Ardbeg 1990 Airigh Nam Beist 2006 First Release 16 Year Old 700ml 46%

Tasting notes by Serge Valentin
Nose: starts smokier and also much more medicinal than both the old 17 yo and the current 10yo. Bold notes of iodine and Mercurochrome, getting then very mineral (flints, coal) and nicely sour (lemon, fresh walnut skin). Goes on with whiffs of sea air and a little diesel oil, lamp petrol…Really sharp – great here – and uncompromising, with a ‘nasal finish’ on raw peated barley and wood smoke, with kind of an enjoyable acridness. Very different from its colleagues Uigeadail and 10yo, with no fruits or roundness whatsoever. Maybe the bad boy in the range?
Palate: extremely consistent, just as nicely sharp as the nose suggested. The attack is slightly salty, very lemony and quite peppery, with kind of a greenness (apple skin, green tea, very dry white wine). A tad less smoky than on the nose. Lots of fresh bitter almonds, a little paraffin, strong cough syrup… Petrol (not that I already tried that), grapefruit skin… I
It’s juts at the rather long finish that a little sweetness comes through (apple compote) together with quite some salt and spices (green curry). Excellently sharp – a great, great surprise, this new Ardbeg!