Darkness! Range of Sherry Cask Finished Whiskies

Way back in May of this year, UK Drinks Distributor Maverick Drinks announced the launch of Darkness! – a range of exceedingly dark single malt and single grain whiskies with an enormously punchy, unashamedly brazen character (their words, not mine!)

The range is the first of its kind, and these so-called “sherry monsters” are gloriously dark in colour thanks to the use of small, specially crafted sherry casks for finishing. 

They attain their deep, dark colour from a 3-month finish in specially coopered 50-litre first-fill sherry casks. These previously held some of Spain’s top sherries, including Pedro Ximénez – the sticky, sweet dessert sherry, and Oloroso – the semi-dry, nutty delicacy. These casks not only impart a deep colour but bring wonderful sherry flavours such as Christmas Cake, rich spice, prunes, raisins and dates. The small size of the casks allows more wood contact with the whisky, increasing both dark colour and rich flavour dramatically.

The Darkness! range includes spirit from Scotland’s most prestigious distilleries. Notable bottlings include the delectable 21-year-old Ardbeg, finished in Oloroso sherry casks, a 16-year-old Clynelish, and a sublime Macallan finished in a Pedro Ximénez cask. The range doesn't aim for sophistication, but instead is made up of big, bold “sherry monsters”.

The stunning labels for Darkness! are beautifully foiled and embossed, and were hand-illustrated by Tom Lane – designer of the very popular Bicycle Playing Cards, as well as the artwork for the accompanying book for Heston Blumenthal’s Fantastical Feasts.

Dave started on his own Sherry journey because he wanted to understand the effect of the Sherry Cask on maturing whisky (you can read more about that here) The Darkness! Range takes this to the extreme! 

We were sent five samples from the range at the time of release and these are Dave's thoughts:

Whisky Discovery #827

Darkness! Clynelish 16 Year Old Oloroso Cask Finish 54.9% abv

Highland Single Malt

£74.95 50cl

Those of you that know me may be surprised that I picked this first, it wasn't the youngest in the box and alphabetically wasn't the first one I should be visiting. However, Clynelish was one of my 'pre-journey' whiskies and I have a soft spot for them (see The Beginning) and tend to gravitate to them whenever I see one.

So What Did I Think?

Nose: The Oloroso cask impart some lovely date and walnut notes, alongside figs and dried fruit. I found salted oranges with mint chocolate notes following.

Palate: Lots of rich spices with clove and licorice being the dominant ones. Dark fruit, plum skins and black cherry. The chocolate found on the nose comes through to the palate too, but with caramel now.

Finish: Licorice, dates and the slightest hint of fragrant pipe smoke. The empty glass the following morning has lovely minty chocolate notes 

Whisky Discovery #987

Darkness! Benrinnes 15 Year Old Oloroso Cask Finish 52.9% abv

Speyside Single Malt

£59.95 50cl

Perhaps my OCD was kicking in subconsciously as reviewing my notes show that I picked the Oloroso cask finished malts first before moving onto the Pedro Ximénez finshed ones?

You don't often get to see Benrinnes bottlings, as the lion share of their malts is used in blended Scotch. In fact as far as I can tell there is only one official bottling, a 15 Year Old from the Flora and Fauna range.

What I was a little annoyed at was that I didn't use my head and try the two Benrinnes 15 Year Old expressions alongside each other. I was more than a little annoyed actually, and calling myself a muppet was about all I'm safely able to write here.

So what did I think?

Nose: I love the nose of a good Oloroso sherry and this has many of these lovely flavours. Young fresh walnuts, blackcurrant, dates and dried fruit with a dusting of pepper. With a little air a rich toffee note develops with just a hint of Licorice

Palate: This is a 'meaty' jammy mouth-feel, certainly has some chewy body to it, and is both rich and sweet. Rich fruit Christmas cake comes through, heavy and chewy fruit, finishing dry and nutty.

Finish: A long finish, starting sweet and ending dry and nutty.The following morning the empty glass gives a dark bitter chocolate note

Whisky Discovery #996

Darkness! Macallan 15 Year Old Pedro Ximénez Cask Finish 52.3% abv

Speyside Single Malt

£109.95 50cl

Checking the Liquid Log I've not got a great deal of experience of Macallans. I bought a couple of their 10 Year Old expressions (Fine Oak and Sherry Cask) at the end of my first year, I've tasted their recent NAS 1824 Series and a handful of other independent releases. I know Macallans are a sought after brand with investors and hence prices always seem a little higher (notable against the 15 Year Old Benrinnes) and sell out quickly so can be a bit of a bun fight getting hold of one when released, so I don't tend to bother trying when there's a new or limited release

So What Did I think?

Nose: Lord this is truly a 'Sherry Monster'  and the first one of this series that really said that to me! Whether that was the PX cask or simply the way the whisky has reacted in the cask this time I don't know. All the dried fruit sherry notes are here; figs, dates, raisins and sultanas in bucket loads. A sweet walnut syrup follows and nosing this was simply heavenly!

