...where distraction is the main attraction.

Friday, January 24, 2025

Ardmore 10 year old 2009 The Whisky Trail, cask 707920

Elixir Distillers, who actually own a distillery (Tormore) now, have more indie whisky ranges than I can count. One of these it The Whisky Trail, which released somewhere between 150-200 whiskies in its first seven years. Before today, I have tried two, a Croftengea and a Ben Nevis, both of which were excellent. So yes, I was quick to join a bottle split of one of their Ardmore casks. The whisky itself possesses my favorite whisky hue — five-beer piss — so I'm geeked about this one.


Distillery: Ardmore
Ownership: Beam Suntory
Region: Highlands (Eastern)
Independent Bottler: Elixir Distillers
Range: The Whisky Trail
Age: 10 years old (1 Dec 2009 - 9 June 2020)
Maturation: refill American oak?
Cask #: 707920
Outturn: ???
Alcohol by Volume: 59.0%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT

Egads, the nose is hot and closed. Took nearly 30 minutes for me to find signs of life. First there's honeydew, simple syrup, and light blue Mr. Sketch marker. Then it slowly shifts towards candy shop and  chemical-ish peat. The palate is intensely ashy, with grassiness and lemon candies in the background. It finishes with blood, ash, and lemon candy.

The whisky and I require hydration...

DILUTED to ~46%abv, or 1¾ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

The nose begins with clay, kiln, and flower blossoms, followed by Saltines and Dove bar soap. Some of that candy shop notes remains. Vegetal and earthy, the palate hums with a bitter herbal bite and more pepper than peat. A bit of that blood/iron note runs through the edges. It finishes bitter and peppery, with a squeeze of lemon juice.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

This is a fighter, or rather a brawler than needs a few more years of training before it can claim to be a fighter. The whisky reminds me why I'm not thrilled by young steam-coil era Ardmore, as it's quite different than similarly aged direct-fire stuff, less industrial, less fruity, less subtle smoke, and more of a blunt object. Dilution rescues this cask, and the whisky may require more water than I've applied. I'm only realizing now that I shouldn't have been so excited by the whisky's color.

Availability - Probably sold out
Pricing - €60 in 2020
Rating - 81 (diluted only)