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Brands and Distilleries : Ardbeg

Issue 101 Out Now

Whisky Magazine Issue 101

Whisky families, Mackmyra, Buffalo Trace, A drinker's guide to London and much more...

 

Ardbeg

Whisky Magazine - Editors Choice - Winner

Ardbeg 10 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00%
8 Not from a particularly peaty period, but packed with Ardbeg's other flavours. Wonderfully distinctive.

Ardbeg 10 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00%
4 The same phenolic profile as in very young but more disciplined and rounder.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg 17 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00%
8 Not the most muscular Ardbeg, but still robust.

Ardbeg 1975
Single Malt - Scotland - 58.10%
4 Ardbeg is one of my great favourites, and this is one of the best versions I have tasted recently.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg 1976, Distillery Manager's Choice
Single Malt - Scotland - 56.00%
9 Real Ardbeg peatiness and smokiness.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg 1976, Single Cask Committee bottling
Single Malt - Scotland - 51.00%
8 A 'no bones about it' Islay whisky, and a fine example of Ardbeg.

Whisky Magazine - Editors Choice - Winner

Ardbeg 1977
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00%
9 Cleaner, more lemony and oily, and less assertive, than the 24 Years Old duty free edition.

Ardbeg 1980 Kildalton
Single Malt - Scotland - 57.60%
7 Where's the peat-smoke? Not very Islay.

Ardbeg 6 Years Old, Committee Bottling
Single Malt - Scotland - 58.90%
8 I like young Islays, but this hyperactive whisky is just too frisky. The flavours need time to meld. Even with those shortcomings, it is an Ardbeg…

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg Airigh Nam Beist 1990 16 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00%
8 A welcome addition to the range.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg Alligator
Single Malt - Scotland - 51.20%
8 A big islander, well structured and well balanced. Just a dash of water is enough to enhance the flavours.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg Almost There
Single Malt - Scotland - 54.00%
8 This is seamless stuff and despite the smokiness is unshowy. Only 9 Years Old? Great things are on their way.

Ardbeg Blasda 10 Year Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00%
7 A delicate and rather charming afternoon (or 4am) dram. Will cause a stooshie though!

World Whiskies Awards 2010 - World's Best Single Malt Whisky - Winner

Ardbeg Corryvreckan
Single Malt - Scotland - 57.10%
0

Ardbeg Lord of the Isles
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00%
3 The less phenolic of all the Ardbeg tasted in this session. Merging with oak, phenols have developed an enticing and original bouquet.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg Lord of the Isles, 25 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00%
8 Lots of flavour development, complexity and refinement. Very elegant, but where is the clamour of battle?

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg Lord of the Isles, 25 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 46.00%
8 Becomes more complex with age. I admire its style, but hanker for the bravado of the younger Ardbegs.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg Oloroso Finish, Cask 4704
Single Malt - Scotland - 47.20%
8 Nothing too elaborate here. Good honest Islay whisky. Have this with breakfast and you will live forever, or feel that way.

Whisky Magazine - Editors Choice - Winner

Ardbeg Provenance, 1974, 24 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.60%
9 Rich and creamy, with huge flavour development.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Ardbeg Rennaissance
Single Malt - Scotland - 55.90%
8 Everything here has been reduced to elemental levels. A nice circle completed.

Whisky Magazine - Editors Choice - Winner

Ardbeg Uigeadail
Single Malt - Scotland - 54.20%
8 The elemental opposite of the sophisticated Lord of the Isles.

Ardbeg Very Young
Single Malt - Scotland - 58.30%
4 great interplay of sweet and dry flavours. More phenolic at start, smoke is more integrated than in Bowmore or Caol Ila.

Whisky Magazine - Editors Choice - Winner

Connoisseur's Choice Ardbeg 1974
Single Malt - Scotland - 43.00%
8 Less boisterous than The Young One. The calm of maturity permits all the nuances to be experienced.

Connoisseur's Choice Ardbeg 1990
Single Malt - Scotland - 40.00%
8 The palate seemed almost disappointingly cosy, but the wildness of Islay was recalled in the finish.

Whisky Magazine - Editors Choice - Winner

Douglas Laing Ardbeg 1992 12 Years Old, Rum Finish, Park Avenue Liquors
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00%
8 With smoked salmon and a squeeze of lemon.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Old Malt Cask Ardbeg 15 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00%
8 Too chimney-like for me. Lacks the balance between sweetness and dryness you need in such a peaty dram.

Old Malt Cask Ardbeg 24 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 50.00%
8 Full of flavour and complexity, but less challenging than some Ardbegs. More peaty than the bottling reviewed among new releases. Some woodiness.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Old Malt Cask Ardbeg 28 Years Old, The Ardbeggeddon 1972, Sherry Cask
Single Malt - Scotland - 48.40%
8 One of the best Ardbegs I have ever tasted. Full range of the distillery's typical flavours, lyrically combined.