Palate: I'm fairly certain that I inhaled more of this than I drank! Lovely rich dark fruits in this one for me; Black cherry and Blackberries along with figs and dates, with a nuttiness later.

Finish: Another long finish with sweet fragrant fruit, sultana, and lingering dark caramel. The empty glass the following morning was a treat of rich minty Chocolate notes with a hint of waxy furniture polish.

Overall: Attractive cereal, some good, clean Sherry and all manner of fruits in here.

Whisky Discovery #987

Darkness! Benrinnes 15 Year Old Pedro Ximénez Cask Finish 52.9% abv

Speyside Single Malt

£59.95 50cl

The second of the two Benrinnes, and this time finished in a PX cask. Benrinnes is one of the few distilleries that use a worm tub which will contribute to the character of this Speyside single malt. My notes tell me that this was the darkest of the five I tasted and almost the colour of mahogany.

So What Did I Think?

Nose: Oh wow! This had immediately become my favourite with its rich and sticky nose. I was instantly reminded of Ribena (other blackcurrant drinks are available) but not the poured squash concentrate, more like the sticky drying syrup that always seems to glue the screw top lid onto the glass bottle when I was a lad. There was prunes and raisins alongside rich resinous hardwood notes and the hint of aniseed.

Palate: Another big meaty dram from Benrinnes (the worm tubs?) that started sweet, then slowly builds up a to a spicy woody crescendo, before falling back with dark chocolate flavours and licorice root

Finish: A good length finish that I wished wouldn't end with woody spices, clove and just a hint of cinnamon. The following morning the empty glass gave up the rich dark chocolate in a wooden pencil box.

Whisky Discovery #988

Darkness! Ardbeg 22 Year Old Pedro Ximénez Cask Finish 40.1% abv

Islay Single Malt

£119.95 50cl

OK, I saved the Ardbeg to last for a reason, I'm not quite sure what my reason was, perhaps it was because it was the only Islay I had, or that it was the oldest in the series? Ardbeg is another distillery that seems to attract an army of collectors for new releases, and hence plenty of 'flippers' who have the patience/perseverance to buy one of the new releases only to sell it on at the next auction without actually tasting it for themselves. I'm not one for queueing and have been known to walkout of shops leaving a full trolley of good near the tills if I deem the cashier to customer ratio is not high enough! That said, I am a fan of the standard Ardbeg range with Uigeadail being a particular favourite. So getting back to the Darkness! Ardbeg, this was the lightest of the five and hardly coloured from the PX cask at all, it was a bright gold.

So What Did I Think?

Nose: Just what I was expecting from this lightly coloured Ardbeg, opening with its characteristic sooty ash and peat smoke, but later fruits develop, and most notably for me the hints of BBQ'd pineapple, perfect! 

Palate: Surprisingly fruity, although after writing that note reminded myself that a PX cask had been used! It's sweet and juicy initially but later drier charcoal flavours develop with chocolate and coffee grounds

Finish: Smouldering charcoal and BBQ'd pineapple ending with chocolate and coffee grounds. The following morning the empty glass yields more chocolate and cigar tobacco.

Verdict

For my money, the Benrinnes' were my favourites of the five tasted here, with the PX cask just pushing into first place over the Oloroso cask, but I really enjoyed each of these. Although I loved the Macallan, I'm fairly certain I wouldn't have splashed out on a bottle when I could have had both of the Benrinnes for just a little more, but the Ardbeg certainly seemed value for money, considering it's age. Whilst a number of these have now sold out, the Darkness! range is still available at Master of Malt, and if 'Sherry Monsters' are your thing, they really are worth seeking out as the flavours are so intense!

You can find out more information on the Master of Malt website here: 

Ardbog Day

On the 1st of June we were invited to take part in celebrating Ardbeg’s limited edition release of their Fèis Ìle festival bottling – Ardbog. On this day, dubbed Ardbog Day, I headed to London with my other half in tow as Dave couldn't go, as at around that time he had started to tear down his ensuite.

To make it bit more of a country feel, there was a stage full of steaming peat for people to dig through, flying sheep (oh yes there was!) & normal sheep, a nice old tractor, straw bales, shiny Ardbeg Chopper and country games where you can win prizes. All of the pictures from the day can be seen on our Facebook page here. 

The Ardbog T-shirt was hard to come by, I only got one after completing two tug-of-war games, some wellie wanging, a wheel barrow race, and a sack race! A cocktail half way through the day, consisting of Ardbog, lime juice, gomme syrup & lavender liquor, quenched the thirst nicely.

