Uigeadail

[EdipisReks]

long time no post. sorry if this is the upteenth thread about the Oogie, but i've finally bought a bottle. i'm a huge Ardbeg fan, in general, and when my local favorite store finally started selling it, and it was cheaper than laga 16, i had to get a bottle.

i've had plenty of very good Scotch, both old and new, and this is the finest whisk(e)y i've ever tasted. Lord of the Isles was my previous favorite, but the oogie passes it, for my tastes, due to its strength. the oogie is peaty, but balanced, smoke with sugar and honey. so... muscular. this is an absolute cracking dram. i had some Connemara and thought that i had maybe lost my ability to taste peat, but Uigeadail showed that i was incorrect, as smoke and peat hit hard and strong. at the same time, there is just this... explosion of complexity. i adore it.

Nose: Peat, Smoke, Cured Bacon, Citrus, Salt

Palate: Creamy, firm, more peat with burnt matches, more citrus, Tangerine? Salt and soot. Heather honey on the back-end, under all the sturm und drang.

Finish: A little hot, intense salt and brine, pepper and licorice. Long, crusty, yeasty bread, right at the end.

just a masterpiece. a delicate flower of a female friend of mine took one whiff before i had tasted it, and she about puked; it was a good sign of what was to come . next paycheck, i'm going to return to the liquor store and clean them out.

[Reggaeblues]

So you like it then?

Yes, people can be quite offended by, and offensive, about the smell of Ardbeg.

I once poured a glass at dinner, and my mother on the other side of the table complained at my opening a bottle
of "toilet cleaner" at the table. she reckoned "nobody could POSSIBLY like that! It's just an affectation!"

Oh well...One mutha's Ardbeg is anutha mutha's poison!

...and yes, you got me jonesing for another bottle of oogie myself. Haven't had one since christmas 2006! Meantime I'll make do with an "Almost Full" bottle of "Almost There." Another excellent Ardbeg...

[SoMK]

There is something sweet in there and it feels like something organic, alive
I tend to prefer the older bottlings, less citrussy imho but Uigeadail and Airigh Nam Beist are 2 of my absolute favs anytime !

I thought it was an acquired taste but I saw people, very new to whisky, who were eager to walk on their hands for another dram, Love at first sight !

[EdipisReks]

I once poured a glass at dinner, and my mother on the other side of the table complained at my opening a bottle
of "toilet cleaner" at the table. she reckoned "nobody could POSSIBLY like that! It's just an affectation!"

i had a girlfriend who was in the habit of snagging my glass of water at restaurants after i had only had a sip or two (she drank water like a fish while eating). eventually, i learned to take a sip of whisky, then a sip of water, because the tiny bit of whisky that would go from my lips into the glass was enough to contaminate it and she would then leave my water alone. some people just really hate whisky, i think

SoMK, how does the Airigh Nam Beist compare to the Oogie? i would really like to try it...

[randall fairbrook]

THAT DOES IT..i am going tomorrow and buying me a bottle..i have always seen it there staring at me......


oogie..you will be mine!

[Di Blasi]

It's top stuff, a great Ardbeg!

[SoMK]

Edipis > For me Airigh Nam Beist is a "Wee'beast".. Less citrus, less salt, less oily.. but very smokey, peaty, honey/cereal notes rather than sherry like the Uigeadail imho. I could easily drink this one everyday

[Spirit of Islay]

I must say that of all the Releases since the resurrection the Oogie is my least favourite , not that it's bad , just that i prefer Bourbon matured Beg . I think the First release Oogie was the best , it must have contained 1970's Sherry casked A! by the nose/taste of it ......

[EdipisReks]

the Sherry/Smoke idea is one of my favorites (it's why i love Lagavulin), and the Oogie version of it is just sublime, to me.

[randall fairbrook]

oh good sweet lord!


i just had my very first sip of this......and words are failing me..........wow wow wow wow wow.........i need to write a poem.....

[Di Blasi]

Go randall! Looking forward to reading it!

