[March, 2017]  Another Ardbeg re-taste:  When the first Corryvreckan was released I found it not just a very interesting dram with a new, never before tasted profile (due to its share of virgin oak matured malt) but it became my favourite modern Ardbeg too.  And I scored it with 88 points.

Today I tried a recent bottling of the Corryvreckan and - what a
disappointment:  It is rather unbalanced and with a slightly drying/bitter finish (not as extreme as with the recent TEN or Uigeadail, but still unpleasant).  I
guess Ardbeg increased the share of virgin oak matured spirit in this recipe significantly and
this higher proportion of heavy tannins (and lower share of sweet bourbon flavours) harm not just the balance but the mouthfeel too.

This is most probably due to the problem that LVHM has difficulties
in sourcing enough bourbon casks from the US.  The scotch whisky boom
came at a time when the US whisky industry was in deep recession - so
the Scotch demand for used bourbon casks was and still is much higher
than the US distilleries can supply. As a consequence the Scottish
distilleries cut down the maturation times to use the same cask more
often (and masked this by introducing NAS whiskies) AND (as this was not
enough) they had to use virgin oak casks in addition.  For sure they
market this as an intentional strategy, but it is pure despair in the
end.  What can do you if you do not have enough good quality casks at
your hands?

The outcome is devastating (at least to my tastebuds), but hopefully
they create a new followership among all the new whisky afficionados
that do not know how good Ardbeg and all the other great drams once
tasted...

This tastes like you would coat a banana in chocolate, and then put it on the barbecue. They good way. The very good way! This dram is among my alltime favorite whiskies.

People keep describing this as wild and intense, but I actually find it reserved and subdued. Not a peat monster at all; this is rather an Ardbeg Light, with a French oak treatment à la Glenlivet. It seems that this has suffered a significant drop in quality recently. Taken on its own, this is still good modern whisky, but it's nowhere near what it used to be. Can't hold a candle to the Uigedail.

The nose is dry and savory, with smoked ham, sea salt and parsley. There's none of the moist and swampy peatiness that the Uigedail displays; this is more herbal and dusty.

The dustiness also comes through on the palate: I mainly get crushed herbs and spices here. The smoke is of the "autumnal bonfire" variety, very leafy and twiggy. Really a lot of new-oak feel.

Ends dry and bitter, with no new elements.