Malt Mission 2007 #70

Ardbeg 1975
Single Cask Single Malt Whisky
Sherry cask #1375
54.2% abv
£399

What a way to celebrate the end of week 14(!!!), my 70th Malt Mission. Who the heck knew this would still be going? Many thanks to all of you for reading, linking, sharing, etc.

Ardbeg has really become a whisky for collectors and don't you try to deny it. No one who buys a bottle of the new Almost There buys just one. Same goes(went?) for the Very Young and Still Young. In fact, those things go for silly amounts of money some places online RIGHT NOW. Friends were just on Islay and said a German guy came in to the Ardbeg shop at the end of their tour, and with stereotypical efficiency beelined for what bottles he wanted and went straight to the cash register. Just have a look at this

I am not saying there is anything wrong with this phenomenon, it is just interesting, isn't it? I mean, it basically means that every time you have some drop of Ardbeg, out of that bottle of 17yo you have or out of a cask at the distillery, someone somewhere is jealous... or willing to pay you for the privilege. I think that's weird. But cool.

Anyways, this is the "first treat" to be released from Ardbeg's Single Cask range in 2007, and the big butt #1375 from 1975 yielded 522 bottles of tasty nectar. More Ardbeg info HERE.

A huge thanks to Colin at the Vinopolis shop of The Whisky Exchange for sharing a drop(take-away, no less) of this beauty.

TASTING NOTES:

Maple, lemon juice, and shrimp/prawns all manage to say 'hello' before you get hit with smoke from a wood fire. A little bit of aloe or odour-free soap, with some Ardbeg sulphury flatulence beneath. The character of the nose is amazing; the scents seem to spiral at you with each nosing, like pipe smoke (or how about here or here). Heheheee. Very sexy.

A split second of sweet hard apples and honey before a wave of wood smoke and then a cloud of peat. Big delivery. Gentle sherry character comes through with some spice and berries. Baked goods, prunes, lime and toasted sesame seeds. Like a long flowing dress, the finish doesn't start, as such; the same fabric just folds gently to the floor. Another metaphor? Sure. An organ-like finish, it just holds the chord already made as it echoes through the cathedral(of my mouth).

SUMMARY:

Ardbeg through and through. Rich and sexy, and even a bit tart and lively for a 30 year old whisky. Not overpowered by anything but lots of smoke and just enough sherry character to add that dried fruit dimension. Great stuff, and you pay for it.

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