A long time ago in a galaxy far far away, SMWS released their previous Ardbeg bottling. It was the 33.131 “A Mad Scientist on the Dockside”, and it was released for the 2013 Christmas outturn. As seems appropriate for current affairs this new bottling is a bit of a sequel to that 2013 one. It’s also from a 2nd fill ex-sherry butt and about the same age (8 years as opposed to 7). I didn’t get to try that last one but I jumped on the opportunity to try this one!
I’ll just get into a bit of background on Ardbeg and why this bottling is so exciting. Currently Ardbeg has only 3 official core expressions: Ardbeg 10, Uigeadail, Corryvrecken. They also release limited edition expressions a couple times a year. However, they have not released a new age statement bottling for a few years and independent bottlings of Ardbeg are scarce. As Ardbeg has quite the following among whisky drinkers, any new Ardbeg usually causes quite a stir in the community. The official limited edition NAS expressions usually command quite a price, ranging from £85-125 and independent bottlings seem to start around £150 these days. The independent bottlings also tend to be from bourbon casks. Thus the 33.132 presents a new and exciting treat for Ardbeg enthusiasts. All this is just to provide some context for the price tag. £120 for an 8 year old whisky certainly seems steep but in the current world of whisky this is sadly no longer shocking. Well as Ardbeg knows, the whisky market is a rollercoaster and we’ll just have to see where it goes.
Bottler: SMWS
Distillery: Ardbeg Distillery
SMWS Code: 33.132
SMWS Name: Beauty and the Beast
Age: 8 Years Old
Cask: Ex-Sherry Butt 2nd Fill
ABV: 60.9%
Distill Date: 24 May 2007
Outturn: December 2015
Bottle Numbers: 624
Price: £120.00