Slainte! Kat

Whisky Discovery #498

Ardbeg 'Ardbog' (52.1% abv, 2013)

Islay Single Malt Whisky

circa £80.00 (when it was released)

The whisky has been named after the peat bog that gives the whiskies from this distillery its heavily peated character. Ardbeg’s is one of the peatiest malt whisky, which I’ve been advised ‘with a phenol level of the peat measured at an average 55-60 parts per million’. Compared with say a Lagavulin with phenol levels of around 40 parts per million. 

Ardbog is a marriage of Ardbeg whisky that are at least 10 years old, that has been matured in bourbon cask and in Manzanilla sherry casks.

So What did we think?

Kat's notes: 

Nose: My first thought was warm buttermilk pancakes with lashings of maple syrup and rashes of crispy bacon. Followed by the smell of a burgundy Chesterfield sofa on a hot day, nutmeg, hazel nuts, toffee, medicinal aromas - TCP/Band-Aid, all balanced with a background note of smoke. It’s also noticeably dry. 

There’s not a major change to the aromas after adding a drop of water. Only noted the smokiness mellows, bringing out more of the sweet maple syrup characters & nut notes. Personally the high ABV is not a problem here and prefer this dram without water.

Palate: I was very happy when it offered most of flavours of what it promised in the nose. At the first second when it hits the palate, there’s a short hint of mint mouthwash. Shortly follow with maple syrup, toffee, peat smoke, iodine/seaweed, very nutty with a nice coating of nut oils from hazel & Brazil nuts. Again, it is a nice balance of sweet and savoury that’s a little dry which helps cut through some of the richness of this whisky. 

With water, the only change that I noticed was that the minty & smoke characters become distinctively like black cardamoms. 

Finish: Nutty, peat smoke/wood charcoal, iodine, hint of sea salt and black cardamoms. 

To sum up for me it’s like eating maple syrup pancakes with crispy bacon after brushing your teeth or using mouthwash, and somehow these flavours combined to make a really delicious dram. It is a great execution of balancing sweet, savoury, and peat smoke.

Dave's notes:

Nose: Very typically 'Ardbeg' with a definite smoky bacon 'Frazzles' over a 'stable' element, with earthy peat, straw and cowshed (yes, I've slept in one). The medicinal notes are all there; iodine, old style crepe bandages, menthol, as is the charcoal and coal dust. There are sweet notes with rich honey and good Balsamic vinegar, similar to my wife's homemade salad dressing, and plenty of sea salt. Digging deeper there are some fleeting delicate floral notes underlying.

Palate: A peaty sweetness, albeit not quite as sweet as I was expecting. Sooty charcoal notes begin give the dry mouthfeel and there's a short spicy build up, but again not quite as spicy as I was expecting, more of a mild chilli heat to me (I do eat a lot of chilli though). There's a salty tang that sneaks up on you too.

Finish: A long and drying finish, woody sawdust. The salt that sneaked up on the palate and the sherry sweetness remains for a long time too, but charcoal is more dominant and stays right through and beyond!

Verdict: I was fairly certain that Ardbog was quite similar to their Uigeadail so decided to taste these alongside each other. They both have a similar 'make up' (Bourbon and Sherry casks) although Ardbog specifies Manzanilla casks, the colour is difficult to differentiate between the two and flavour profiles are quite similar although the Uigeadail comes across as slightly sweeter and more rounded. That said the Ardbog is very drinkable however value for money? I didn't think so and would prefer to spend my hard earned cash on Uigeadail or Corrywrecken and still have some change in my pocket.

Three evenings at SMWS London

I don't often get the opportunity to spend an evening in the SMWS's London headquarters but a recent Trade Show held at Earls Court had me commuting down from Bedfordshire for three consecutive days. (I was originally scheduled for just two days manning our stand at the RailTex exhibition but my MD pulled out of his final shift and called me in at the last minute).

It so happens that 19 Greville Street, the London home of the SMWS, lies on the Bedford to London main line just a stones throw from Farringdon, and so my mission was to ensure I went home from Earls Court via Farringdon underground. If they had been open early for breakfast I would have made sure I was there for that too!

On my journey home after the first day of the show I could only stop for a couple of drams as I had foolishly left my car at the station and would have to drive home later. I carefully read the current out-turn and found an interesting bottling from Jura's only distillery, so first on the menu was 31.26

Whisky Discovery #410

SWMS 31.26 'BBQ Smoke by a Rolling Sea' 24 Year Old (53.6% abv)

Highland Island Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

I'd not come across a club bottling from the Isle of Jura before and was really looking forward to this recent release. Distilled on 27th September 1988 this was matured for 24 years in a refill ex-bourbon hogshead, resulting in just 262 bottles at 53.6% abv)

It certainly didn't disappoint with some smoky aniseed and plenty of brine on the nose, along with the sweet scent of butterscotch popcorn. The peat smoke was much more forward on the palate, with a sweet and spicy BBQ sauce and earthy notes.

Knowing that I could only have one more dram I asked Phoebe (@whiskybars) for a recommendation and this recent bottling from the Ardbeg distillery was selected.

