Ardbeg 10 years L10 165 joins the ranks as the 10th Ardbeg 10 I’ve reviewed and we have another coming shortly. When I did Ardbeg April back in 2014 I didn’t expect to find myself in a position of having reviewed so many different expressions of Ardbeg 10, but at this point if I can get my hands on an L09 and L11 I’ll have an unbroken chain from 2007 – 2016. After that it’ll be all about filling in from 04 – 06, 01 and 02.
Ardbeg 10 years L10 165 Info
Region: Islay, Scotland
Distiller: Ardbeg
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Cask: ex-Bourbon
Age: 10 years
ABV: 46%
Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color
Batch: L10 165 (2010)
Price: $50
Ardbeg 10 years L10 165 Review
EYE
Pear juice
NOSE
Plastic, peat, smarties, orchard fruit, hay, waxy candy, bit of lemon, cigar smoke and cinnamon.
PALATE
Prominent orchard fruit, honey, peat, cinnamon, melon and a light dusting of a frosting sweetness and citrus.
FINISH
Long oily peat, cinnamon, melon and fruit.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Ok balance, round body and a juicy (fruit juice) texture.
OVERALL
Ardbeg 10 years L10 165 is not as crisp as some release and comes across more soft and sweet on the palate and “mushy” on the nose. Still tasty and aromatic, it’s a perfectly quaffable whisky that delivers a nice sensory experience. It’s interesting to see how much the 2010 has changed in comparison to the L07 and L08 which deliver a major kick of flavor.
There are similarities between this Ardbeg 10 years L10 165 an the modern Ardbeg, but it still retains some of that nice hearty essence that early Ardbegs of this era had. It also avoids succumbing fully to the candy sweet notes that begin showing up later down the line. A nice little taste of history and mid point between the past and the present.
SCORE: 86/100 (B)
Thanks to Barry for the sample
