Ardbeg Traigh Bhan 19 Year Batch 2 (2020)

Nose: Lime, meyer lemon, orange oil. Sweet pineapple. Iodine and brine - you really get a sense for 19 years of sea spray. Black pepper, wintergreen, fennel. Peat is absolutely evident, with a little ash still floating around. For as mature as this is, it retains plenty of brightness and vibrance and doesn't come off as "heavy" in the nose, though it's still rich. Pine resin, grilled meats and vegetables. Herbs - thyme, bay leaf, basil. Camphor. Subtle nuttiness, like parmesan cheese, with a hint of musty funk/butyric acid-like quality. Fresh cut grass, seaweed. Cumin, smoked paprika, ground coriander. Leather and wet hay. This is close to what I imagine when I close my eyes and think about what an ideal Ardbeg nose might be. Palate: Peat and ash alongside iodine and brine, followed by mint, orange, and cream. The interplay between vanilla and brown sugar from the bourbon cask and the dark fruits and nuttiness of the sherry cask is excellent. Oak character is present, with plenty of tannin in taste and texture, but not overbearing. Well-worn leather. The bright lime and lemon character is still here and keeps things vibrant and dynamic without taking away from the denser, richer characteristics. Thyme and basil, along with grilled fennel. Beautifully cohesive. White pepper, ground chipotle. Nutmeg and clove. Smoked meats and cheeses. Bitter chocolate. I'm imagining walking into a classic library/office with dusty books, big leather chairs, oak shelves, and cigar/pipe smoke in the air. THis is excellently balanced. Medium mouthfeel. Finish: A rush of brine, peat, ash, wintergreen. Lime zest and cream come forward, with a little seaweed and fresh cut grass. Things slowly shift into hot chocolate made using milk, complete with marshmallows, and extra vanilla. Slowly turns into mexican hot chocolate and espresso. The lime comes back and things fade out on chili chocolate, lime, peat, subtle ash, mint... there's a lot going on here. Quite a long, complex finish. Other notes: This is a beautiful expression. Many reviewers who know much better than I do have mentioned that this retains a lot of vibrance for being so heavily aged, and they'e totally right. Instead, the age presents both in the cohesive flavors and smells, as well as in the larger than usual cask impact, with the bourbon and sherry coming through more than usual. There's more just sheer oak presence, as well. You could spend hours exploring this one - adding water helps bring out some beautiful floral characteristics, with sweet roses and orange blossoms. Candied apples, too. If you get a chance to have a glass of this and aren't sure, do it. If you have a chance to grab a bottle and aren't sure, do it. The price tag might be offputting, but if you're a fan of Islay and well-aged spirit, this won't disappoint. I hope I'm lucky enough to always have a bottle of Traigh Bhan in my cabinet, and this year's expression illustrates exactly why.

Another year another Ardbeg 19 year. Lets jump in and we'll get to house keeping at the end. Nose - classic ardbeg smoke and peat. Light sweetness from candied cigars I so often get on islay. There's lemon lime fruit, some raisins, and a sweet decadent sherry. All this with some vanilla notes floating around. I think of this has smoke meets citrus and spice. It's like being on a beach with a pig roast and you're drinking some kinda of fruity cocktail in the sun. Taste - the citrus lemon lime is all over this one up front, really reminds me of the 10 turned up to 100. I've said that about the batch one but this is WAY more obvious. Up front there's a good bit of ardbeg salt and peat, then as it fades to the middle part of the experience smoke billows up, and the finish is old oak casks that bring with it some oak spice and then just a damn good oak profile. The finish is very long and really deep and rich. I'm actually pretty impressed. VS last years you say? Nose - instantly last years is darker, richer, and frankly no fruity. They make notes of chocolate and chill on the 2019 and while I never really went there, next to the 2020's lemon lime notes, yeah I can see chocolate here. The 2019 brings with it more spice up front, more of a chocolate oloroso note for sure, but the finish is significantly less impressive. I also get more menthol on the 2019. The 2020 is distinctly different so anyone thinking having had last year's means you've had this years should think again. I do like the upfront flavor profile on the 2019 better, but finish and even mouth feel on the 2020 seems to be a step above, perhaps two steps above on the finish. Now I did find the 2019 opened up a lot over time and the lemon lime did fade a bit for me but was still there even in my recent review I did with Mike over on his youtube channel (video might not be up for a few weeks). So I am a bit interested in if this one expands and changes as much as last year's has done so far in the bottle. I think I was too generous with the 4.0 last year on the 19 and I'm correcting it here with a 3.5 on this one and will be adjusted the old one to a 3.5 as well. Gun to head I think I like the 2020 better and I do believe the 2019 got better with time so this might be move to a 3.75 with some time. So retail in the US will be at least 300 again and I got this in the UK for about 215 + 20-30 in shipping. And easy buy 2 at the 240 all in price point. A difficult recommendation if you're looking at 320+ after tax in the US. But if you're an ardbeg fan, this delivers and it isn't crap like Drum and the Blaaack were.

