One way to attract some readers to your blog, is to talk about this stuff.... ARDBEG!!! Some whisky lovers out there, love Ardbeg so much, that they completely dedicate their entire whisky collection to this one distillery. Over the years, Ardbeg has gained a cult following thanks to their world class whisky ( maybe some clever marketing and a little hype along the way too). Collectors are currently spending thousands upon thousands of dollars at auctions, just to get their hands on rare vintage bottlings. Right now in the whisky world, Ardbeg is about as hip and trendy a whisky distillery can be.... they've become whisky's equivalent to Patron tequila. Full marks to them though, because things weren't always so rosy for this Islay renaissance. The distillery was established way back in 1815, but for most of it's history, Ardbeg produced whisky for use in blends. Production over the years eventually slowed down, and Ardbeg was forced to close it's doors in 1981. That is, until they reopened in 1991 when another well known distillery, Glenmorangie purchased it, believing that there was the possibility of some kind of revival in the cards for the old lady. Full production resumed in 1998, and since then, Ardbeg has been steam rolling in popularity at a pace i'm sure they couldn't have even expected.
Right now, Ardbeg offers many popular bottlings such as "Supernova" / "Blasda" / "Corryvrecken" / "Uigeadal"/ "Rollercoaster" and finally " Ten". This ten year old peated whisky truly is a great one, and it's such a shame, there is such a shortage of Ardbeg when it comes to liquor stores here in Ontario Canada.
Even when you find that ever elusive bottle of "TEN" (the only bottling available in Ontario), it's going to cost you just under $100! I find it hard to believe that one of the largest alcohol buyers in the world ( the liquor control board of Ontario) (LCBO), couldn't do a little better on the price, considering the rest of the world is getting the same whisky (while offering more variety of bottlings) for on average 25% cheaper.
I promised myself I wouldn't rant about the LCBO, so I'll just continue, and give the people what they want..... a review on the ever popular, ever so sexy, Ardbeg 10. By the way, don't be shy.... post some comments on the blog of your Ardbeg 10 tasting as well.
Appearance: Very pale honey colour
Body: Medium - Full bodied / nice oily legs
Nose: Uhhh..... Peat and more peat / Warm smoke / Pepper / Medicinal
Palate: Smokey Peat / Burning wood / Sea salt / Freshly cut grass
8.5/10
This is the whisky I automatically think of when I hear Islay. Ardbeg 10
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