relative bargain." It's one thing to pay for quality, but to through a storyline, though fun, and add $50? At some point the marketplace will catch on and ultimately right the course back. (At least I am hoping). By the way, great review, as per usual.