Ardbeg 1976

Overall rating: 94.24/100
votes: 155

Category: Single Malt
Distillery: Ardbeg
Bottler: Distillery Bottling
Vintage: 04.11.1976
Bottled: 10.06.2008
Calculated age: 31 years old
Casktype: Sherry Butt
Casknumber: 2397
Number of bottles: 519
Strength: 52.4 % Vol.
Size: 700 ml
Bottled for: La Maison du Whisky
Market: France
Added on: 23 Oct 2008 1:43 pm

Average value

€ 5170,49

Found 5 online shops. Lowest price:

€ 3499,00

	Kokkens Vinhus	€ 3563,46

	whiskyundwild.de	€ 4099,00

	The House of Rare Whisky	€ 4650,00

	The Whisky Shop Singapore	€ 10041,00

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155 × member ratings

130 × in collection

Whisky Reviews for Ardbeg 1976

16 users have left a review for this whisky and scored it an average of 94.24 points

ASWhisky scored this whisky 94 points
07 Mar 2015 10:00 pm
yes! I'm in heaven and can not leave here

many seductive aromas with character and exciting staged

Ranking: 1.Nase, 2. Mouth, 3. Reminder

Nose

You go to the pier to look at the strange ship
the salty seawater has been retiring for hours
the warm sandy silt smells mineral
The iodine shimmers in the last seawater puddles
the ship rises out of the mud like a frozen skeleton
next to the damp slippery algae at the jetty
small sherry barrels and wooden boxes filled with ripe oranges pile up
warm wind blows you against the spicy fragrance of the strange ship
Coffee, cloves, a touch of cardamom, cayenne pepper, mugwort
Peaty smoke mixes with the fresh scent of the oranges
The ship creaks in the sun and wakes you from your dreams
You open your lips to breathe deeply the exotic smell

Taste

Chocolate with a fresh orange taste touches your tongue
spicy Arabic coffee
Sea water with salt, iodine and algae
damp ship wood
everything becomes exotic, spicy and spicy in your mouth
the harbor, the sea, the smoky roasted aromas
and in the background like a perfect underpainting the noble unobtrusive sherry note
The taste in your mouth awakens desires and fantasies in you

Finish

long and warm
dark spicy coffee flavors
barrel flavors
warm orange slices
Mocha…
the sun is setting slowly in the seawater
Tomorrow you go back to the pier
the memory will not let you go
lincolnimp did not rate this whisky
26 Dec 2016 1:08 pm

UndergroundAgent your review score makes little sense if you think the finish is 100 fair enough but scoring 100 for price and presentation, what gives?????

You have done the same for the Brora 4th release, and all the other bottles you have rated this morning how can you give these bottles 100 on price considering what they go for which is ridiculous money now.

The price part is supposed to be in reality on value and in no shape or form can these be considered value.
lincolnimp did not rate this whisky
31 Aug 2018 11:36 am

Hi undergoundagent, the point I was making (in 2016) is that under the old review system if you put price and presentation at 100 and your other scores were at say 96 the 100 points scores would make your average score incorrect and artificially inflated especially, as you say, if you think the price scoring is arbitrary and useless why put price and presentation at 100?
Anyway there was agreement on the base that price and presentation were taken from the old reviews so people agree with you on that score, myself included. This is the problem when things change , sometimes the notes are no longer relevant,
SFWC scored this whisky 96 points
31 Aug 2018 1:35 am

linconimp in reply to your comment on me scoring pricing at 100. Pricing scores are irrelevant as the prices vary for everybody. Lets say I acquired this bottle today for $500. My price score could be 100 and lets say you acquire it for $3000 your score could be 50? Its arbitrary and a useless metric on here imo. Auction prices differ vastly and the subjectivenes of pricing for each individual has to be considered. So. Our scores only reflect the quality of the spirit in the bottle and I would ask you to ignore the pricing or presentation scores. We actually throw out all packing, boxes etc from our cellar to maximise space. We only care about the quality of the whisky in the bottle.
SFWC scored this whisky 96 points
05 Mar 2018 4:28 am
The Nose is powerful and complex. There is a lot going on in here. Sherry fruits in harmony with Ardbeg spirit and peat power.