[randall fairbrook]

an ode to ardbeg uigeadail


There are places i have gone
and places i go
return to a warmth
young wet fur angling back towards the womb
a curve in her palm
a feline folded in your comfortable arm.

You are as a friend i have not met
the first of you on my lips
the oh of you blossoming in my mouth
the ghost the yes of you leaves behind.

and will return with thanks
to the white purple flower of your bite, the marine air, the romantic decomposition of earth in your mouth
your verdance, your deep love translated from cut earth
to whole gustation.

[Di Blasi]

Good work randall, you weren't joking. Maybe Ardbeg will start printing it on their Uigeadail boxes, like they did with the people's comments on the boxes of the Still Yound and Almost there.

[SoMK]

Randall

[les taylor]

Randall that is so profound.

[Willie JJ]

I too love the Uigeadail, but I lack Randall's eloquence.

I salute your talent sir.

[randall fairbrook]

thank you thangyouverymush


i hope i run across something as inspiring as that again...

[Willie JJ]

I'm having one now in search of the muse, but it is not coming.

Ah well. I'll just have to keep trying.

[vlodko]

Wow - I haven't tried it yet, but clearly this is inspirational stuff! I know and love the Ardbeg 10 year, but haven't tried any of their other expressions.

Maybe you all can help me out - I'm going to be hosting a scotch tasting night in a couple of weeks. Most of the people invited have expressed their preference for Speyside whiskies, or perhaps a Highland whisky with a touch of smoke. But I'm going to include one smoky, peaty malt - and it's almost certain to be an Ardbeg.

So here's my question - am I better off buying the Ardbeg 10 for the tasting night, and saving the Uigeadail for myself, or sharing the Uigeadail at the tasting?

I'm afraid that some of my guests won't appreciate something as powerful as the Uigeadail. On the other hand, they might not appreciate the 10 year either...

[Willie JJ]

It depends how much you like the people and how evangelical you are about your whiskies vlodko. Remember Uigeadail is not only devastatingly peaty, but also 54.2%, so if your group are inexperienced you may just put them off. My (expensive) recommendation would be to have both handy, give them the 10 and for those that respond to it try them with the Oogy. It is stunning, but it is also really powerful, so be gentle with them.

Hope the tasting goes well.

[randall fairbrook]

^ very good idea...to serve the 10 first..some will drop out and not want the oogie.....some just don't get it...


i am still swooning....

[vlodko]

It depends how much you like the people and how evangelical you are about your whiskies vlodko. Remember Uigeadail is not only devastatingly peaty, but also 54.2%, so if your group are inexperienced you may just put them off. My (expensive) recommendation would be to have both handy, give them the 10 and for those that respond to it try them with the Oogy. It is stunning, but it is also really powerful, so be gentle with them.

Hope the tasting goes well.

This sounds like a great idea! Thanks!

[Di Blasi]

I'd start them with the standard expression Ardbeg Ten, save the Uigeadail for yourself or for a future tasting with the same guests. Highland Park will also match the description you're guests are asking to taste, start them with the 12y, then they have the 18y and other expressions to look forward to!!

[EdipisReks]

yeah, i wouldn't have beginners taste the Oogie. you really have to be acclimated to the peat and smoke to enjoy it (and the high alcohol content), otherwise it would be overwhelming.

if you don't like the TEN, my guess is that you won't like the Oogie but, then again, i know a few people who don't like Ardbeg and Laphroaig, but who like Lagavulin 16, which is at least in the general area of Oogie.

[EdipisReks]

well, i've managed to screw up my Oogie. i had pulled the bottle out to give a dram to a friend, and i managed to not recork it. it's been sitting open for about 4 days. it's still drinkable, but some of essence of the whisky definitely evaporated out. i have plenty of other whiskies to drink, but i'd barely even started this bottle. stupid, stupid, stupid.

[EdipisReks]

hmm, maybe it's just my mind playing tricks on me, the alcohol content does indeed seem the same to my stomach (still very warming), and i did smoke a cigar earlier today, so maybe my taste is just off.

