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Reviews by: Orrin
Ardbeg 10 Years Old May 6th 2010
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- Reviewer
- Orrin
- Color
- Vibrant amber.
- Nose
- Phenol with the edge of antitussive medicine, followed by a hint of smoke. Everything layered within the thick smell of humid marshlands just after a summer rain, earthy and heavy.
- Body
- Heavy. Thick body that remains omnipresent as the different flavours unfold.
- Palate
- Massive peat but tangy with medicine and smoked fish. Behind follow nuances of vanilla, metallic shades and a slight alcoholic burn.
- Finish
- The massive peat ceases, giving way to earthy flavours that quickly coalesce with phenol (medicine), iodine, resinous sweetness, and slight saltiness into a somewhat foul mix of stale water, rotten "things" and subtle sweetness that is topped off with the peat's bitter nots.
This malt has character, definitely, complex and rank. On the nose it might be enjoyable still for some but the way it finishes, in this foul taste, you really have to screw up your nose. I, too, cannot savour any smokiness here, just phenolic, stale, boggy flavours contrasted by a subtle but even rankier sweetness against the earthy background. And because its after taste is extremely resistant, the Lagavulin 16 Year Old is, like an emetic, urging you towards nausea if you don't stop! Thus the character is there but the balance is really bad (not to say odious). In jest: if you like bad things, you'll love this one!