Ardnamurchan AD/09.20:01

It’s 2020. It’s December. Let’s shut this year down with a brand new whiskey (or whisky) every day. It’s my own personal whiskey advent calendar. +7! Dec. 30, 2020 This is the first time I have tried to understand a non-Speyside regionally, though I’ve seen other people do this before. My current impression is that the Highlands are my jam, with Loch Lomond, Compass Box (Spice Tree), and Highland Park being three solid new discoveries for me this December. And I understand the caveats that go into calling Compass Box a highland scotch, but the argument could be made. So I’m going to attempt to nail down expectations for this one. I’ll start small, since I’m still learning here. I’m going to assume low peat, juiciness, some sort of citrus, and an oily, sweet mouth feel. This is my final sample from the very generous @PBMichiganWolverine and so one more big thank you for the many experiences you’ve given me this December. Nose is low burn, but also low in scent. I honestly don’t get a lot. Oats, bran cereal, and a very low smoked meat note with some effort. Body starts off subtly, then builds. Holy cow that’s fascinating. Notes are orange and sugar initially, but there’s a sharp turn mid-body toward bitterness. I’m not sure what I’d call that note. On a bourbon I might call it leather, but it’s different here. I’m going to go with (don’t judge me) the taste of dried sweat on skin. I said don’t judge me. Finish has some smoked meat on it, maple syrup, baking powder, black pepper, baked bread, cinnamon. It’s a punch on your taste buds, and I dig it. I need to say something about the mouth feel of this whisky, because it damn near knocked me out of my chair a second ago. I often like a mouth feel that comes at you like a sine wave, where as the drink develops on your tongue you have changes in texture, you have rise and fall of how you experience the flavors, and you have some wrap-up of all those things that makes the drink feel complex and dynamic. This is not that. Even if you wrap in the nose, this experience starts like a volume dial at 1 that gradually cranks up to 11 by the finish. There’s a reason I got few notes in the beginning and a boatload at the end, and it was because of that ever-increasing intensity of experience. That first sip I thought my head might explode. I don’t know what that is or how they accomplished it, but I really don’t remember having that specific experience before. The flavors were all good, and perhaps with more of it I could have figured out more, but the first few sips were pure survival mode. I both liked it and was confused by it. I think this makes sense as a manifestation of my very fuzzy understanding of “highland scotch.” I was kind of off on the juicy/sweet bits, but the rest of it tasted like what I was thinking. I maintain that the highlands are my jam! ‘Tis the season. I’m day-to-day on my whiskey selection, so if you’re reading this and there’s something readily available out there you’d like me to enjoy/suffer through this holiday season, leave it in the comments. Merry whiskey to all, and to all a beer flight!

Ardnamurchan AD bottlings sell for around $65 Now that I can’t buy Springbank 10 for less than $100, I’m thinking these no-age statement Ardnamurchan vattings of various casks are the best single malts you can buy at this crowded $50-75 price point… maybe Port Charlotte 10 is up there as well, but, Good Lord, an old-school full-flavored entry level single malt is hard to come by these days. I’ve gone through two bottles of Ardnamurchan AD, and I did not record the actual bottling dates, but the two bottles were from different releases, and they did not taste noticeably different. These whiskies are exquisitely balanced blends that give you the full Scotch experience with a noticeable touch of peat and oiliness bolstering a wide variety of notes: umami, pepper, citrus, grass, tobacco, and toffee. A beginner will still find this potable, but an experienced Scotch enthusiast would be quite mesmerized by this, especially if it is a blind pour. The blending skill evokes Compass Box, but because this is all from one distillery, it is of course a single malt. This is the pinnacle of the newer distilleries from Scotland and is an illustration of how you start building a reputation with young stock: meticulous blending and fair pricing. There is no better version of this flavor profile on the shelves that I’ve tried – no more expensive bottle that I could recommend as a “if you like this style, buy want to spend a little more for something similar but better” because there is nothing similar. The old-school bottling that this old-school whisky reminds me the most of is an extinct expression, Ardmore Traditional Cask, a gem of a whisky that I used to pick up for less than $40. Memories.

