James Eadie Ardmore Tasting Notes

James Eadie Small Batch Ardmore 9 year old 46%

3 Refill Fill Bourbon Casks/ Cask Numbers 5/1, 6/1 & 8/1

Dist: 2010 Btl: 2020/ Tasted: Mar 2020

Aromas of sweet barley, sooty peat and hints of heather and earth. Quite fragrant and almost floral in character with developing herbal notes. With time some subtle vanilla and tar appears. Quite restrained by Ardmore standards.

The palate is fuller and waxier with vanilla coated sweet barley and apricot. The peat is subtler and dustier with sooty/ dry, herbal smoke note. The oak comes through on the middle as does a little raw spirit. Overall it’s well balanced and mouth-filling. :Long, orange,m tangerine and lemon finish with hints of smoke, sweet heather and honey.

Dewar Rattray Ardmore Tasting Notes

Dewar Rattray Ardmore 1996 (21 year old) 59%

Bourbon Hogshead 149022/ Dist: Aug 1996 Btl: Mar 2018/ Tasted: Apr 2018

A dense and nutty nose with coal/ peat smoke. Some subtle, herbal spirit notes mingle with edgy citrus, crisp barley, lime and greengage. It certainly feels younger than 21, but a touch of baked fruit hints at some age. The barley sweetens with time and a touch of creamy vanilla appears. The alcohol, although on the high side, especially for a 21 is pretty well integrated.

The palate is oily, dusty and herbal with coal and peat smoke notes. Hints of honey, sweet barley and sweet vanilla follow. Intense, mineral and nutty middle with plenty of contained alcohol. The finish is a bit masked but it’s pretty peppery with lingering tar, peat dust and subtle mentholated notes.

A drop of water emphasises the green citrus and vegetation notes, as well as the barley. The peat has disappeared to leave the sweet-ish honeyed notes on display. The palate is very the same as the nose. More sweet barley and oak and less peat, although it does come through on the finish with a touch of pepper and dried fruit.

Mossburn Distillers Ardmore Tasting Notes

Mossburn Distillers No6 Ardmore 2008 (9 year old) 46%

Ex-Islay ASB/ Batch 10.0708.6/ Dist: 2008 Btl: Nov 2017/ Tasted: Mar 2018

A manurey and smoky nose with tart, almost acerbic minerally citrus notes. That’s a real wakey-wakey for the senses! Hints of barley follow, but the peat becomes quite sheep poo-like in character and very dominant.

The palate is subtler, one could argue it’s a little vague, but it’s pleasantly smoky and peaty with hints of chocolate and manure. It’s entertaining but simple, essentially peat, poo and chocolate! Long and smoky with a slight mineral and citrus finish.

Edition Spirits Ardmore Tasting Notes

Edition Spirits ‘The First Editions’ Ardmore 1996 (20 year old) 50.1%

Refill Bourbon Hogshead/ Code: EDI0202/ HL12930

Dist: 1996 Btl: 2016/ Tasted: Dec 2016

The nose is nutty and barley’d with sweet peat smoke, heather and sweet oak. Beautifully balanced with a touch of drier, dusty peat emerging.

The palate opens with the slightly toffee’d oak, citrus and barley. Hints of heather, sweet peat, earth and coffee come through on the middle. Lovely, mouth-watering barley’d finish with lingering citrus and sweet oak.

Edition Spirits ‘The First Editions’ Ardmore 1997 (20 year old) 54.1%

Refill Bourbon Hogshead/Code: EDI0399/ HL15370

Dist: Nov 1997 Btl: 2018/ Tasted: Sept 2018

That’s a meaty nose! – Roasted pork and bacon fat! Subtle, earthy, manurey peat follows along with a touch of decomposing straw, rose petal, pepper, barley, damp soil and blue cheese?!

The palate is earthy and manurey with decomposing straw/ rose petals/ heather, earthy peat and macerated strawberry. The palate is a lot sweeter than the nose suggests and a little at odds with the peat to be honest. Long and peppery with lingering strawberry notes.

Water makes the nose lighter and less interesting with a slightly metallic note now. The palate is a little watery. The peat has disappeared to leave the barley and sweet strawberry and violets as well as a touch more oak character. Botanical, junipery and damp bracken finish.

