Here's a tip: If you ever go on vacation with a bunch of people who aren't whisky drinkers, and you aren't sure they will share in your bottle of Ardbeg Ten Year... they won't. It's all yours. Sip at your leisure. They will say things like "it smells like burned things," and "what IS that?" and "it smells like a medicine cabinet."
All true, of course.
It's funny, how your tastes change. Ardbeg Ten Year was the first Islay Scotch whisky I ever had, and the first time I had it I could only taste what my family tasted this weekend - smoke, iodine, coal, tar, tobacco, dark and musty citric things... and the salt-and-peppery burn of alcohol at the end somewhere.
So this last weekend I worked my way through another bottle over a couple days, and I really relished it and its subtleties. Having had Uigeadail and Corryvreckan now, the Ten Year takes on new dimensions... there are vectors and angles here I hadn't sensed previously. Bottled at 46% ABV, let's get right to this one.
Nose: Smoke and peat, right up front. But less than the first time I tried it. This time I got a lot more iodine and and sea salt/spray. Very maritime, like Talisker. But much smokier. A hint of citrus drifts around.
Mouthfeel: Very very full, coats the whole mouth and stays there.
Palate: Smoke comes and goes and comes again. Unlike my last time through the Ten Year, this is actually sweet throughout... a pleasant generic vanilla sweetness, not like the tropical fruit of Corryvreckan or the honey glaze of Uigeadail. Vanilla and citrus lace the smoke throughout, making for a nice balance. The citrus might be lemon, might be orange, might even be lime, it's indistinct.
Finish: Peppery and alcoholic, with endless peat that goes on for days. Salt speckles the smoke. Very pleasant.
Verdict: To me, this is the definitive entry-level Islay Scotch. I like Ardbeg's flavor profile more than Laphroaig, and the price point edges out Lagavulin. I recommend it IF you are interested in a smokey, medicinal whisky experience that will reward you the more you come back to it. I'll be seeing more of this dram...
Link to the Ardbeg website for the Ten Year: http://www.ardbeg.com/ardbeg/whisky/ten-years-old
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