Ardbeg Unveils The Abyss
Ardbeg has announced the launch of Ardbeg The Abyss, a limited edition 34 year old single malt Scotch whisky crafted from the same lot of casks used to create the original release of Ardbeg Corryvreckan.
The original Ardbeg Corryvreckan was released in 2008 as an Ardbeg Committee limited edition. It was crafted from a batch of 1989 spirit aged in bourbon casks for ten years, then partly finished in ‘ultra-active’ heavily toasted French oak barrels, described as casks that had undergone a unique rejuvenation process enhancing their ability to impart flavor and color.
The original release of Corryvreckan was so popular that Ardbeg made the decision to add it to its core range the following year. The whisky’s current recipe is formed of a marriage of Ardbeg fully matured in virgin French oak casks and bourbon casks.
While most of the ‘ultra-active’ French oak casks Ardbeg had maturing were used to form the 2008 release of Corryvreckan, a few were set aside at the distillery to explore what would happen with additional aging. Those casks make up Ardbeg The Abyss.
Official tasting notes for Ardbeg The Abyss follow:
Nose: Rich, pungent and aromatic but mellow, deep and gentle at the same time. There are aromas of toasting marshmallows, aromatic tea leaves, roasted chestnut, baking sourdough bread and something altogether zestier, like lemon balsam. A lingering, background sweetness, like demerara sugar, and then a hint of antique leather. A splash of water opens up the bouquet, to revel more herbal top notes, with a whisper of lemon sherbet and some pine resin.
Taste: A wonderfully mellow mouthfeel with a hint of spiciness, is followed by bold flavors of dark chocolate, pecan nut toffee, old leather, clove, ginger and a touch of treacle and creosote.
Finish: The smoke is always there, but beautifully integrated with the oak tannins, hints of baked apple and aniseed.
To celebrate this release, Ardbeg has collaborated with comic book author and artist, Tradd Moore, to create a graphic novel available in print exclusively with The Abyss. The comic is a re-imagining of The Legend of Prince Breacan:
The original legend of tells how the Norse prince travelled to win over a princess of the Isles. Her father agreed, as long as Breacan could anchor his ship in the Corryvreckan whirlpool for three days. Breacan was confident that his three ropes would hold fast. But on the first day, his hemp rope snapped, followed by a cord made of wool on the second day. On the third day, the tether braided from women’s hair finally gave way and Breacan was swallowed up by the whirlpool.
Tradd’s comic reimagines the tale of Breacan being swept into the whirlpool. It shows Breacan travelling through space, into a whirling Abyss – being engulfed by the sea witch who is said to control the whirlpool – and emerging transformed on Planet Ardbeg, which is in fact, Islay. In this way, the story reflects the whisky’s transformation over time, emerging reborn as Ardbeg The Abyss.
Ardbeg The Abyss is bottled at a cask strength of 48.4% ABV and presented in a capsule inspired by space and sea. A porthole-style window in the front of the capsule showcases the bottle and the graphic novel’s cover. On one side, a gauge measures the depth of flavors such as dark chocolate, toasted marshmallow and clove. On the other, the needle of another gauge points to the ABV. The capsule is opened through a hatch at the top, reminiscent of a space vehicle or submarine, to reveal the bottle and graphic novel. The bottle itself is adorned with the image of a whirlpool and is topped by a silver cap etched with line drawings by Tradd.
Ardbeg The Abyss is limited to 400 bottles and is available for purchase at Ardbeg.com, the Ardbeg Distillery Vistor Centre on Islay, and through the Moët Hennessy Private Client channel for a suggested retail price of $27,500.00.
Ardbeg Corryvreckan limited edition label designs by Tradd Moore
In celebration of Ardbeg Corryvreckan’s role in the distillery’s history, Ardbeg has also released 1,000 bottles of Corryvreckan featuring limited edition label designs by Tradd Moore. Four individual designs are available, each taken from a frame featured in The Abyss’ graphic novel. These bottles are available exclusively at the Ardbeg Distillery Visitor Centre on Islay.
Source: Ardbeg.