Hunter Laing Ardmore Tasting Notes

Hunter Laing Old Malt Cask Ardmore 1996 (20 year old) 50%

Refill Bourbon Hogshead/ Code: OMC2611/ HL12929

Dist: Oct 1996 Btl: Nov 2016/ Tasted: Dec 2016

A mature and dusty nose with peppery peat smoke and hints of petrol, manure and barley. Crisp and clean with a lovely, focused, citric intensity. Late warm vanilla notes appear.

The palate is a shade fuller, with more of the warm vanilla oak showing, but the smoke and peppery peat begins to emerge. Sweet, but astringent middle with citrus and petrol notes. Long, dry, mouth-watering finish with barley, white fruit, violets, dusty peat and minerals.

Hunter Laing Old Malt Cask Ardmore 1996 (21 year old) 50%

Refill Bourbon Hogshead/ Code: OMC2738/ HL14466

Dist: Apr 1996 Btl: Nov 2017/ Tasted: Dec 2017

There is a distinct ‘old skool’ Bowmore feel to this nose with duty, mature peat, violets and oily barley. Superb, balancing fresher barley notes appear along with some subtle oak.

The palate is quite oily and dusty with mature peat, violets and like the nose a subtle old Bowmore-like undertones. Hints of mature, sweet-ish barley, tar, citrus and earthy peat build pleasantly on the middle. Lovely citric finish with lingering peat, pepper, violets and truffle oil. Stunning progression!

Hunter Laing Old Malt Cask Ardmore 1996 (21 year old) 50%

Refill Bourbon Hogshead/ Code: OMC2774/ HL14829

Dist: Oct 1996 Btl: Apr 2018/ Tasted: Jun 2018

The nose opens with the stinky and manure peat and cereal. Then it all goes a bit weird with sweet Satsuma, rose petal and strawberry mousse! So, it starts off as Ardmore but then morphs into ‘toshan! Yep, weird!

The palate feels a lot younger than 21 with oily cereal and hints of rose petal marc. Again there’s the strawberry mousse note along with a touch of apricot and peat. Short and really sweet (granulated sugar) with lingering strawberry mousse! It certainly isn’t like any Ardmore I’ve ever tasted!

Hunter Laing Hepburns Choice Ardmore 2008 (10 year old) 46%

Refill Bourbon Barrel/ Code: HEP0377/ Dist: Jul 2008 Btl: 2019/ Tasted: Jun 2019

A lovely intense nose of almost rummy dried fruit, petrol, medicinal peat and dusty peat. With time a touch of lemon appears along with some sweet barley and late harvested winey honey.

The palate is ashy, dusty, tarry and peaty with hints of vanilla cream, lemon, barley and a touch of honey. Long and ashy with lingering dry peat, coffee bean and ginger.

North Star Spirits Ardmore Tasting Notes

North Star Spirits Ardmore 2008 (8 year old) 58.7%

Refill Barrel/ Dist: 2008 Btl: 2016/ Tasted: Nov 2016

A fresh, gristy and sooty nose with plenty of dry, gritty peat and smoked meat. Lightly herbal with subtle vanilla, citrus and charcoal. With time it becomes very rounded and very meaty.

The palate is full and rich with lightly oiled apricot, barley and hints of white fruit. Like the nose it is quite meaty on the middle with peat smoke and tar. Long and intense with the white fruits returning and mingling with dry barley, heathery peat and soot and the barbequed meat.

Ardmore Distillery Tasting Notes

Ardmore Traditional 46%

Bourbon finished in quarter casks

Tasted: Dec 2013

Quite rich and dense aromas of smoked meat and dry peat with a light perfumed note and a touch of herbal barley sugar. The oak is seriously dense but it doesn’t add much in the way of vanillins, but it does add some weighty caramel, which does impact upon the freshness that one usual equates with this distillery.

Dense and weighty on the palate with herbal flecked, dry, meaty-peaty notes and a touch of sweet barley. Again the caramelised oak impacts on the freshness. Good length with a little citrus appearing and the herbal-peat notes lingering.

Ardmore Legacy 40%

Tasted: July 2016

A light and herbal nose with malt, sweet-ish barley, rye-like notes and a light peat note. With time it becomes quite oak dominated (plenty of first fill Bourbon?)

The palate is soft and straightforward with a touch of youthful spirit. Again fairly light in body with a touch of barley, honey, fragrant, earthy peat and vanilla oak. A little short with the oak clamping down. (I think the caramel is natural). Very lightly peated, almost imperceptibly so. Knowing how good the spirit can be this bottling is very disappointing.

