Ardbeg Uigeadail 2015 batches?

  • maltmaven
    Topic creator
    Member maltmaven
    Joined: 23.03.2016Posts: 3Ratings: 0

    Anyone have any experience with the 2015 batch releases? I like the March 25 Ardbeg 10 but I am unfamiliar with any Uigeadails for this past year. I really liked a 2011 that I opened recently. I had been saving it. And I have a 2007 bottling as well. But I am always curious about new bottles to put in the bunker, hence my question about the 2015 releases.

    mm
  • horst_s_2 Administrator horst_s_2 Joined: 01.07.2014Posts: 507Ratings: 661
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    Sorry, I have no experience with this particular bottling. But I had some Ardbeg Uigeadail in the past. Yes, there are differences but from my point of view these differences are not so severe, that I would not buy a bottle or would chase down a special vintage.

    Kind regards, Horst Luening, Master Taster, Whisky.com
  • maltmaven
    Topic creator
    Member maltmaven
    Joined: 23.03.2016Posts: 3Ratings: 0
    , edited March 23 2016 at 5:07PM
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    Thank you for your prompt and intelligent reply, Horst. With all due respect, the batch variation is significant enough for me to determine whether I purchase Uigeadail. In this regard, I do speak from experience.

    In 2013, I purchased a batch that was so bad it put me off to Uigeadail for some time afterwards. This subject has been discussed from time to time on Connosor. Here are a few links: http://www.connosr.com/wall/discussion/316152/ardbeg-uigeadail-batch-notes/
    http://www.connosr.com/wall/discussion/259393/know-a-good-ardbeg-uigeadail-batch-number/
    http://www.connosr.com/reviews/ardbeg/ardbeg-uigeadail/l13-149-03-36-6ml/

    Nock, a member of Connosr, is quite knowledgeable to the point of almost being obsessed with Ardbeg Uigeadail and Ardbeg 10 batch variation. There is a reason for his obsession. He has purchased many many dozen bottles of Ardbeg over the years, and his senses are acute and discerning.

    Nock has steered me towards several bottling dates that he esteems highly and I found that the difference was quite apparent to the point of almost tasting like a different whisky altogether. And by this, I mean a far superior whisky. I have not purchased an Uigeadail since 2014, so perhaps the batches are more consistent these days. This said, the good batches back in 2011 were so dramatically good, that I would hope to taste more bottles like them! One bottle that I went to great lengths to obtain from a remote and rural part of my state in the US, was among the top whiskies I have ever tasted.

    I'm glad, because I ended up paying nearly two and a half times the price of the bottle in favors from my rural friends to get it to me (gas money to the liquor store in an adjacent town that they were driving to anyhow, and dinners for two people who required an additional thank you). Such is the way of the world. Money talks and BS walks. I got my bottle and yes it was worth 2.5 times the price! I would venture to say that it was far better than the specialty bottlings of Ardbeg one can buy these days. I would put it on par with the Beist and Alligator, and that is high praise indeed. But then again those were not specialty or seasonal bottlings.

    I would have put my question (that I posted here on this website) to the folks on Connosr, but the website is dominated by a few rude regulars that make participation an unpleasant experience.

    I would like to leave this question open for the folk on your website. If anyone knows of a particularly good batch of Uigeadail in 2015 or 2016, I'm all ears. These days, the actual date is printed on the back of the bottle etched in laser down near the bottom of the bottle. All bottles over two years ago used a code to determine the day upon which the whisky was bottled, but thankfully, in its infinite wisdom, Arbeg now prints the actual bottling dates on the bottles.

    Thanks again, Horst, for your kind and informative reply.

    mm
    hwchoy liked that
  • Jimidrammer Member Jimidrammer Joined: 11.04.2016Posts: 1Ratings: 0
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    I have a couple different 2015 bottles but not open at the moment. An L13.245 open now is consistent and good and a L14.028 was amazing. I have batches back to '06, 08, 11, 13, 14, and 15. The L10 was the only one that turned me off, some noticeable sulphur. They do seem to be getting more reliable lately. Still one of the best Islay Malts out there.

    Jim H.
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