Whisky Discovery #411

SWMS 33.125 'Salted Caramel Lollipop' 7 Year Old (64.4% abv)

Islay Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

I love a peaty Islay whisky and this complemented the Jura perfectly. So this young Ardbeg was distilled on the 9th May 2005 and matured for just seven years in a first fill barrel yielding just 250 bottles at an impressive 64.4% abv.

It was delicious and just what I was expecting; lots of smoky peat, with notes of tobacco and leather on the nose. It started off a little medicinal to begin with on the palate but settled down to be more sooty. with some sweet smoke and a little brine.

With my fix for peat satisfied I made my way back to Farringdon Station, jumping on the first train heading towards Bedford only to find that the train I had jumped on was going to go right past my station without stopping. My wife and her friends had done just this only the week before, and I remembered laughing at them asking why they never read the information board beforehand, and here's me doing exactly the same thing. Unlike them I heard the train announcements on the journey (they would have been far too busy talking) and so made plans to hop off at Luton to wait for the next train that would stop for at my station.

Day 2 For my second day of playing commuter I'd organised being dropped off at the station in the morning so I would be able to have a couple of extra drams after the show. 

My show partner for day two was our Production Manager, Peter. I've worked with Peter for 15 years and we've had a few beers over that time, but never a whisky. Peter lives along the same main line into London, so it was fairly easy to convince him that we should stop off for a drink or two on the way home from the show. I had told him about the SMWS lounge and he was keen to find out more. With Peter not being a whisky drinker we started with a beer, settling for a 'Bitter and Twisted'  from the Harviestoun Brewery while I explained how the SMWS started and as we started reading our way through the menu, the numbering system and how the wonderfully inventive names are created along with the sometimes contradictory tasting notes printed on the labels.

Since 'converting' to whisky I have been very keen to preach what I have learnt so far and to demonstrate the vast range of smells and tastes that can be found in the different expressions.  Our first dram was chosen for us, and with the help of Sam (@DramforSam) we tried to convey some of the wonders that always amaze me in some fine whisky.

Whisky Discovery #412

SMWS 59.43 ''Caramel Swirl Ice Cream' 29 Year Old (56.4% abv)

Highland Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

We started of with one of the special 30th Anniversary bottlings and a 29 year old from the Teaninich Distillery. I'd not heard of this distillery before and had to look it up in Malt Yearbook to find our more! The majority of this whisky produced at Teaninich is used in the Johnnie Walker blends and it is all matured off site.

So this anniversary dram was distilled on the 8th November 1983 and matured for 29 years in a refill hogshead yielding 252 bottles at 56.4% abv

This started with sweet fruity notes, especially pineapple, and there was plenty of vanilla caramel too. It was quite dry on the palate, black tea like, yet still quite sweet and creamy, a great start to our evening!

For our next dram I thought we should try something young and lively, light and fragrant and Sam chose this Mortlach for us. I tend to think of Mortlach as a sherried whisky, usually with an element of 'struck match' to it but this was not the case with this single cask offering:

Whisky Discovery #413

SMWS 76.95 'Tropical Fruit Salad' (58.2% abv)

Speyside Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

A ten year old distilled in 2001 matured in a refill ex-bourbon hogshead yielding 307 bottles at 58.2% abv. Tropical fruit is what it said on the label, and tropical fruit is what we got!

After two quite light fruity numbers I wanted Peter to experience a sherry cask and asked Sam to find a suitable number. An eleven year old from the Glen Moray distillery was poured

Whisky Discovery #414

SMWS 35.86 'A Sumptuous Breakfast Dram' 11 Year Old (59.3% abv)

Speyside Lossie Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

A fabulous contrast to the first two drams which was immediately noticed by my guest. This Glen Moray was distilled on 17th May 2001 and matured in a First-fill ex-sherry butt yielding 629 bottles at 59.3% abv

With a fabulous rich nose of toast and rich marmalade, polished wood and dates. Wonderfully rich on the palate with a heavy fruit cake, perhaps just the hint of struck match? Peter's first thoughts when nosing this whisky was that it reminded him of the gas used in the dentists when he was a child, and I told him that there were no right or wrong answers, it's all perception from your own experiences.

With a tick in the box for a sherry cask malt, I though I would try to explain the difference between a single malt and a single grain. Sam recommended his current favourite and poured us our next dram

Whisky Discovery #415

SMWS G4.2 'Attractive spirit in a cloak of oak' 28 Year Old (55.4% abv)

Single Cask Single Grain Whisky

A single cask grain whisky from the Cameronbridge Distillery, distilled on the 6th April 1984 and matured in a refill ex-bourbon hogshead for twenty eight years, yielding just 218 bottles at 55.4% abv

I explained to Peter the differences between grain whisky and single malts, and that the majority of whisky made is grain, and used for blended whisky. I told him what I had recently learnt following our Glory of the Grain tweet tasting a few weeks back, and that a good single grain whisky is all about the wood it's been matured in.

