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KWM 2020 Whisky Calendar Day 23: Ardmore Legacy

Posted on November 7, 2021

by Evan

Day 23 brings us something a little bit different: this is a peated malt from the Highlands. Today's mini bottle is the Ardmore Legacy.

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 production 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, and the only official bottle that makes its way to Alberta the Legacy that we will be trying. Ardmore does also release three other bottlings, but one of them is duty-free only and the remaining two have yet to make their way to Canada.

Beam Suntory seems to treat Ardmore as the red-headed stepchild in its Scotch Whisky portfolio. 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!

Maybe they are reluctant to give Ardmore any love publicity or release-wise because they don't want to take away stock from its use in the Teacher's Highland Cream Blended Scotch. Or perhaps they don't want to focus on Ardmore and lose focus on another one of their peated brands such as Laphroaig, Bowmore or Connemara.

Or perhaps Beam Suntory is just happy to have Ardmore be a workhorse distillery that steadily produces whisky out of the limelight, just as they seem to be with Alberta which seems to be similar to the treatment Alberta Distillers has been given for much of the past decade or more. 

At least they do mention Ardmore under Scotch though.



But I digress. Though there is a lack of official bottlings of Ardmore available, you can find indie bottlings of it quite regularly - the Scotch Malt Whisky Society has especially been a fan of it over the past few years. This is probably because Ardmore offers peated whisky at non-Islay prices. The 100 ml bottle that capped off our 2019 version of the KWM Whisky Calendar included an Ardmore titled 'BIG ON BACON'. That bottle sold out a long while ago sadly.

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.

So, what should we expect from the Ardmore Legacy that we will be tasting today? It has been eons since I have tasted it, but for me, Ardmore always has this sweet, smoky Weetabix cereal thing going on with plenty of malty richness both the nose and taste. Will the Legacy show this character as well? Let's pour a dram and find out!



Ardmore Legacy - 40% ABV

Evan's Tasting Note

Nose: Did somebody call for breakfast? Crispy bacon, oatmeal with honey and peach slices, and pancakes with syrup. Plus a little cigar smoke and ivory soap bar.

Palate: A bit salty with a floral smokiness, vanilla, bacon again, hot chocolate powder, oatmeal cookies, and lemonade.

Finish: Smoky with fruit and malt and a touch of lavender.

Comment: Not the most complex single malt in the world, but it gives you an idea of what Ardmore is capable of. It is well put together for a NAS 40% Single Malt Scotch.

What did you think of this introduction Ardmore? If you haven't tried anything else from the distillery, I would suggest seeking out other bottlings. In my estimation, it is an underrated distillery and style.

Only two more bottles to go on this festive rollercoaster. Are you ready for the penultimate bottle that lays behind Door Number Twenty-Four? That is what is coming up next!

Cheers,
Evan
[email protected]
Twitter and Instagram: @sagelikefool

This entry was posted in Store, Whisky, Tastings, KWM Whisky Calendar 2020, Whisky Calendars

 

 

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