Ardbeg Launches Smokiverse
Ardbeg Smokiverse – the distillery’s first whisky crafted from a high-gravity mash – has been announced as 2025’s Ardbeg Day limited edition bottling.
Held annually on the final Saturday of Islay’s Festival of Music and Malt (Fèis Ìle), Ardbeg Day is a global celebration of all things Ardbeg. This year, the event falls on May 31st and festivities are set to take place at the distillery and at Ardbeg partner bars and retailers around the world.
Ardbeg Smokiverse is the result of the Ardbeg Whisky Creation Team’s experimentation with the mashing process, in which malted barley is converted into fermentable sugars. One of their experiments involved reducing the amount of water used in the packed mash tun. Ardbeg claims this “high-gravity” mash magnified the intensity of flavor-active compounds known as acetate esters, leading to a fruitier, more tropical spirit.
Ardbeg Smokiverse was aged in bourbon casks and is bottled NCF (Non Chill-Filtered) at 48.3% ABV. Official tasting notes follow:
Aroma: A burst of fruity, ester notes, almost like smoked bubble gum, along with a beautiful aroma of ripening barley and toasted sourdough bread. With water, more of the smoke notes appear, but in this instance the peat smoke is very sweet and aromatic, almost reminiscent of juicy tropical fruits which have been gently smoked.
Taste: A rich, creamy texture is followed by some sharp sooty and spicy notes, like tar, creosote, aniseed and clove, but these are tempered with a distinctive sweetness, like muscovado sugar. There are some structured, woody notes, like sweet oak and leather.
Finish: Some earthy peat moss, bonfire embers and charcoal.
Ardbeg Smokiverse will be available at select retailers beginning May 15th for a suggested retail price of $124.99.
Source: Ardbeg.