Ardbeg

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Ardbeg
Region: Islay
Owner:	Glenmorangie plc
Founded:	1815
Status:	Operational
Water Source:	Loch Uigeadail
No. of Stills:	1 wash 1 spirit
Capacity:	950,000 litres
Ardbeg
Age(s):	10-year-old 17-year-old Uigeadail (cask strength) Airigh Nam Beist Lord of the Isles (25-year-old)
Cask Type(s):	Bourbon

Detail on a bottle of Ardbeg

Ardbeg Distillery is a Scotch whisky distillery on the south coast of the isle of Islay.

Other distilleries on the south coast include Laphroaig and Lagavulin. Ardbeg claims to be the peatiest Islay whisky^[1], and uses malted barley sourced from the (Diageo owned) maltings in Port Ellen. Distillery manager was Mr. Stuart Thomson from 1997 to 2006. On March 12th 2007, Michael "Mickey" Heads, the former manager at Jura took over the reins from Stuart Thomson. Ardbeg is renowned for its peaty, smoky style. Despite a pungent nose, formidable flavors, and high alcohol content, Ardbeg is surprisingly smooth on the palate, with a warm lingering finish.

[edit] History

Ardbeg sign at distillery

The Ardbeg distillery was established in 1815, but was mothballed in 1981 when production stopped. Production resumed on a limited basis in 1989, and continued at a low level through late 1996. It was bought and reopened in 1997 by Glenmorangie plc, with production resuming on June 25, 1997, with full production resuming in 1998. It is now one of the fastest growing Islay single-malts. Glenmorangie plc is jointly owned by the French company LVMH and the British company Diageo.The Ardbeg Committee was established in 1945 to "promote the advancement of general knowledge and enjoyment of Ardbeg" (Quote: Rules and Regulations, page 4). All Ardbeg-aficionados can join this Committee on Ardbeg's website (see below). Special bottlings can sometimes be obtained by members of this committee. It is not possible to have these special bottlings shipped to the US or Canada.

[edit] Bottlings

Ardbeg often bottles its whiskies at a higher alcohol by volume (abv) than the minimum 40%. Many bottlings are also non-chill filtered. Both measures contribute to produce a full-flavoured whisky.^{[citation needed]}

There are several official bottlings, major ones are:

• Very Young Ardbeg - Committee Approved, 58.3% ABV. First sold in 2003 as a 6-year-old, to give Ardbeg-lovers the chance to taste the first whisky produced since the reopening in 1997.
• Still Young Ardbeg - 58.3% ABV, bottled as an 8 year old and released in 2006.
• Almost There Ardbeg - 54.1% ABV, the third release in the series. Released in 2007 as a 9-year-old.
• Ardbeg Renaissance - 55.9% ABV, a limited release of the final 10 year old Ardbeg. Distilled in 1998, released to the public in June 2008.
• Ardbeg 10 Year Old, 46% ABV
• Ardbeg 17 Year Old, 40% ABV
• Ardbeg Uigeadail, 54.2% ABV (cask strength), named after the loch that provides the distillery with water. Pronounced oog-a-dal.
• Ardbeg 25 Year Old, "Lord of the Isles", 46% ABV
• Serendipity, 40% ABV, an unintentional vatting of old Ardbeg with 12-year-old Glen Moray.
• Airigh Nam Beist, 46% ABV, 16 years old, based entirely on 1990 stock. It means "shelter of the beast".

Independent bottlings are also available.

[edit] Awards

Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2008 awarded the 10 year old expression the title of 2008 World Whisky of the Year and Scotch Single Malt of the Year.^[2]

[edit] Miscellaneous

Ardbeg inspired the Finnish composer of contemporary music, Osmo Tapio Räihälä to write the symphonic poem Ardbeg - The Ultimate Piece For Orchestra (2003). The piece was awarded in the 1st International Uuno Klami composition competition in 2004.

In the 2005 film Constantine starring Keanu Reeves, the title character John Constantine (Reeves) is seen drinking Ardbeg in his apartment while talking to Detective Dodson (Rachel Weisz).

[edit] See also

• List of distilleries in Scotland
• Scotch whisky

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Ardbeg official website