Ardbeg Corryvreckan

I just realized that for some reason or another I have not posted a review of this batch. When I first met @Victor we tried his bottle of this batch. I thought it was a decent or average batch, and he thought it was the best his bottle had ever tasted after being open for 2 years plus! Some time later I realized that I actually had a bottle of this batch in reserve . . . so I opened it to see what my experience would be. After several tastings here is what I have found with my bottle:

Nose: More astringent then the L09. This is lemon, iodine, and astringency all punching you in the face. There is something dusty, peaty (smoky?), and earthy lingering in the background . . . but I am not sure exactly what it is given all the intense lemon and iodine. This is less about moss and way more about paint thinner. There is citrus (lemon peel-ish), some diesel, asphalt, and other mechanical equipment notes. There is an underbelly of peat but this is a thin and sad comparison to the gorgeous L9. With a little time I get down to earth and dirt to match the peat. Also I am getting some sweet notes . . . almost too-sweet ice cream of the vanilla variety. Yes, time is really needed to balance out this nose.

Taste: Same sweetness (perhaps the highest sweet tones of the night) as the other Corry batches I have. This really tastes like you are drinking Splenda and water with a hint of peat moss and a touch of smoke. Not impressive.

Finish: Huge explosion of power, sea salt, iodine, and a little peat. The pepper is outstanding: tons of black peppercorn, sea salt, and cayenne. Tons of fire power and spice. That said, there is none of that depth and earthiness I get from the other two batches of Corry tonight. I take that back – there is a hint of that “liquorish” note, but only at the very end.

Complexity, Balance: Not the most balanced or complex of the Corry batches. I dislike the extreme sweet and strong lemon. I find the balance off. With time the nose found itself . . . but then it would get lost again.

Aesthetic experience: I really love this bottle. Everything about it is wonderful, name, ABV, bottle color, nickname . . . except for the label getting sucked into the whirlpool, which seems tacky to me. All three expressions are spot on for color. The L9 might be a hair darker (or it is just my imagination).

Conclusion: @Victor has said that this batch started off with tons of lemon up front, but that after for about two and a half years it finally balanced out. My finding absolutely confirms this. This bottle has only been open since December 4th of 2013 so I’ll see how it does after a year. This batch isn’t as bad as the L13 240 . . . but it certainly isn’t anything to seek out. I know that in a few years that lemon should recede . . . but who wants to wait that long? I’m off looking for the next batch.

Find where to buy Ardbeg whisky