There was plenty of wood notes in this one, it reminded me of the wood shop we had at the yard, where we would season some of the best cuts of wood naturally. There were also notes of tobacco and sweetness of a rich honey. Quite bourbon-esque on the palate, sweet with a hint of liquorice.

I was keen to show Peter some peated whisky next and so we moved our tasting journey across to Islay. Sam picked this next one as it was a good balance between the peated spirit and a sherry cask

Whisky Discovery #416

SMWS 3.193 'Baby Faced Arsonist' 14 Year Old (57.7% abv)

Islay Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

So this Bowmore was distilled on the 25th September 1997 and matured in a refill sherry but for 14 years, yielding 601 bottles at 57.7% abv

A lovely sweet scented smoke came across on the nose, but there was a definite maritime note underlying with a salty seaweed type note. On the palate the maritime note was foremost to me with smoked mackerel with honey and mustard. I loved this and thought it was a great introduction to the peated spirit

With time ticking on, and now knowing that I had to make a return journey the following morning (my notice came via a text message during our adventure) I went back to Sam for our last dram for the evening. I wanted something a little more medicinal.

Whisky Discovery #417

SMWS 53.176 'Pain is so close to Pleasure' 20 Year Old (56.6% abv)

Islay Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

What a fabulous name for this twenty year old Caol Ila. It was a single cask Caol Ila that started me off on my whisky journey, so a fitting end to the evening? Distilled on the 17th January 1992, this was matured in a refill hogshead for twenty eight years yielding 285 bottles at 56.6% abv

Great Islay nose with heavily peated notes, although by no means as heavy as a Laphroaig or Port Charlotte (I'll try that with Peter next time). Wood smoke and barbecued mackerel complete with burnt skin, a touch of menthol too. It's peaty on the palate and quite different to the previous Bowmore. 

A perfect end to our evening which had me savouring this for the first part of the journey home. So what was our favourite? Peter really liked the sherried Glen Moray, 35.86 which I must admit was a damn fine dram (I went back the following evening with every intention of revisiting it alongside 35.85, but there was none of the earlier release left). For me The Caol Ila was my favourite of the evening, but it was a close call between the six excellent drams chosen.

Day 3 My re-arranged third day at the trade show was spent with our Sales Manager Philip, the man who first introduced me to whisky and so I was planning on taking him to 19 Greville Street after the show. Unfortunately he already had other commitments and so I returned alone.

It was a glorious afternoon in London so I started with a cold beer - I needed it! I sat down to review the menu while contemplating whether I should make an evening of it or return home in time to make the Balblair Tweet Tasting scheduled for later on in the evening. I had come prepared, bringing both whisky samples and glasses with me so I could take part wherever I ended up at eight o'clock. I decided (quite sensibly) that I should make my way home for it and settled for just one dram before catching the six o'clock train home.

Running through the menu I was intrigued by the description of this:

Whisky Discovery #418

SMWS 85.23 'Burnt granary toast with bramble jelly' 12 Year Old (59.4% abv)

Speyside Lossie Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

I later found out that this was from the Glen Elgin distillery, another new one to me and one you don't see around ordinarily. This distillery too is owned by Diageo and usually found in blended whisky only.

Distilled in September 1999 and matured for 12 years in an ex-sherry butt, yielding 367 bottles at 59.4% this has the typical sherry influence note of struck matches. I quite like the light sulpher notes when it's like this. There's also that yeasty note when making a granary loaf. It's sweet on the palate though as the label note says quite aggressive, though I'm not sure if that was because of the high abv. A drop of water gives that burnt toast note and the jammy note compliments the toast!

So in three evenings of dropping into the SMWS London home I had made nine new whisky discoveries, but to be fair I could find a new whisky discovery every evening for a long time in this place! I'd also introduced a friend to the pleasure of a quality single malt who has already asked when will we be going back again.

Whisky Discovery #162

Ardbeg Galileo 1999 (49% abv OB Bottled 2012 70cl)
Islay Single Malt Whisky
circa £75.00 70cl

Once again I am indebted to Andrew Purslow, a self confessed Ardbeg Addict who maintains a very special Ardbeg shrine in his whisky den, for the immensely generous 'slug' of Galileo he sent to me upon it's release. It came packaged in the original box too. If you use Twitter make sure you're following @Ardbaggie

This limited edition bottling released on the 1st September, celebrating Ardbeg's first ever experiment in space. You can read more about the launch on the Living Room Whisky website as Jon was fortunate in getting invited to the launch at the National Space Centre in Leicester

At the heart of this whisky is the hallmark Arbeg spirit distilled in 1999 and matured in the classic ex-bourbon bottles with the addition of some ex-Marsala casks from Sicily

So What Did I think?

There is lots going on in this malt; On the nose I got the hint of 'stable' and hay that was present in the Ardbeg Day tasted earlier this year, but there was much more sweet fruitiness to this expression, with a sooty note over the vanilla, caramel and even popcorn!

