Ardbeg 1979/2020 - Sig RR #9861

Volume: 0.7 litres | Alcohol content: 56.8% | Chill filtration: No | Colouring: No

Special Features:

Four decades of maturation in a Bourbon Barrel shaped this single-cask Ardbeg. Distilled on 13 September 1979, the whisky matured in cask number 9861 until 18 June 2020. Signatory Vintage released it as a Rare Reserve within the Cask Strength Collection.

The cask yielded just 82 bottles. The whisky was bottled at its cask strength of 56.8%, without chill filtration or added colouring. The 0.7-litre bottle comes in a wooden box.

Despite its considerable age, this Ardbeg has a distinctly peaty and salty character. Vanilla and candied apple notes provide a sweet contrast, while earth and oak complete the profile.

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: Dense smoke combines with sweet lemon sorbet on the nose. Dark earth, ash and vanilla add to the aromas. The nose is concentrated and elegant; a creamy tar note appears at the outset, accompanied by plenty of peat smoke, seaweed and dried herbs.
• Palate: The powerful, dynamic flavour is accompanied by an almost syrupy texture. Peat smoke and sea salt make a stronger impression on the palate than the sweet notes of candied apple and creamy vanilla. Earth and oak complement these impressions, alongside black pepper, tar, saddle leather and wood resin.
• Finish: Peat remains present throughout the long finish, accompanied by fruity accents and salted caramel. Tar and pepper add spice, with subtle maritime and medicinal notes.

Distillery/Bottler:

Ardbeg stands on the southern coast of the Scottish island of Islay and was founded in 1815. Following decades of financial difficulties, its acquisition by The Glenmorangie Company in 1997 secured the distillery’s future. A distinctive feature of its distillation is the purifier on the connecting pipe of the second still: it encourages the fruity and floral qualities of the spirit, providing a counterpoint to the smoke. The 1979 vintage predates the difficult years of the 1980s and 1990s.

Independent bottler Signatory Vintage was responsible for selecting this cask and bottling its whisky. Andrew Symington founded the company with his brother in Edinburgh in 1988. His involvement with individual whisky casks had begun while he was working at Prestonfield House Hotel. After purchasing Edradour distillery in 2002, Signatory moved its operations to Pitlochry, completing the relocation by 2007. Warehouse capacity there was later expanded to accommodate more than 20,000 casks.

Facts: