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Tuesday, January 28, 2025

Ardmore 9 year old 2010 Duncan Taylor, cask 19803198

This is one of the rare single cask Ardmores to be released in the US. I never saw it arrive on shelves, I never saw it depart. I'm not sure how a nine-year-old sherry-free Ardmore sold out in these states, but congrats to everyone who beat me to it! The whisky looks quite pale, much like the 2009 I just reviewed. May it greet my palate with more grace.

Distillery: Ardmore
Ownership: Beam Suntory
Region: Highlands (Eastern)
Independent Bottler: Duncan Taylor
Range: Dimensions
Age: 9 years old (June 2010 - July 2019)
Maturation: refill American oak?
Cask #: 19803198
Outturn: 234 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 53.0%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT

The young and but approachable nose offers up fabric, ocean, kiln, light blue Mr. Sketch marker, and a whiff of wet dog. It picks up a little bit of stone fruit with time, before it all fades out at the 30-minute mark. The palate arrives simple and honed, with minerals, peat, a squeeze of lime, and a hint of metal. It finishes with metal, stones, and peat.

DILUTED to ~46%abv, or < 1 tsp of water per 30mL whisky

The ocean note expands through the nose, while the peaty side turns lighter and brighter. Tart cherries, cherry-flavored medicine, salt, pepper, and mild peat form the palate. It finishes with peat, salt, and pepper.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

A straightforward whisky, neither austere nor zany, this Ardmore feels like it's from a bygone era, all of two decades ago. Could Duncan Taylor have let it age longer? Sure, but the spirit would have likely begun to retreat as the oak advanced. I like the nose better once the whisky is diluted, but prefer the palate neat, while having no gripes about any part of it. It's a simple thing, unlike the final Ardmore in this series...

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - ??
Rating - 83

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