On the palate the peaty goodness that I would expect from an Ardbeg is dominant, the sweetness of dark fruits, and some smoky soot followed by a salty smack in the chops.

The finish seems to go on forever - well a very long time! There's burnt toast, (I love burnt toast) charcoal and both a sweetness and a saltiness that felt perfectly balanced to me, but all the time there are waves of smoke of a dying fire wafting through till the very end. I could even still taste these waves of smoke long after cleaning my teeth and going to bed - great to drift off into dreamland to!

There are many mixed reviews of this expression, yes, it has been hyped up and Ardbeg have probably made a good return on this expression. Let's not forget though, it wasn't long ago that the Ardbeg distillery was in danger of being lost to the whisky world, and you've got to make hay while the sun shines as I've been told many times.

The prices the bottles are exchanging hands for now is way over the top, it needs to be drunk and not saved away as an investment, it would appear that most of them have been bought for that, or turning a quick profit by selling as soon as distillery stocks were exhausted. This is a good drinking whisky, I love the sweetness the Marsala casks has added to the traditional Ardbeg 10 taste, bring it out as a standard addition to the range and I'll get myself one, but for my bang for my buck I'm very happy with their 10 Year Old and next on my list will be the Uigeadail

Whisky Discovery #148

Ardbeg Day NAS (56.7% abv, OB, Bottled 2012 70cl)
Islay Cask Strength Single Malt
£65.00 70cl

I was lucky to get a hold of a bottle of this 'limited' release

Ardbeg Day fell on June 2nd 2012 which was an extended Bank Holiday weekend in the UK due to the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. I tried to get a sample bottle from the distillery prior to the official release but was told it wasn't possible for whatever reason.   Towards the end of May I had had my heart set of an Isle of Arran Golden Eagle and blew my June budget immediately the merry month of May ended, so thought that I might not get the chance to sample this at all.

I looked on the Ardbeg website regularly over the long weekend, checking the stock of the limited release bottling and longing for a bottle of my own! I settled for another dram of my fabulous Ardbeg 10 on Ardbeg Day, but later saw that @LRWhisky had brought a bottle home from Islay with them. They had cracked it open and were tweeting about the delights of 'dramlaxing' with it. I asked if they would spare me a sample, and a trade was agreed. A miniature of my Arran Golden Eagle was sent off in exchange for a miniature of their Ardbeg Day - we would get together, through Skype, and taste the two whiskies together.

As soon as it arrived I opened it for a sneak peek at the nose. I was immediately smitten and could hold on no longer, sod the budget I was getting myself a bottle or two of this! However, was devastated when I returned to the Ardbeg shop to find out that all 12,000 bottles had flown off of the shelves. Gutted!

I checked on eBay and there were numerous bottles being touted at double the original selling price, so it just wasn't going to happen. With nothing to lose I sent out a tweet for anyone with a spare bottle to contact me - a real long shot I know, but I had nothing to lose. I had a few 'you'll be lucky replies' before one Arbeg fan who had brought two bottles offered to sell me one of his bottles (only if I was going to drink it!) or share one of his bottles. I asked @Ardbaggie for a 50/50 share of one of his two bottles, which was immediately shipped to me, in the origianl bottle, complete with 'on this day in history' booklet. There really is a wonderful community of whisky fans out there in Twitterland.

So now I had my original sample swap, and my own bottle of Ardbeg Day whisky to enjoy. I decided to hold back until the Skype meeting with @LRWhisky before sampling.

So this whisky was specially bottled to celebrate the inaugural worldwide Ardbeg Day, the cult distillery's contribution to Islay Festival, or Feis Isle as it is more often referred to. Each year at the Festival each of the famous whisky island's eight distilleries, plus Jura across the water, release a special collectors bottling on their individual open days. The Ardbeg open day is traditionally on the last Saturday of the Festival and this year was no different, and so Saturday 2 June the Ardbeg Day single malt was released.

Ardbeg is a small distillery producing around one million litres a year, but it produces some of the peatiest and smokiest whiskies in the world, and has built up a cult following across the world. This Ardbeg Day release was limited to 12,000 bottles, you had to be a member of the Ardbeg Committee to purchase one, and it was limited to two bottles per customer. It was all gone in a couple of days! (If you haven't joined the Committee yet, then you can do for free by visiting www.ardbeg.com)

I've been reliably informed that Ardbeg Day whisky is a combination of 8, 9 and 12 Year Old bourbon casks, married for a further 6 months in ex-sherry casks (which may well have been ex-Uigeadail casks).

So What did I think?

RELEASE THE PEAT!

