Ardbeg 10 Year Old
Ardbeg 10 . . . Ahhhhhh!
5 2590
Review by @RianC

- Nose~
- Taste~
- Finish~
- Balance~
- Overall90
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Just to be clear from the offset - I can't pretend to not have a deep, almost scared, affinity with this whisky so I will try extra hard to be objective and provide clarity of my experience.
This was the first ever alcoholic drink that made me grin ear to ear after a sip (well my 2nd sip to be precise - the first being one of confusion, intrigue and a general sense of 'wtf' have I just bought here?!) It even led to what I believe can be called 'peat flashbacks' the next day out playing golf in the midst of winter. A very welcome intrusion it must be said.
Onto the liquor:
On the nose it's an instant hit of coastal peat. Minerality comes through with sea shells, oysters, TCP, drift wood beach bonfires and slight oily smoked fish notes. There's also a citrus fruitiness and an ever so light touch of damp, musty dried fruit that I'm noticing more this time around. Chocolate lime sweets. Wonderful.
Taste wise; those chocolate limes really come out for me here. Oily but not overly thick mouth feel that develops into a beautifully sweet fennel, licorice note. Sweet arrival but becomes more sour. Reminds me of tequila. I find I have this neat or if the mood takes me with a few drops of water. Less peaty with water and more citrus sweetness comes out. Perhaps more rounded as well?
Finish is long and I find as the bottle goes down more smoke comes out here, to the point where I can pretend I'm a dragon breathing fire after a sip. Slight tannins but very pleasantly so. A sour note is there.
This whisky takes me back to holidays on the west coast of Scotland as a kid -but you could be anywhere on the west coast of Britain and get the same sensations, imo. It's so well made and I would like to say an available and affordable (mostly) craft whisky but the prices here have gone up a lot in the last couple of years alone. Still, not bad value at all and a must have for any whisky fan to have at least tried.
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Absolutely spot on @RianC, very evocative tasting notes!