Ardbeg Blasda Single Malt Whisky

Ardbeg Blasda Single Malt Whisky

Ardbeg Distillery (Scottish Gaelic: Taigh-stail Àirde Beaga) is a distillery in Ardbeg on the south coast of the isle of Islay, Argyll and Bute, Scotland, in the Inner Hebrides group of islands.
The distillery is owned by Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy, and produces a heavily peated Islay whisky.  The distillery uses malted barley sourced from the maltings in Port Ellen.
The Ardbeg distillery has been producing whisky since 1798 and began commercial production in 1815.

The Ardbeg Blasda is a lightly-peated dram from the Ardbeg distillery. Released in October 2008, this limited edition tamed version of Ardbeg was peated to an average of 8ppm, much lower than the more usual 24ppm. Rather controversially, Blasda was also bottled in clear glass, at 40% ABV and was chill filtered in contrast to the distillery’s usual output which is typically un-chill filtered and offered in the iconic green bottles.

    Nose:    Light, very light indeed. Surprisingly, some peat smoke and ash, very little but more than expected. Rather fruity with green apples, fresh lemons and some kiwis. Small hints of salty caramel and vanilla.

    Taste:    A bit smokier and ashier now, but not a lot. All the fruits are back plus some peaches and lemon zest.

    Finish:    Short and fruity. Pretty lemony with hints of peat smoke.

Note: Product has come from a private collection, minor markings are inevitable and collectors should have reasonable expectations in this regard.