Ardbog (From Ardbeg)

NOTE: First and foremost, thank you to all those soldiers and sailors (past and present) in the armed forces who dedicate their lives to protecting their countries. Cheers and Happy Veterans Day!

A little over a week ago my boyfriend and I went out to The Last Hurrah here in Boston.  It’s a spot we like to frequent because of their whisky selection. When I was about to order from the bartender what I thought was going to be smoky whisky, the bar manager Frank overhears me and interjects. I was confusing my Peat and Smoke. The whisky I was ordering was not smoky but rather peaty, Frank clarified. People generally do confuse the two and it’s a topic I certainly plan to explore in another blog post. Franks recommendation was to try the Ardbog.

Ardbeg I’ve had, but this one I had never heard of before, even though it is from the folks at Ardbeg. Ardbeg released Ardbog during the 2013 Islay Festival of Music and Malt. Usually the distilleries at the festival release a special whisky during the festival; however these special whiskies are only available there in the Island. Ardbeg changed that by releasing a limited amount of Ardbog outside of the festival and the island.

My message to Ardbeg, THANK YOU! Most of my blog readers will know that I loved Ardbeg and it’s one of my favorites, Ardbog has now changed that. I love Ardbog more than Ardbeg! Yes off course this is only my opinion and others may not agree with me, but to me, this was one of those whiskies that left me speechless. I forgot about trying to make out the notes, I just sat back in my barstool and enjoyed. My next thoughts were I want a bottle of this.

If you are starting your whisky experience this might be too strong for you to start with. I don’t recommend you try this one if you are tasting whisky for the first time. I do recommend you try after you’ve become accustomed to whisky tasting. 

I found Ardbog to be more smoky than peaty, which is probably why I enjoyed it more. With Ardbeg I found that there was a perfect balance between peat and smoke, which is still great, but if I had to choose one note over the other, I’d say I prefer a smoke note.

My Experience

Smell: Smoke and Salt
Taste: Wood, salt, smoke and burn
Comments: AMAZING! Loved every single bit of my dram!

This is a bottle I can only hope to acquire and add to my collection. For those whisky enthusiasts if you haven’t tried it and come across it, then I recommend you try it. It may not be for everyone, but it’s certainly a unique tasting experience. I can only hope Ardbeg continues to produce it.

I very much enjoyed tasting this whisky so, thank you Frank! Not only for the recommendation, but for also letting me ask a few too many questions about whisky. If there is one thing I appreciate is, knowledge from someone far more experienced than me who didn’t mind giving me the time of day… If only there were more people out there like that, we would all be a little bit more knowledgeable in all kinds of things.

Cheers!