I did something recently which probably makes flippers and collectors dumb-founded. I opened a hard to get inaugural release. Well, first thing is first, before we actually get to this whisky: we have to deal with the 800lb gorilla in the room. That is the sheer silliness of 3yr old first releases getting bought by collectors at prices 3-5x over its entry. Look at the recent Mc’Nean. On the shelf for a whole 1 minute at $50, then flipped the next auction for $200. Then there’s the first few releases of Waterford. Ratheadon, Ballyclavan and Bannow were $60, but flipped for $400-500. This is another one as such—-bought for $50, but now in the secondaries for $300. A 3yr old should barely be $50, not in the same playing field as well established 20+ yr olds. Anyway, enough of my rant...will get off my soapbox. So, this is the newest Highlander, owned and operated by Adelphi. Their claim to fame is the use of blockchain technology to track everything from crop to buyer. Can’t help but applaud them for using state of the art technology. That’s all good...but how’s the liquid? Well...it’s decent. Herbal and briny on the nose. I had to look up whether this was an Islander or not. Acts like an Islander, but it’s a Highland. Oak, spice, driftwood on the palette. Really feels like it’s an Islander...it’s as if Talisker would be at 3 yr and no peat. Just brine, driftwood and oak. I want to say “this is a great start for a 3 yr old”, and it is. At $50, yeah it’s worth it. But don’t pay a penny over it. Sadly, this 3yr old sold out in minutes, only to show up in secondaries for multiples of that price.

(Good Spirits Co. Glasgow – Ardnamurchan Virtual Whisky Tasting, 05 November 2020). Nose: Honey, vanilla, brine. Very light smoke. Palate: Summer fruits, subtle peat smoke, honey, brine/salt, marzipan. Slightly 'hot' but not distractingly so. Finish: Tannic, plum & dark fruit, leather. Lingering salty peat right at the end. There is a rich, waxy mouthfeel. A good amount of complexity for it's age. This comes across as a well made dram. I'll be interested to see what they are producing with a few more years on the spirit. Bottling date: 09/20 Batch: 01 (Only batch of 2020) 16,000 bottles worldwide (2,000 in the UK allocation) Made-up of 53 casks. 65% bourbon, 35% sherry. 50/50 split peated and unpeated This would be a 5y/o if it had an age statement, with the oldest spirit in the batch being 6y/o (which is the oldest spirit made by Ardnamurchan). Came last of the six whiskies, with 0% of the final vote for favourite of the night. (78% of those present said they enjoyed the whisky). Suffered from being the first of the evening and possibly the least remarkable, but that shouldn't diminish the fact that this is an excellent young whisky.

Greed knows no bounds, and bottle flippers are an annoyance for every whisky drinker when it comes to inaugural releases. At 5 years of age, the nose of this Ardnamurchan has a lot to offer. Stone fruits, thyme and whiffs of smoke mingle with brine, juniper and muesli. On the palate, peat smoke and spices arrive hand in hand, followed by raspberries, peppermint and distinct sherry notes. It is surprisingly complex and quite oily. Dark chocolate, wood smoke and minty freshness migrate into the mineral and mildly bitter finish. A malt to sip, not to flip! RATING: 3.7/5.0 stars ≙ 85 pts → ABOVE AVERAGE [+]

C’est bon ça! Nouvelle distillerie qui commence à être disponible à la SAQ. Bien tourbé et équilibré, avec un peu d’agrumes vers la fin. Finale moyennement longue. Dans le même style que la série “noire” de ancNoc. Très hâte de voir ce qu’ils vont sortir dans l’avenir, avec des mentions d’âge plus vieille (celui-ci est probablement assez jeune). Bouteille ouverte en 2023-08.