Ardbeg 10 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 750ml

Ardbeg 10 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky 750ml is the flagship bottling of Ardbeg Distillery, founded in 1815 near Port Ellen on the wild south coast of Islay, Scotland. Bottled at 46% ABV (92 proof) after ten full years in cask, this heavily peated Islay single malt has become a benchmark for the entire smoky whisky category, prized for a rare combination of intense peat and remarkably clean, citrus-bright spirit character that few distilleries anywhere can replicate.

The Ten is matured entirely in ex-bourbon American oak casks, a discipline that keeps the spotlight squarely on Ardbeg's famously complex distillate. The distillery's malted barley is peated to roughly 50 to 55 ppm, among the highest levels on Islay, yet careful, slow distillation preserves delicate floral and fruit notes beneath the smoke. Under Dr Bill Lumsden, Ardbeg's Director of Whisky Creation, every core bottling is non chill-filtered and delivered at 46% ABV or higher to retain full body and natural oils.

In the glass, the whisky opens with medicinal peat, campfire smoke and brine, quickly joined by lemon and lime zest, green apple and creamy vanilla. The palate arrives unexpectedly silky, layering espresso, dark chocolate, tarry rope and cracked black pepper over a rolling tide of smoke, before a famously long finish of sweet malted barley, bonfire embers and salted caramel that lingers for minutes. A splash of water teases out further waves of citrus, smoked fish and toasted almond, rewarding slow, patient exploration.

Recognition has followed for decades. Jim Murray named Ardbeg Ten World Whisky of the Year in his 2008 Whisky Bible, the first single malt Scotch ever to take that title, and gold medals have accumulated steadily since. For peat lovers this bottle is a rite of passage rather than a recommendation, and for any serious whisky shelf the green glass of the Ten is simply essential, the reference point against which every other smoky dram gets measured.

• Size: 750ml
• Proof: 92 Proof (46% ABV)
• Age: 10 Years
• Origin: Islay, Scotland
• Distillery: Ardbeg Distillery (est. 1815), Port Ellen, Islay
• Whisky Type: Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky
• Cask/Cooperage: Ex-bourbon American oak casks
• Series: Core Range (flagship, reintroduced 2000)
• Peating: Heavily peated malt, approx. 50-55 ppm
• Production: Non chill-filtered; bottled at 46% ABV
• Tasting Notes: Medicinal peat, lemon and lime zest, vanilla, espresso, dark chocolate, tarry rope, long smoky finish