Ardbeg Wee Beastie 5 Years
After the No Age Statement (NAS) Whiskys (legitimately) earned some criticism in recent years, the Islay distillery Ardbeg dared to take the bold step of releasing a young single malt with an age statement and including it in the standard bottlings.The Ardbeg Wee Beastie is intended as a young, wild and untamed bottling to expand the standard range. After a maturation period of 5 years, it is to be expected that some flavours will not be quite round yet. Incidentally, the Wee replaces the Ardbeg Corryvreckan as Ardbeg's most peated Scotch.
The panel
Mean 80.0 · spread 4
Value for money 4/5
- Distillery
- Ardbeg
- Type
- Single Malt
- Region
- Isle of Islay
- Country
- Scotland
- Age
- 5 years
- Strength
- 47.4% ABV
- Character
- peaty
Tasting
Nose
We smell vinegary acidity, black pepper and strong sweet tobacco smoke. The combination somehow reminds us of the rubber of bicycle tyres that have just ridden through barbecue sauce. A little salty liquorice and vanilla bean shine through.
Palate
Darkly burnt smoked bacon with a little sugar first hit the tongue. In the middle are tar, leather and intense peat smoke. As in the nose, saltiness and a nuance of vanilla also resonate here.
Finish
A dry, peaty something lingers forever in the aftertaste.
Verdicts
Marcel
The Wee Beastie is no gentle introduction to the world of Ardbeg – it comes across wild, raw, and with a sharp distillery character that won’t immediately win everyone over. Those who enjoy intense, unrefined Islay power and are happy to engage in a smoky dance with tarry notes will definitely have a blast here. However, it’s definitely not suited for cozy evenings or whisky beginners.
Sascha
At just 5 years old, the Ardbeg Wee Beastie presents an unusual, still unfinished structure dominated by peat and smoke notes. The absence of the usual Oloroso sherry cask finish results in a less harmonious overall profile, deliberately smokier and thus somewhat unbalanced. For lovers of complex, powerful Islay whiskies, it still offers interesting facets but demands a mindful tasting.
What it is worth
We do not yet hold bottle-level auction results — that sits behind Whisky Hunter’s authenticated feed. What follows is the market for Ardbeg as a whole, which sets the weather for this bottling without pricing it.
Latest mean bid £218 across 1,142 lots · 2024-08