Review by: dustbunna
Distillery: Ardnamurchan.
Bottler: Distillery bottling.
Region: Highlands, Scotland.
ABV: 57.3%. Cask strength.
Age: NAS but youngest component 6 years old. Distilled in 2017/2018. Bottled in 2024.
Cask type: Peated spirit in Madeira barriques vatted with one unpeated sherry butt.
Price: $90 USD for 700mL.
Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.
Bottle open across approx. 6 months, notes taken leisurely across that period. Bold notes taken beneath the shoulder, regular-formatted notes taken further into the bottle past the halfway point, italicized notes taken towards the heel.
Nose: gunpowder, roasted almonds, bright red berries, caramel popcorn, pastry dough, cinnamon, chocolate.
Palate: medium-full body ~ more nuts, berries, smoke, plums, a medicinal note in the background, more caramel popcorn, more chocolate, some more gunpowder sneaks through.
Finish: medium-long ~ lingers on smoke and roasted nuts, chalk, red grapes. Coal soot, menthol, diesel.
Conclusion: I tried this western US exclusive at a tasting with Carl Crafts (ambassador for Ardnamurchan) and was immediately smitten by it, and planned to buy as soon as I could find one. Upon doing so and cracking it open, initially I thought I might have made a mistake…what I now had a full bottle of was SO gunpowdery and seemed very different from what I tried at the tasting. I gave it a few weeks to settle down, hoping it would find its way back, and I’m glad to say it did. Out of that initial sulfury and austere funk grows this beautiful roasted almond and caramel popcorn core, flanked by red berries, chocolate, and smoke. Madeira casks seem to be a great fit for Ardnamurchan’s fruity, mineralic spirit; it all works together incredibly well here. The gunpowder never goes away entirely, it just ebbs and flows in the middle distance at a reasonable level for me, framing all the other delicious things going on. Ardnamurchan yet again hits it out of the park; this is probably my favorite bottling I’ve tried from the distillery so far, edging out the first ArdnAmerica release by a tick.
Final Score: 88.
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Malt Runners 