 

 

Vintage Malt Whisky Company Ardmore Tasting Notes

Coopers Choice Ardmore No Age Statement ‘Heavily Peated’ 46%

Bourbon Cask 884/ Dist: ? Btl: 2015(?)/ Tasted: May 2016

I’m somewhat confused. Why bottle a single cask without an age statement? Yes, it’s young, probably no older than 5 or 6 years, but it has some lovely, slightly perfumed white fruit, unsweetened pineapple and banana with hints of coal dust and rubber.

The palate is a fairly watery and underpowered with hints of estery apricot, pineapple and banana. Very softly peated with hints of herbs and sweet barley. Long with lingering dry peat and spice. Someone has a funny definition of heavily peated!

Carn Mor Ardmore Tasting Notes

Carn Mor Strictly Limited Ardmore 2011 (4 year old) 46%

Bourbon Hogshead/ Dist: 2011 Btl: 2016/ Tasted: Apr 2016

Young and oily aromas with a vivacious crispness, minerality and plenty of earthy peat. The peat becomes slightly medicinal with time and a light saltiness emerges. Quite weighty for a young malt with some lovely barley sweetness.

The palate is quite barley sweet with crisp, grassy, Sauvignon-esque white fruit, citrus, coal dust and peat smoke. Lovely vibrancy and balance. Long and peaty with a light medicinal/ saltiness on the finish.

Carn Mor Strictly Limited Ardmore 2011 (5 year old) 46%

Bourbon Barrel/ Dist: 2011 Btl: 2016/ Tasted: Sept 2016

Fresh, crisp but slightly gristy on the nose with white fruit, apricot, barley, earthy peat and very subtle peat.

The palate is pleasantly barley but not as evolved as previously bottling as there are some ‘off the still’ notes in the background. Gently spiced on the middle with a good, crisp and oily finish with the ‘off the still’ notes lingering.

Carn Mor Strictly Limited Ardmore 2011 (7 year old) 46%

Bourbon/ Dist: 2011 Btl: 2019/ Tasted: Apr 2019

An intense and gristy nose nose with sweet barley and sweet peat smoke, honey and apricot. Lovely depth and richness to the spirit character with late sweet orange and cinder toffee.

The palate is soft, gritty and vanilla’d with apricot, barley and subtler, more aromatic, earthy peat smoke. Quite full and rich with hints of pineapple and juicy citrus. Long with lingering vanilla, spice and slightly gritty peat smoke. Lovely balance and a light medicinal after-taste.

Carn Mor Strictly Limited Ardmore 2009 (8 year old) 46%

Bourbon Barrel finished in ex-Williamson casks

Dist: 2009 Btl: 2018/ Tasted: May 2018

Youthful and herbal aromas with plenty of medicinal peat with underlying white fruit. Hints of barley, smoked meat and sooty peat emerge and I have to say that it’s displaying a lovely combination of spirit and casks. Slightly manurey with time.

The palate is fresh and medicinal with crunchy barley, granulated sugar, oily peat, earthy peat and sweet/ herbal peat. Hints of vanilla oak fill out the middle and the finish, along with the sweet barley, apricot. Lovely progression and sweet peat after-taste.

James MacArthur Ardmore Tasting Notes

James MacArthur ‘Old Masters Cask Strength Selection’ Ardmore 2000 (14 year old) 58.3%

Bourbon Cask 217/ Dist: 2000 Btl: 2014/ Tasted: Dec 2014

A lovely, sweetly peated nose with heather honey and gristy barley. It settles down to show a vivid herbal character, which reminds me of young, herbal rye. Hints of antiseptic and mint appears as the phenols kick in.

The palate is lightly oiled and gristy to begin with. The oils keep the peat in check to a certain extent and allows the off-sweet barley and fleshy apricot fruit to shine. Intensely alcoholic and a slightly bitter finish, but the barley and moist vanilla notes balance. Finally the sweet peat breaks free of the oils and rounds the palate off rather well.

Dilution emphasises the oils on the nose. Still fairly herbal with the sweet peat just accenting. On the palate it really emphasises the sugar coated barley. The peat is now just a distant, earthy note but it’s still quite herbal and some dusty spices and heather have appeared. Very long with a little a lovely dry and sweet peat finish.