Well I was blown away at the first nosing of this from the wee sample bottle received from Living Room Whisky. I initially got a rich fruity nose out of this and was thoroughly enjoying a grapefruit pith like smell that brought back memories of eating grapefruit for breakfast with my Mother  (we used to share one in the mornings when I was an apprentice). However tasting this over Skype, with my daughter sitting next to me, and Mike and Jon from Living Room Whisky through Skype on the screen with us, Mike mentioned the straw from his rabbit hutch, and by auto-suggestion it was all I could get for a while! (and I haven't had a rabbit hutch since the mid seventies!)

The colour is a pale golden yellow and the nose is very pungent and full on. I've got my grapefruit pithiness back but there certainly is a straw-like rabbit hutch/cowshed nose to this alongside honey and vanilla aromas. The dominant element throughout is an earthy peat smoke, it reminds me of my Nan's coal tar soap There are also hints of ginger, candied peel and raisins, and I've just noticed a minty note too, fantastic stuff!

At cask strength it's initially quite fiery and a little oily. There's a short burst of sweetness which is quicky followed by the fiery spice again. The thick earthy peat smoke takes over your sense for a short moment and as it mellows there's a sooty charcoal taste which I love. With a drop of water the smoky charcoal is more evident at first, but the sweeter notes start to come out, honey and vanilla, there is a dark chocolate note too, aniseed and even a little lime tartness.

A very long finish with a slightly bitter smokiness to the bitter end It is dry, spicy and mouthwatering and I love it. I was recently very impressed by Ardbeg's Uigeadail and would really like to taste this alongside some, so will need to try hard to keep some of this until I can add the Uige to my whisky shelf!

Well done Ardbeg, this has been a blinder but I don't think it is worth the sums of money being asked for on eBay.

Whisky Discovery #147

Ardbeg Uigeadail NAS (54.2% abv, OB Bottled 2010 70 cl)
Islay Cask Strength Single Malt
Circa £50.00 70cl

Skype tasting sample of Arbeg's Uigeadail

I have been wanting to try Ardbeg Uigeadail for a while now and it's been near to the top of my wish list since tasting the Ardbeg 10 Year Old last October. Unfortunately something else has always come up before it and so seeing this was available on @WhiskyRepublic's whisky shelf, jumped at the opportunity in our five dram sample swap. I was very good, keeping this small sample bottle, untouched, on my whisky shelf for a good few weeks before our second Skype Tasting last week.

It was the final dram of our Skype tasting and directly followed another heavily peated Islay malt that was very different to this Ardbeg. A lot of the whisky community on Twitter have said some great things about this whisky and seems to be a very popular favourite. In 2009, Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible named Ardbeg Uigeadail ‘World Whisky of the Year’ – in praise of its “utter silky brilliance” and “complexity on a level only a handful of distilleries in the world can even dream of reaching.” It's also listed in Ian Buxton's great book, "101 Whiskies to try before you die"

Ardbeg Uigeadail (pronounced ‘Oog-a-dal’) is a special vatting that marries Ardbeg’s traditional deep, smoky notes with luscious, raisiny tones of old ex-Sherry casks. Uigeadail derives from the Scotch Gaelic for 'Dark and Mysterious Place' and is named for the Loch from whence Ardbeg draws its waters. It's non chill-filtered at high strength, which retains maximum flavour and gives more body and added depth.

So what did I think?

It has a lovely deep golden colour and thick legs slowly run down my nosing glass when swirled. It has the most awesome nose with notes of peat, lump coal, tar, dark brown sugar, freshly ground coffee beans, and some fruity notes. There's a slight whiff of a disinfectant or elastoplast too, actually I'm starting to think it is Germoline or even Deep Heat!

I love the nose on this, after getting used to the medicinal notes, so much more lies underneath this smouldering smokey coal fire; Sweet treacle toffee, rich Christmas cake, a touch of pine forest and freshly cut cedar wood. With water there's definitely a hint of diesel engine amongst the tarry smoke, but the toffee sweetness and coffee walnut cake keeps making a welcome appearance through the haze. Just spectacular!

An initial sweetness hits the tongue, rich fruits from the Christmas cake, a hint of marzipan before being followed by a spicy smokiness which is just heavenly, the medicinal notes come through that remind me of the old Victory V lozenges I used to like as a schoolboy. Wave upon wave of sweetness balanced with the peaty smokiness take over the senses

The finish is intense.It is incredibly long and initially very hot peppery spice which is promptly followed by a sweet caramel and malt, balanced by that smouldering coal fire again. The peaty tang remains for long time. I finished my dram over an hour ago, and can still taste the peaty smoke at the back of my mouth! This whisky will remain high on my wish list, and I think will need to be on my shelf at all times. If you are ever wondering what to buy me, a bottle of Ardbeg Uigeadail would always be welcome - I could never have too much!

Skype Tasting #2

Tasting #2

A little while ago fellow whisky tweeter @WhiskyRepublic and I 

swapped five different whiskies from our shelves with each other and held a tasting session using Skype. 

We managed to run through five drams on our first meeting, so scheduled a second session last week to finish of the remaining five whiskies.

