Ardbeg Corryvreckan
The whisky takes its name, Correyvreckan, from the famous whirlpool that lies to the north of Islay, where only the bravest souls dare to venture. Swirling aromas and torrents of deep, peaty, peppery taste lurk beneath the surface of this beautifully balanced dram.
I finally opened it this weekend and was amazed at what I found. I like Ardbeg generally and have a preference for smoky, peaty scotches (Lagavulin, Laphroaig, Caol Ila, etc). This scotch is smoky, peaty but so much more.
Borrowing the tasting notes from an online review at The Whisky Exchange, here's how they described it:
Colour: A very appealing gold, no doubt in part due to the French wine casks (good-quality Burgundy) in which some of the spirit was matured. On the Colour Me Goodd scale, this is luteous or aurulent.
Nose: Over-ripe oranges, strong bitter marmalade and hot-buttered toast initially, then hints of some more exotic fruit (perhaps fresh pineapple or passionfruit? Wine cask-induced?). Tinned peach syrup. Turfy phenolics are smouldering in the background. Becomes more citrussy with a few minutes in the glass, running the gamut from the previously-mentioned oranges, through Cointreau, then lemon sherberts, grapefruit, and lemon cheescake. Continues to evolve over time, which is always a good sign. Eventually more savoury notes creep in – Frazzles, some pepper, woodspice and an appealing breadiness. In a word? Appetising.
Palate: Rich, luxuriant mouthfeel - definitely more weighty than most standard Ardbegs. Good concentration of most of the flavours mentioned above but, after an initial burst of sweetness, becomes more savoury than a cursory nosing would suggest. The exotic fruit comes through as peaches and passionfruit. Peppery at full strength, with faint notes of damson jam. Generous turfy peat, but also becomes quite coal-like mid-palate, with a suggestion of the wet cardboard character sometimes associated with youth. In a word? Oof-aaahh.
Finish: Good length. The peat and pepper hang in there, balanced with a return to the orangey citrus notes from the initial nose. Decent balance and a lovely briny note right at the death - the hand is already floating towards the bottle for a refill almost automatically. In a word? Moreish.
