For a long time Ardmore did not have an official bottling however this has now been rectified with the launch of the ‘Traditional Cask’ by the distillery owners a few years ago. It has spent an unspecified amount of time in standard barrels and then “matured for a final period in small 19th century style Quarter Casks’. Both peated and non-chill filtered. The nose very sweet and peated with additional notes of varnish, honey and light malt and ever so slight cut grass. With water it loses the vibrancy and becomes less peated and has a smokey medicinal quality intermingled with a touch of coal smoke. The taste is quite sweet at first and then continues with honey, the cut grass, malt and spicy oak notes. With water is has a syrupy mouth feel and is slightly bitter and coal smokey and slightly sappy. The finish is peaty and very sweet and of a good length and at the very end it changes to peat smoke and malt very well intermingled. After a number of minutes the finish is very dry and filled with coal smoke and malt.

The preference is to sample this whisky without the addition of water; it’s much more vibrant undiluted.

US$45 at Binny’s

Score 80 points
http://www.ardmorewhisky.com/