Whisky Magazine - Recommended - Winner

Scotch Malt Whisky Society 33.70 Ardbeg Keith Richards meets Socrates 1998 10 Years Old
Single Malt - Scotland - 57.30%
7 An effusively phenolic smouldering hulk. Recommended.

Scotland's Tallest Still
Scotland's tallest whisky still has been winched into place at The Glenmorangie Company's famous distillery in Tain,Ross-shire. The five-metre-tall,swan-necked copper still is the last of four new st...

January 2009, Issue 77, page 7

The ultimate dinner
Andrew Derbidge pulls up a seat at a very prestigious Ardbeg meal

September 2007, Issue 66, page 17

Island odyssey
Jonny McCormickreports on Isly's growing dominance

April 2011, Issue 95, page 96

Ask the expert
A few months ago we started the renovation of an old house that we bought some time ago. In the basement we found a wooden box with several old bottles of whisky. I made a phone call to a whisky and ...

December 2007, Issue 68, page 35

It's Islay Time
Jonny McCormick examines how a clutch of Feis Ilé bottlings fared at auction.

June 2010, Issue 88, page 74

The big distiller
in the Scotch whisky 'mainstream' nobody has more respected reputation for innovation than Dr Bill Lumsden, head of distilling & whisky creation for Glenmorangie plc; owner of the Glenmorangie and Ard...

April 2011, Issue 95, page 14

Ask the expert
John Rose answers another selection of our readers' letters

November 2006, Issue 60, page 33

Record breakers
Marcin Miller particpates in setting a whisky record in Sweden's beautiful capital Stockholm

February 2002, Issue 21, page 13

Rennaissance Dram
It's more than ten years since Ardbeg ended a period of stop-start production and went back on stream properly. And as Dominic Roskrow reports, it's going from strength to strength.

September 2008, Issue 74, page 42

There's something about Mary
If you visit Islay you have to try the cooking of Mary McKecknie and the outstanding visitor centre at Ardbeg Distillery. Richard Jones reports

January 2006, Issue 53, page 44

War on whisky fakers
http://www.whiskyfun.com/war.html Having been duped, he began to dig a little deeper. On e-Bay he discovered a faker's paradise where you can buy old bottles, old labels, even capsules and empty cart...

February 2008, Issue 70, page 9

Ardbeg for more!
Martine Nouet reminisces about a trip to Islay and the culinary delights she found there, in the surprising shape of the old kiln cafe and Ardbeg distillery

February 2002, Issue 21, page 62

Tarry rope and smoked fish
Might the revival of Ardbeg one day lead to the release of a new 10-year old? If so, would it be like the Ardbeg of old? Neil Wilson looks at the ups and downs of a legend

June 1999, Issue 4, page 18

Up and up
Jonny McCormick on a record breaking month

January 2011, Issue 93, page 74

Feet firmly on the ground (Mary O'Shea - Heathrow)
In the latest in his series, Richard Jones talks to Mary O'Shea, who is a whisky consultant at Heathrow Airport

November 2004, Issue 44, page 55

Consultancy or scam?
Jim Murray, spurred by a reader's letter, considers alleged conflicts of interest

June 1999, Issue 4, page 9

Where next for peat?
Peaty whisky has been enjoying a long spell in the limelight.But are there new territories to explore? Ian Wisniewski reports

April 2006, Issue 55, page 22

Bigger in Japan
Tokyo was host ot Whisky Live Japan 2001-and Marcin Miller was there to report on the festivities

February 2002, Issue 21, page 14

Coming on song
Dominic Roskrow looks at four distilleries that have recently passed a big milestone.

June 2009, Issue 80, page 14

Feis Ile 2011
The 2011 Feis Ile proved to be another huge success, with the distilleries yet again upping their game, all in the name of fun, frivolity and peated whisky. The sideways rain, which hit early on the f...

July 2011, Issue 97, page 7

Stepping up
William C. Meyers was one of three writers tasked with updating Michael Jackson's Malt Whisky Companion for a sixth edition. So who is he?

June 2010, Issue 88, page 35

World of whisky
Pictures from The Whisky Fair, Limburg, Germany

July 2005, Issue 49, page 82

spy
Fit for heroes Former Secretary General of NATO, Lord Robertson, returned recently to his home island of Islay and the Ardbeg Distillery to receive a special bottling of Ardbeg on behalf of the ex-Se...

