Ardnamurchan AD/Core Release
Ardnamurchan is one of the new breed of young, ‘challenger’ distilleries in Scotland, both in age (having only been built in 2014) and approach. With an admirable, sometimes incredulous, focus on transparency, they make all of the details of your whisky available online via a QR code - how long the mash was fermented, the percentage at which the cut is taken for the new make and even the cask origins for your particular bottle of whisky. For many whisky drinkers, this is like peaking behind the curtain and unnecessary but, for the most nerdy of drammers, it is exactly the transparency that many wish was more commonplace. But what does the spirit taste like?…
Bottle
The bottle is a thing of beauty. Very similar in style to my favourite Aberlour bottles, it is squat and sturdy with plenty of glass to see your precious liquid. Beautiful embossing on the front proclaims the distillery’s roots in the Highlands. And I even love the dusky blue colour of the foil on the neck - 10/10?!
Colour
As to be expected from a distillery that so proudly touts transparency, this whisky is not coloured - the first natural dram I’ve had for a while! It is most certainly a light-coloured whisky somewhere between amber and deep copper - beautifully on show in that bottle with the small label.
Nose - The smokiness is beautifully elegant - it certainly doesn’t have that nose-hair-curling punch that some more heavily peated drams do. There is also a much softer, sweeter aroma like fresh, juicy pears that sits comfortably alongside the smoke. It is a little like smelling two different whiskies at the same time (hint). There is just a trace of brine too but it’s beautifully subtle.
Palate - The lightness of the orchard fruit persists and now it is mixed with a delicious creamy vanilla. There is, of course, an immediate sharp peppercorn note that fills your mouth but still, the smoke flavours are not overpowering. The best way I can think to describe the peatiness of this whisky is by using a boxing analogy: if Laphroig is like a heavyweight boxer, with both arms pounding, and Loch Lomond Inchmoan is like a flyweight boxer, then this Ardnamurchan is more like the heavyweight but with only one arm swinging!
Finish - A nice, long finish that lets the pepper play on your tongue a little longer as the whole show slowly fades.
Overall
This is the first permanent bottling available from Ardamurchan and quite frankly I love it! For less than £50 you get a delicious and complex whisky that has so many elements at play, it really has to be tried. Much of this complexity comes down to the fact that it is a 50:50 mixture of peated and unpeated whisky (maybe some of the analogies above make more sense now!). I truly believe that Ardnamurchan has made a peated whisky that appeals to anyone. There is enough of the brashness of the smoke here to satisfy a peat-head but the balance with the unpeated whisky gives it a soft edge that makes it more approachable for those less inclined towards peat.
I love this dram and would recommend it to anyone. I’m looking forward to future adventures with Ardnamurchan. Slàinte mhaith to this young distillery!
Available from The Whisky Exchange for around £48