[Wave]

if you don't like the TEN, my guess is that you won't like the Oogie but, then again, i know a few people who don't like Ardbeg and Laphroaig, but who like Lagavulin 16, which is at least in the general area of Oogie.

I'm not a fan of the 10 either, but i like the oogie well enough (I love cask strength whiskies!). My favorite available Ardbeg is the 16yo Airigh Nam Beist.


Cheers!

[Di Blasi]

EdipisReks, I'm sure that cigar killed your palate and taste buds, and though the whisky might have been affected after being open 4 days, it might still be okay and drinkable. I left a 1st or 2nd growth Bordeaux uncorked overnight, with just hardly a glass left in the bottle, and it was fine. I'm sure whisky is much tougher than wine, especially if it's almost a full bottle. I'd continue to taste it, without cigar smoking beforehand before making a final decision on it.

[LeoDLion]

I just finish my 4th bottle of Uigeadail last weekend. The 54% abv is quite strong for me for a first dram and I put in a small ice cube. After the first dram, adding ice is not necessary. The first bottle of oogie was impressive. The peatiness comes thru very strong and I always like Ardbeg anyway. The finish is lingering and heavy. The last bottle, to me, has a slight sweetness to it which I did not like that much. I still have a airn beist (sic) that I want to try next.

[Di Blasi]

EdipisReks, I'm sure that cigar killed your palate and taste buds, and though the whisky might have been affected after being open 4 days, it might still be okay and drinkable. I left a 1st or 2nd growth Bordeaux uncorked overnight, with just hardly a glass left in the bottle, and it was fine. I'm sure whisky is much tougher than wine, especially if it's almost a full bottle. I'd continue to taste it, without cigar smoking beforehand before making a final decision on it.

I leave red wine open for a minimum of two days before even thinking of drinking it, if I possibly can.
4 days is better.
It mellows and rounds out tremendously.

It of course depends on the wine Collector57, but you've got the cork in it I'm assuming? The wine I mentioned had no closure whatsoever, it remained exposed to air about 18 hours or so.

[LeoDLion]

did you find any other differences between the bottles? how similar were they?

The last two bottle of oogie I find kind of sweeter than the first two. I bought them 2 months apart. I am not sure if its my palate or taste that changed.

[EdipisReks]

thanks guys, i'll keep sampling over the next few days.

[EdipisReks]

well, i put the open bottle to the definitive test, as i bought another bottle of Oogie (from the same store batch, so shouldn't be too far off, bottling date wise), and compared them. the Oogie that was opened for several days was actually better! more robust, smokier. maybe oxidation is a good thing, for some whiskies! alcohol content seems to be the same in both, too (i bit my tongue yesterday, and anything i drink over 40 proof really reminds me, and the sting from both was identical). i haven't smoked a cigar in days, so i think my palate and nose are sufficiently fresh now, so i guess it was just a combination of tobacco and anxiety that made me think the bottle was ruined.

[TheTross]

It could just be me, but I find Oogie to be incredibly rubbery! Prompted by this thread, I'm currently revisiting it after a long hiatus, and it's still the most rubbery malt I think I've ever had. I also get a certain amount of peppered fish amongst the hugely peaty and briny character. It's certainly a powerful whisky, and definitely one of my favourites because of it - and I'd rate it above the Ten without hesitation. Not that the Ten is a bad whisky, of course, but simply because the Oogie is in a different league for me.

[woodhill]

It could just be me, but I find Oogie to be incredibly rubbery! Prompted by this thread, I'm currently revisiting it after a long hiatus, and it's still the most rubbery malt I think I've ever had. I also get a certain amount of peppered fish amongst the hugely peaty and briny character. It's certainly a powerful whisky, and definitely one of my favourites because of it - and I'd rate it above the Ten without hesitation. Not that the Ten is a bad whisky, of course, but simply because the Oogie is in a different league for me.

Tross! Hey Where have you been?