Exactly one month ago, the Ardbeg Alligator Committee release (for discussion) was released and i posted the official notes for it. It’s been very tough getting hold of a bottle down here in Israel (Ardbeg do not ship here, why?!), and finally yesterday i recived a wee sample of the beast kindly sent to me by a good whisky friend, …

So, I bet most whisky blogs will be filled with this one, so we can not overlook this event. Starting from today Ardbeg Committee members can purchase the much awaited Ardbeg Alligator on the Ardbeg site, that is if it doesn’t crash / is too slow. I have not tried logging and buying one yet, but i did hear it’s …

The Second tasting notes of SMWS bottling, as promised. This time an Ardbeg, aged in Sherry casks (Sherry Gorda) for 10 years. A sherry Ardbeg is always something interesting, as most OBs are not sherry matured. I find that Sherry and Peat is a pairing i quite like (Uigedail for example, Classic of Islay 9 yo, Lagavulin 21 etc.…) . …

I am a big fan of Ardbeg, but it doesnt even come close to Geert’s passion for all things Ardbeg. This week I’ve asked Geert to share his love for this Islay distillery, and he kindly accepted. And what an awesome collections this guy has. One can only be envious.
Tell me a bit about yourself, what do you do in …

Every year The Malt Maniacs release their MM awards. The awards are maybe the best non-interest ranking you can find. Each judge (11 in number, world wide)  gets to sample around 260 samples, blind and then the scores are all presented along with an average.
This year’s ‘winner’ is : Glendronach 38yo 1972/2010 (49.5%, OB, Oloroso Sherry butt, C#700, Taiwan, 241 …

It’s week #3 of August and It’s Ardbeg Month. Time for tasting the Supernova 2010 Release, I’ve been waiting a long time to sample.
The Peat wars continue, and this time with Ardbeg’s peated beast – 2010 version. Peated to over 100 ppm (a bit lower than the Octomore 2.2 released this year ) It’s Ardbeg’s most violent, and peaty of …

The Ardbeg Uigeadail is on of my top 5 drams period. The excellent combination of peat and sherry is wonderfully implemented in this one giving it  multi-dimensional qualities beyond phenols and the peat.  Today however, we arrive at tasting a very unique sort of Uigeadail : Young Uigeadail (YU), or OOgling as it is sometimes referred to.
The YU expression was …

1974 was an interesting year. It saw the beginning of of IRA bombing in mainland UK, Richard Nixon forced to resign after the Watergate scandal , Worldwide inflation and economic crisis, Paris CDG airport opening, and Germany (then called ‘West Germany’ winning the world cup. Indeed a very interesting year. In this same year, on a little Island on …

Good day whisky lovers, Islay fans, and Ardbeg worshipers

Ardbeg is one of the most famous and hyped of Islay distilleries, and is also one of my favorites. Since it’s Re-opening in 1997 it has been releasing some of the most interesting expressions around, all with high quality and amazing demand, fueled by the remarkable Marketing/PR teams at …

After several days of preparations and discussions via emails and phones, the date and time was set for the first WhiskyIsrael Peat Summit. Kfir Bloch, Gal Granov, Igal Tabachnik and I met at Kfir’s place in the hot and humid town of Ramat Gan, located in the Israeli coastal area.
July in Israel is not a very whisky welcoming time and …