On the palate in combination with the nose, this is really One of the truly great old Ardbegs. The combination of sweet and sour here is superlative. The sherry never dominates. It compliments the Ardbeg spirit and peat flavors perfectly. The harmony in this glass elevates the drinker.

Arguably, it may not have the dark complexities of an old Brora or some old Samaroli blends and other more savory malts but what it brings to the party is an unforgettable and lasting performance.
- Nose
  
  96 96
- Taste
  
  96 96
- Finish
  
  96 96
Thermidor scored this whisky 93 points
17 Dec 2017 9:32 pm
By nose a 94, by taste a 93, but a fresher bottle could've maybe hit solid 94.

lincolnimp: "how can you give these bottles 100 on price considering what they go for which is ridiculous money now."

I'm not the user you asked, but this is why the price should not have a score on this site: At release this bottle was a bargain, now it's 3k€. Which price should a user vote on, and how can people who bought one on release to open it now and people who bought one at thousands of euros ever arrive at a common price score that would provide any meaningful information to anyone?

Nose

Uh-oh. Smells like gratuitous malt porn here. It's that 70's show, with all the favorites like the smoothest leathery notes ever, from boots to bags to bookbinds. Perfect fatty peat, blackpepper, herbal liqueurs, and soft salmiak notes. Faintly marine and salty too, and very total, without dissonances or vulgarities. With water: the same but it's easier to pick up the charry, sherried oak now, and some chocolate appears. Oddly, for about 5-10 minutes after adding water, it smells strongly like a tire fire. Perhaps an artifact of this dram being from a bottle that has been open an unknown amount of years.

Taste

Absurdly good body. Amply giving and rounded, with glorious levels of biting, all-encompassing peat and old sherry. A fair amount of drying tannins and strong char. The sherry's not at all sweet, but it's very resinous with a side of excellent soy sauce. Water doesn't seem to dilute it at all. It just takes the edge off the ABV and the peat.

Finish

Takes a while to sit down, leaving charred sherry and a mouth-coating layer of peat that doesn't seem to go away at all. So vivid and attention-grabbing! Water makes the sherry last that much longer.
dram-drinker scored this whisky 95 points
03 Aug 2016 11:11 pm
- Nose
  
  94 94
- Taste
  
  96 96
- Finish
  
  95 95
dram-drinker scored this whisky 95 points
03 Aug 2016 11:00 pm
A rather meaty expression of an Ardbeg but with a great sweetness. Fantastic!

Nose

Fresh, peaty, smoky, bonfire, citrusy, zesty, also a bit going into grassy notes - typical great Ardbeg - a bit lacking of sweetness

Taste

The sweetness is back which was missing on the nose - it's greatly in balance with the peat and smoke and the woody notes. Meaty, Pata Negra ham, fruity, grapefruits, little citrusy.

Finish

Long and nice - the sweetness is carrying on
Snerik scored this whisky 93 points
08 Jun 2016 2:45 pm
It’s cool when you read all the different comments in the section below. Because it really shows of the depth of whisky as a product but also how completely different one person is from another when it comes to making associations and describing those experiences in text. Never the less – amazing whisky and I’m really glad and happy I got to try it!

Nose

This nose is just so, so expressive. Bacon, charcuteries, firewood, damp forest, grilled paprika, raisins, chives. This list goes on and on!

Taste

Slightly bitter, but very balanced. Loads of raisins here, and paprika and charcuteries.

Finish

Well, it’s a very peated finish. Notes of cacao, raisins and all that lovely goodness. But elegant and powerful!
aphex scored this whisky 94 points
29 Dec 2015 11:03 pm

Nose: A good peaty sherry with a little sea air. 31 minutes of ventilation later notes of softwoods, smoke, hydrocarbons. Gorgeous.
Palate: Nice attack. Softwood always, charcoal, tar. Superb.
Final: Long, on continuity.

Tasted for 1h30. Beautiful complexity and evolution on the evening between the nose and the mouth.

Superb dram.

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