Less smoky and more sweet than I would have expected, this is a very impressive demonstration that young whisky can be extremely drinkable. It’s not as complex or as seductive as the 10 — one sip is pretty much the same as another — but it’s a unique twiddle of the Ardbeg flavor profile dials that should appeal to people who want the smoke turned down a notch and the sweetness amped up. It’s leagues better than the An Ao and will make a passable stand-in for the 10, which will in shorter supply until at least 2024 because of poorly timed production cuts following its acquisition by LVMH. Thank you @PBMichiganWolverine for the generous sample.