Ardbeg Wee Beastie - 5 y/o - 47,4%
Photo taken somewhere in Stuttgart
Wee Beastie. Alright. Ardbeg and their names, that's a different kettle of fish. This new youngster comes with a confident age statement and proper abv and will become part of the core range as an entry-level malt. Let's release the monster out of the cage.
Nose
It seems, the monster is pretty shy at the beginning, and very herbal. We get laurels, thyme, dill, everything pickeled in seawater. Almost fresh and kind of elegant (if such attributes exist within the Ardbeg vocabulary). In the same time there is this distinctive "ardbeggian" muck, leather and wet hay note we love so much. After a while some drops of walnut oil and a gentle whiff of lavender show up.
Palate
Hell yes, now it's roaring! Tons of black and white pepper are thuding on the tongue, accompanied by an unbelievable honey sweetness that is coating your whole mouth. It's super oily and heavy. The dominant flavours are aniseed, yellow grapefruit and ashes. It's hard to beat Ardbeg's new make.
Finish
Really long, with a distinct bitterness, all on lemons, grapefruits and iodine, plus one more load of lemons. Due to the assumption that it was matured in rather inactive oak (see bright colour), the intensity of the finish must come from the distillate. Always a good sign in our book.
Rating
This whisky is not an ugly monster, rather a Hannibal Lecter, who ensnares you with his civility and sophistication, and hits you hard when you're lulled and relaxed. Seriously, an entertaining and fantastic dram, actually the best five year old we had for a very long time. Sure, it could have more complexity and balance, but within this price segment it easily beats plenty of newish youngsters (that are even more expensive). Let's talk about the term "entry-level malt" again...