July 2010, Issue 89, page 6

The finished article?
Ed Bates is a freelance whisky writer, taster and industry commentator. He has worked for various spirit companie including independent bottlers Berry Bros & Rudd

December 2010, Issue 92, page 13

On Islay every day's a festival
The Islay festival starts on May 27th. We decided to host a pre-festival dinner on the island and invited all the distilleries. Dominic Roskrow reports

April 2005, Issue 47, page 30

A week in paradise
The Islay Festival is the highlight of the Scotch whisky year. Martine Nouet looks ahead to this year's activities

May 2004, Issue 39, page 36

The 21st Century's 100 Greatest Bottles
Jonny McCormick looks at the top 100 single malt whisky bottles auctioned this century

December 2011, Issue 100, page 24

The Miller's Tale
The Islay-Jura ferry wasn't working.

September 2003, Issue 33, page 5

The Laddie and the Geiko
Michael Jackson on his own whisky trail, re-orients himself

February 2002, Issue 21, page 7

The real Islay spirit
Brian Palmer, whisky Magazine's first ever tee-total contributor, reveals the Ileach view of Islay's famed annual whisky celebration

August 2002, Issue 25, page 82

The blog boys
Dominic Roskrow meets the brains behind the Edinburgh Blog.

January 2010, Issue 85, page 32

Scotch whisky Big in Japan
Marcin Miller captures the spirit of the Far East, where Scotch malt whisky is revered and there is no indigenous whisky publication to indulge the passion of the many Japanese Malt enthusiasts

February 2001, Issue 14, page 58

Time to raise its game (Glen Moray)
Glen Moray is Glenmorangie's third distillery and is somewhat forgotten,lying as it does in the shadow of Tain's finest and the wonderful Ardbeg.But is it underrated? The mystery visitor had a look…

November 2005, Issue 52, page 30

Island delights
The Ardbeg candelight dinner is becoming an institution. Martine Nouet, who is at the event's core, reports on this year's event

July 2006, Issue 57, page 42

New Classics
The autumn is always an exciting time for whisky collectors and connoisseurs. There are generally a number of exciting limited edition releases,targeted at the gift market,and this year is no exceptio...

November 2006, Issue 60, page 18

Women of High Spirits
Some of the best whisky makers and blenders are women. Charles Cowdrey met some of them at a special roadshow.

March 2005, Issue 46, page 66

Can the price be right?
In this issue we wanted to look act the effect of discounting. Who better qualified to pass comment than drinkers themselves. So we put two questions to members of the WhiskyMag.com forum about how th...

March 2007, Issue 62, page 16

Miles of Isles
What better way to visit the distilleries on Islay and Jura than on foot? Dominic Roskrow and a Whisky Magazine team have done just that

April 2006, Issue 55, page 18

Marriages made in Hebrides
It's easy to spice up your food offering with whisky. Here Martine Nouet uses Islay and Jura to pep up her menu

June 2004, Issue 40, page 58

Join the debate
email the team editorial@whiskymag.com

December 2010, Issue 92, page 70

A question of choice
Michael Jacksonponders the age old question of what's your favourite

August 2006, Issue 58, page 11

Tokyo does it the Speyside Way (The Speyside Way)
Taylor Smisson claims that Scotland doesn't have the monopoly on world-class Scotch malt whisky bars and visits Tokyo's The Speyside Way bar to prove his point

November 2001, Issue 19, page 28

Amanti del whisky di qualita
Tom Bruce-Gardyne investigates the success of an Italian club for whisky-lovers: the Single Malt Club of Scotland

June 2003, Issue 31, page 54

You what?
Our Mystery Visitor thinks he has been unmasked so he's taking a break. Here he recalls some of the stranger moments from distillery tours

March 2006, Issue 54, page 36

Young at heart
It's a fallacy to state that the older the whisky, the better it is. Young malts can have their own attractions. Ian Wisniewski reports

January 2005, Issue 45, page 56

Join the debate
First of all may I say what a great read Whisky Magazine is. I look forward to it landing on the doorstep every month. Having visited Scotland a few times along with going on the usual distillery to...

January 1970, Issue 84, page 74

A book with a central Flaws
Guttered is a decadent and bawdy drinking romp. Perfect terrain for Jefferson Chase, then

June 2004, Issue 40, page 37

Literary Spirit (Iain Banks)
Top author Iain Banks couldn't believe his luck when he was asked to write a book on Scotland's distilleries. He tells Dominic Roskrow about his year drinking whisky.

November 2003, Issue 35, page 32

Life beyond Lagavulin
Michael Jackson refutes the belief that new devotees of whisky want blandness in thei drams

January 1999, Issue 1, page 7

In a Word...
Just exactly how doyou pronounce the name of that whisky you're so keen on? Pip Hills guides you through some Gaelic, Scots and Nordic basics

April 2003, Issue 30, page 30

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