Ardbeg Vintage Y2K 23 Year Old
The millenium was a key date in the history of Ardbeg, as the distillery completed three years of renovation and began producing the smoky-sweet spirit we now know and love. At the same time, Dr. Bill and the whisky creation team laid down the casks which are being released as the Ardbeg Vintage Y2K series. Combining old and new, it merges modern, innovative whisky techniques whilst using the old Ardbeg stills.
The first bottling is this unique 23-year-old whisky, which has been matured in Oloroso and bourbon casks. Distilled in the year 2000, Vintage Y2K perfectly encapsulates the optimism and excitement surrounding Ardbeg in that momentous year. Bottled at 46% abv.
The nose is herbal, sweet and fragrant, with a subtle, distant perfumed smokiness and touches of lemon balsam, linseed oil and candied walnuts. At first the flavour is intensely sweet, then shifts as aniseed, toffee, digestive biscuits, peppermint, menthol, tar and coffee grits burst through. The sooty flavours build before dissolving into a long, lingering aftertaste of antiseptic lozenges, bitter oranges and oak tannins.
ashley –
This is a whisky that commands your full attention. It opens with that unmistakable Ardbeg smoke, then evolves into leathery, herbal, and slightly fruity notes. The finish is long and elegant. Slightly pricey, but justified by its complexity and rarity
Mensa –
The Ardbeg Y2K 23 Year Old is more than just a bottle it’s a piece of whisky history. The balance between peat smoke, coastal salinity, and aged oak is absolutely sublime. It’s rare to find something so mature that still carries the DNA of classic Ardbeg so clearly. Worth every penny.”
loricpula –
If you love older Islay whiskies, this is an absolute gem. The peat is still there, but softened and woven into layers of sweetness and spice. It’s like sitting by a fire in a seaside cabin. I’ll remember this dram for a long time.