"Traigh bhan" is the gaelic term for "white sands that sing beneath your feet". That is a magical way to start this review of a 19yo Ardbeg, something that is very luxurious on this day and age, where 5yo Ardbegs are as expensive as any other 12yo whisky. Traigh Bhan is actaully pronounced "tri-van" and it is the beach located next to the distillery. This is my review from the Batch No. 2, bottled at 46.2%abv, with a pale straw color. On the nose, a very complex and fun Ardbeg. Swamp, Merthiolate and pineapple. Wood polisher, pharmacy and gooseberries. The second aroma was wonderful:  coconut dessert, vanilla Ice cream, smoke and a horse sadle. On the palate it is very simple, but also it is fantastic. It has this out of this world flavor of coconut milk, grated coconut and vanilla. Sawdust. In Ecuador there is a very cheap handcrafted brand of ice creams called "Ideal", it is exactly like that. Grandma's drawers (you know exactly that note). Aftertaste follows the same profile. Grated coconut, sawdust, mild smoke and soap. Overall, this one was simple but awesome. I get that sometimes older single malts tend to be easy drinkable and sometimes boring, because most of the times they are intended to big pockets who don't necessarily know a lot about whisky. This is not entirely the case, because even if it is not very complex, and it is a little straightforward, this is very well crafted, it is just delicious. I can also see some hardcore Ardbeg fans hating it due to a lack of power or heavy smoke. For me, it was great and my score for it is a well deserved 94 over 100.

(WoodWinters Glenmorangie/Ardbeg Online Zoom tasting, 9th December 2020. Hosted by Brendan McCarron, Head of Maturing Whisky Stocks at Glenmorangie). Nose: Charcoal. Salt/brine. Sweet black tea. Palate: More of the salt, but with a good hit of medicinal iodine/TCP and some aniseed. There is some BBQ smoke, but less meaty than a 10y/o. There's some lime and more of the black tea that was hinted at on the nose. Finish: Tobacco, smokey. Tannic and woody. More of the campfire and saltiness. There is an odd, welcome sweetness at the finish, it's not the most obvious note, but it is definitely there at the finish. This is a fantastic dram. There is a drying mouthfeel with a long (almost dusty) finish, so it could never be a session whisky, but well worth the occasional dram.

Nose: burned out campfire, peat, dirt, sweetness, honey Taste: salty, sea brine, rubber and sweetness, the burned campfire is there, hiding the sweetness, that comes as the ash disappears. Sweetness is an orange or tangerine flavor I think. Finish: medium finish, dries as it fades This whisky is very drinkable and delicious. It’s complex enough to keep you occupied. Really enjoying this bottle, almost wish it wasn’t so easy to drink since it is disappearing faster than I would like.

Nose: overall subtle and nuanced profile. Peat and clean wood smoke. Trace of crisp sweet green apple. Hints of spices like cardamom and cinnamon with pepper. Aged leather and tobacco. Palate: light bodied but smooth velvety texture. Peat and smoke forward Finish: peat and smoke linger forever. Black pepper forward but subsides. Saline. Late hints of spices from the nose. Overall, wow. Complex and beautifully put together.