Ardbeg Twenty Something 22 Year

This is one of those epic moments in my whisky journey. A single malt that has been a little elusive has finally fallen into my hands, i am talking about the 22yo Ardbeg "Twenty Something". I could only find this legendary dram at an Ardbeg Embassy, in Edinburgh, where some pretty rare bottles were displayed for a humble man to choose. Bottled at 46.4%abv, only 2400 bottles were ever made. On the nose, it was pretty nice. A bbq meat with herbs and worcestershire sauce. Big herbal feeling. A mossy, wet bank. Dim smoke appeared after a while. Very aromatic, but not too complex. On the palate, it started with a crazy weird spongy mossy water. Gooseberries and lemon. Muddy peatiness and some ginger. The second sip gave me a marshmallow note; feels weak rather than elegant.the third sip confirmed to be sweet and sugary. It has a tamed Ardbeg spirit, it is there but in a ghostly way. Aftertaste was dry and not too long. Moss, dim saltiness. On the second sip it became a lot better. Red chilli, pepper, salty; almost lip scorching. It needs more power. Overall, this is not a bad dram at all, but it is also not nearly as good as you dream it to be. This is another proof that younger Ardbeg expressions are far superior than the older ones. My honest score for it is 87 over 100.

OK here we go. My buddy Mike recently reviewed this bottle and he liked it a good bit more than when I first opened it. Well, lets see how this does now that is has been open a solid 8-9 months. Nose - Menthol, salt, brine, tiny tiny touch of citrus, vanilla, and there is a bit of a bready character at the end. I keep looking for more oak but nothing here. Taste - Lemon lime, vanilla, and menthol / smoke. Chocolate, tobacco and as it finishes a bit of meat and roasted nuts. Water adds a bit of a metallic note but it also brings out a bit of a bitter note at the end and actually adds more "ummf" to the mid pallet. Finish - when I have to talk about finish, you know I'm getting into a great whisky. This thing just keep finishing, it lasts forever with the smoke and a bit of a bite just holding on to you. It's absolutely the best part of the whisky. It is NOT worth 500 dollars, no way in the world is it worth that, but this is special whisky. I'll miss it once it is gone, but it's a bit soft and lacks the mouth feel and the power that cask strength could have done to it. With that, this would be a 5 star whisky but without it, I'm wanting more and I really shouldn't want more on a 500 dollar whisky.

Peat, fresh-cut oak, new rubber, and brine are some of the well-balanced aromas. This dram has a very dry mouth feel with notes of sweet tobacco, tar, rubber, smoke, and a whole lot of brine.

The extra years in the barrel make this a very well-rounded yet complex version of younger expressions, with flavors of salted soft pretzels, dried autumn flowers and fresh Brie.

first fill bourbon barrels from before distillery shut down - soft vanilla and seashell nose, sweet caramel and nutmeg and seaweed elegant palate, long peaty finish

Creamy, citrus fruits - lemon curd? Key lime coolers? Constant undercurrent of smoke tying it all together. Milky, creamy finish