The five drams received from @WhiskyRepublic

With three peated whiskies left, alongside two Speysiders, and three of the five were also at cask strength, some careful planning was needed to get the balance right and make this session as enjoyable as the first one.

We started off with two from my shelf, The Balvenie 21 PortWood which although a rich Port finished Speysider it is bottled at 40% abv and the honeyed sweetness that is synonymous with the Balvenie range could be enjoyed and savoured without any other influences from either cask strength alcohol or heavily peated whiskies. The PortWood is one of my favourites from Balvenie.

We followed The Balvenie with an 18 Year Old Glenfarclas from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society.  SMWS 1.162 is bottled at 58.8% abv, and was from a refill ex-bourbon hogshead and was one of 234 bottles. It seemed to follow The Balvenie perfectly.

The drams I sent to @WhiskyRepublic in front of their parents

With three peated whiskies left, two at cask strength, the Irish Connemara Peated Whiskey was next and what a surprising nose this had! This was my first experience of Connemara, and I have smelt a little rubber in whiskies previously, but nothing compared to what hit me here. It was unbelievable! It reminded us of changing tyres and we were both laughing that we were drinking whisky that smelt like rubber! The phrase 'caramelised inner tube' was coined to describe the nose we were 'enjoying' during this tasting.

We followed the Connemara with a Heavily Peated 13 Year Old Bunnahabhain from Signatory's Cask Strength Collection. This is a smashing drop of whisky that I've been nursing for a year now!

The final dram of the evening was the one I had been really looking forward to since receiving the sample; Ardbeg Uigeadail. Another heavily peated whisky, but a total contrast to the Bunnahabhain. Both Islay single malts, both cask strength, but the Bunnahabhain had been matured in two ex-bourbon hogsheads and the Ardbeg Uigeadail (pronounced 'oog-a-dal) is a vatting that marries traditional smokey Ardbeg with spirit matured in old ex-sherry casks.

Another very successful and hugely entertaining Skype tasting. Overall, five new whiskies were introduced to each of us, and we had two great evenings from the comfort of our own computers! There's not much of a whisky scene in the Bedford area yet, but I'm looking to start something in the near future. If you are interested in either a whisky club in the Bedford area or Skype tasting, please contact me and check out my shelf for Skype sample swaps - it is always changing as I drink from it almost daily, and add at least one bottle to it every month!

Whisky Discovery #62

SMWS 33.115 'Man That's Braw' 11 Year Old (55.4% abv, Single Cask)
Islay Single Malt Whisky
Club bottling, not for general sale

Dram No.18 at at the Whisky Live London Show was enjoyed at the Single Malt Whisky Society Stand (SMWS). 

John McCheyne had told me to come over and say hello during the show, and when we arrived he asked me what my preference was. After telling him I was rather fond of Islay whiskies he popped back to the stand and produced this bottle for us to sample.

John told us that it was an Islay from The Ardbeg Distillery. 

The SMWS don't publicise the distillery, although it is easy to find out from a number of websites. Each distillery is given a number which is the first part of the bottle code, and the second part is the cask number, i.e. this whisky was from the 115th cask they had bottled from the 33rd distillery.

The label read 'Man That's braw!' and was distilled on 31 August 1999 and aged for 11 years in a refill ex-sherry butt , and bottled at cask strength, yeilding 578 bottles.

The bottle label read: The nose was beautifully balanced; varnish, paint, leather, light ash, coal, coarse bread, minty toffee, smoked sugar puffs and shellfish bisque against barbecued pork ribs and char sui pork fried rice. The first comment provoked by the palate was ‘Man, that’s braw!’ – sweet tar, ash, ham and pineapple pizza, leather and pipe tobacco smoke. The reduced nose was a brilliant combination of crispy seaweed, charred red peppers and meringues or spun sugar with strawberry and lemon sorbet. The palate had salty caramel, limes squeezed over oysters and sweet prawns cooked on salt – amazingly rewarding. The last distillery along the Kildalton road.

Drinking tip: While watching the sun go down near a lighthouse

No pictures taken unfortunately, and I was unable to find any photos on line either. It was a very much an Ardbeg and a cracking dram, but there wasn't any more available. You can find out more about the SMWS at their website: www.smws.co.uk

Whisky Discovery #20

Ardbeg 10 Year Old (46% abv, OB, Bottled +/- 2011 100cl)

Islay Single Malt Whisky

Circa £60

 

October's Official Dram

Another Islay single malt and their standard ‘entry level’ malt that critics have raved about. 

The stills at Ardbeg differ from others on Islay, being taller and having a curious purifier on the spirit still. Certainly this is a highly peated and complex whisky.

I bought this in Stavanger Airport on the way back from a business trip in Norway, so hence the full litre bottle.

I am an Islay fan and have other Ardbeg expressions on my wish list, and with so many great distilleries on this small West Coast Island I can’t wait to take a trip and visit them all !