Newsletter
Sign up for our newsletter for information on our latest products and promotions.
Sign up for our newsletter for information on our latest products and promotions.
Please confirm that you are of legal age
to purchase alcohol in your region.
You currently have an active checkout session
open already, would you like to clear it?
1257 Kensington Road NW
1 (403) 283-8000 / atyourservice@kensingtonwinemarket.com
It's not even debateable at this point: Gordon & MacPhail is unquestionably the world's preeminent independent bottler. They turn even the least interesting distilleries into Cinderellas. Needless to say, we're unapologetic G&M fans.
Ardmore is one of the distilleries that Gordon & MacPhail have partnered with for decades, releasing semi-official bottlings that vastly outshine the actual official bottlings. When there is an opportunity to nab a >20-year-old Ardmore from these guys and gals, it's a no-brainer.
The outturn from Refill American Hogshead Cask No. 900661 was 199 bottles.
Natural colour, Non-chill filtered, 24 years, and bottled at 55.2% abv.
700ml ml
Evan’s Tasting Note
Nose: Bacon frying on a cast iron skillet, peach cobbler, pineapple rings from the can, vanilla bean, and eucalyptus.
Palate: Apple tarts, peach slices wrapped in a crepe and drizzled in pancake syrup, more bacon, ginger ale, candied orange peel, rainbow popcorn, and a sip from a Mint Julep.
Finish: Tingly, smoky, and sweet.
Comment: This is a light and zingy Ardmore with plenty of fruit. Delicious!
Producer Tasting Note
"Honey aromas combine with cured meats and sweet smoke. Flavours of red apple intertwine with toasted oak and citrus fruit. A medium-bodied finish with almonds and bonfire embers."
Originally written by Evan for a blog post relating to KWM's 2020 Whisky Calendar.
Ardmore distillery was founded in 1898 and was purpose-built to provide whisky for Blending, as pretty much all distilleries were at the time. However with Ardmore that hasn’t changed much – even today just about all of Ardmore’s is still being used for blending, trading stock, or selling.
Only a small portion of Ardmore Single Malt Scotch lands in official bottles released by Ardmore and its parent company Beam Suntory. When it comes to profile and releases, Bowmore and Laphroaig get plenty of attention, being the Islay darlings that they are. Auchentoshan in the Lowlands gets similar treatment. Even Glen Garioch gets more releases, and that is saying something!
One of the reasons Ardmore is the heart of Teacher’s Highland Cream and also sought after by independent bottlers is that just about all of the whisky produced at the distillery is moderately peated. I have only tasted one unpeated Ardmore that I can recall. There is also a lighter peated style that the distillery makes which is sometimes dubbed Ardlair. I suspect some of the Ardmore I have tasted have been this style, which tends to amp up the sweet, creamy and ashy notes of the whisky.
$469.99
This 1997 vintage Ardmore was matured 24 years in a Refill Bourbon Hogshead before bottling at 52.4%.
Producer Note
"Since the dawn of creation, conscious beings have been asking themselves one thing: why does Ardmore taste like the smelly matter you find in Scottish farmyard...? The answer to this question has eluded the greatest scientific minds in the cosmos. Mayans, Vulcans, Time Lords, Vogons and David Attenborough have all tried, and failed, to discover the pungent truth. All we can do is play Sponge scrabble and ruminate deeply and profoundly, on the sheer number of silly toilet-centric words you can invent in association with Ardmore and all its bum-scented glory. Please enjoy this extremely classical 25 year old Ardmore that has been matured full term in a withered old refill hogshead and bottled at natural cask strength, thus retaining its maximum dung-addled distillate potency."
$514.99
Gordon & Macphail tends to bottle the best Linkwood, and we expect this 27 year old, 1995 vintage single cask (Refill Sherry Butt) ought to live up to that billing. 54.5%
$177.99
Hot take: the G&M semi-official Ardmore, bottled under the Distillery Label series, is far superior to the official branded releases. It's also abundantly clear that Ardmore is being handled with love and care at Gordon & MacPhail, where they match that big earthy, organic spirit profile with incredibly complimentary cask types. In this case, Refill Sherry Hogsheads. Miss this one at your own risk.
Natural colour, non chill-filtered, and bottled at 46%.
$464.99
Bottled at 22 years of age, this 2000 vintage Ardmore was matured in a Refill Hogshead before finishing in a first fill sherry butt. Bottled at a cask strength of 54.2%. 88.25pts Whiskybase
Producer Note
"This 2000 Ardmore is a great medley of farmy, earthy, smoky and sherry notes. We don’t normally go for whiskies that have been finished or re-racked. However, in this instance, the quality and richness of the sherry influence married so well with the fat, lightly peaty Ardmore distillate character that we couldn’t resist this lovely dark and gooey concoction. Bottled at natural cask strength, the finish is long and going towards tar resins, wood oils, mineral oil, strop leather and sooty waxes."
