Hooch Project NYC #16 - Ardbeg Airigh Nam Beist 1990
The Goal:
A super casual, nonprofit project aiming at discovering what spirits are really about by drinking the best stuff for very little money.
Two, sometimes three times a month I select ONE bottle of an excellent & rare spirit which is then poured at COST at one of my friends' bar.
Tasting lasts until the bottle is gone.
What: One bottle of Ardbeg Airigh Nam Beist 1990
How much: poured at cost i-e $4 per oz.
Why is it a good deal: a great whisky from a great distillery, plain and simple.
Where: Stella - 213 Front st (Seaport), NYC.
When: Tuesday April 3rd.
What Time: I'll open the bottle at 6:30pm sharp; tasting will last until the bottle is gone.
Requirements: be over 21, be there at 6:30pm if you want a chance to get a dram & have $4 on hand.
What does whisky expert Serge (Whiskyfun.com) says about it:
Ardbeg 1990 'Airigh Nam Beist' (46%, OB, 2006) A brand new version that should be steadily available from now on.
Like Uigeadail, the unpronouceable name is a lake's. Sort of replacement for the 17yo I guess…
Colour: straw.
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?
Mouth: 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… 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!
91 points.