Ardbeg 8 Year Old For Discussion Whisky Review!

A new Ardbeg named "For Discussion"? Well OK then, if you insist!

An affordable, age statement Ardbeg at a decent strength is always difficult to resist. But I was a little deterred by 2020's Wee Beastie, the 5-year old Ardbeg which some seem to love but I personally found disappointing. Sure, it's OK for the price point overall. But it's the same price as Ardbeg 10-year old, or at least it is here in Australia, and the Ten is still one of the best value core range single malts on the market. Despite being the same strength the Ten offers vastly more depth and complexity than Wee Beastie, and is also one of the more consistent whiskies out there when it comes to the level of quality that it offers. I can see what they were going for with the 5-year old of course; a younger, more spirit-led and smokier expression, and the same approach has worked brilliantly for the likes of Lagavulin 8 vs. 16, but in my opinion Wee Beastie missed the mark, and I suspect just hadn't spent enough time in casks, or at least in the right casks. Other Islay distilleries such as Kilchoman and Bruichladdich are consistently putting out whiskies at similar ages that absolutely eclipse the 5-year old Ardbeg in every category, albeit at slightly higher prices, but then both are made by significantly smaller distilleries. Whiskies of these young ages can be outstanding drams, but it's always important to remember that age is just a number, and that number doesn't necessarily equate to maturity or quality. There are a huge number of variables involved, from the spirit itself to the casks used and just about everything in between, so there's no rule to be broken here. But it's a fact that good quality casks, whether first-fill or refill, play a huge role in the final character and depth of a young whisky, regardless of which distillery produced them. 

Despite all that, when this 8-year old Ardbeg "For Discussion" I was instantly excited to get my hands on a bottle. European reviews seemed mixed, and it was a lengthy wait before stock arrived in Australia - lengthier than usual thanks to COVID, of course. But an age statement Ardbeg bottled at just over 50% ABV, especially one that hits the Australian market at a surprisingly reasonable price - circa $120 AUD, which is quite incredible really - was always going to find it's way through my door. Not only was it sold direct to Ardbeg committee members through Moet Hennessy Australia, it was also released to some retailers, so there certainly seems to be a good amount of stock available locally. There are also semi-official murmurings and snippets (including one from Bill Lumsden himself) that this Ardbeg was fully matured in ex-sherry casks, although I'd say all or at least most of them would've been refill casks - but that's no bad thing, not at all. If true that's an interesting point of difference here, because the flagship 10-year old is fully matured in first-fill and refill ex-bourbon casks, and the last age statement 8-year old Ardbeg that was released, the delicious third "Path to Peaty Maturity" bottling titled "Almost There", was fully matured in first-fill ex-bourbon casks. Well actually Almost There didn't have an exact age statement, but it had a year of distillation of 1998 and a year of bottling of 2007, making it a minimum age of 8-years old. There have been a few sherry cask influenced Ardbegs released over the years, such as the venerable but variable Uigeadail, and 2016's Dark Cove, and most of the more recent releases including Wee Beastie and An Oa have reportedly had some sherry casks in the mix - although you'll struggle to find any real sherry influence in either of those. But an Ardbeg that has been fully- and wholly-matured in ex-sherry casks is quite the rare thing, particularly in the form of an official bottling. So this is quite the interesting proposition!

I know I mention this almost every time I review a limited release Ardbeg that comes to Australia, but credit must again be given to Moet Hennessy Australia for releasing this limited bottling at an extremely reasonable price, and for bringing it to the ever-thirsty Australian Ardbeg fans in decent numbers. They could quite easily have charged a significantly higher price (like they do for their older whiskies - the third batch of the 19-year old Traigh Bhan is now $420 AUD), but instead they've kept it at a level where it is affordable for the average whisky enthusiast. Which means more of these bottles will be opened, shared and enjoyed - just as a whisky named "For Discussion" should be! That name by the way harkens back to the early days of the Ardbeg Committee and the plain-labelled committee releases from the early 2000s that are now the stuff of legend, and of course command legendary prices if they do appear for resale. Bottlings such as Very Young, Young Uigeadail a.k.a. "The Oogling", and the pre-release / advance release of Alligator that were far more limited than the more contemporary committee releases and were actually exclusive to the committee's members. The text on the labelling of this new 8-year old, giving only basic tasting notes and little information written in the style of meeting minutes, also harkens back to those early days of the Committee where the booklets were sent out and were written like meeting minutes - they also came with a temporary tattoo, which was actually pretty cool and made for some great pranks! So, an 8-year old Ardbeg, semi-officially matured in ex-sherry casks, bottled at 50.8% ABV - so not cask strength, but definitely nothing to sneeze at. It's also naturally coloured and non-chill filtered, as is the case with all Ardbeg single malts, although sadly the former point is no longer printed on the packaging like it used to be. That's enough discussion, it's time for a dram!

Ardbeg 8-Year Old "For Discussion", 50.8%. Islay, Scotland.

Semi-officially stated to be fully matured in ex-sherry casks, presumably refill. Non-chill filtered, natural colour. 

Colour: Pale gold. I'd say one shade darker than the 10yo. 

Nose: Lovely. Fatty & salty smoked bacon, dark chocolate, thick tar, touches of fresh oily fish and spent coffee grounds. Sweet vanilla cream with thick salted caramel and a touch of grilled banana - so make that banoffee pie, but much lighter on the banana than they usually are. Lovely fresh touches of aniseed, gristy (floury) malt, warm sea salt and dried pineapple. 

Texture: Medium weight. Fatty and slightly creamy. Sweet and peaty, well balanced. Very slight heat, very pleasant.

Taste: Sweet, salty & nicely peaty. More salty & fatty smoked bacon but it's verging on burnt this time. Black pepper, thick tar, and that sweet vanilla cream. Salted caramel, ashy peat smoke, dried banana & pineapple around the edges. Lovely smoky, gristy malt and aniseed freshness again, with lightly bitter dark chocolate. 

Finish: Medium-long length. Fatty smoked bacon again, more black pepper, and lovely smoked ham baked with a little honey & orange. Light ashy peat smoke, aniseed again and a slight vegetal / herbal touch. 

Score: 4 out of 5. 

Notes: Delicious Ardbeg! After my slight disappointment with the 5-year old Wee Beastie I wasn't quite sure what to expect here, but this 8-year old is on an entirely different level if you ask me. There's far more depth, more character and a better balance here than its younger core range cousin. For discussion is a winner! There isn't a huge overt sherry influence to be found, but again that's no bad thing - and the smell & taste has me believing the semi-official semi-rumours that it was matured in refill sherry casks. The bacon and ham notes in this whisky already had me convinced, but there's also a shade of Uigeadail here that could be hinting at the source of some of those refill sherry casks. That's our speculation, mind you! The 8-year old is also not as "bright" in style as I would expect from an ex-bourbon cask Ardbeg. They also tend to be quite fruity and less pungent than this 8-year old. 

But that's all guesswork really, at the end of the day what actually matters is the smell & taste of the whisky itself, and there's plenty of both to be found in this dram. This is a great example of a younger whisky that is fresh & lively on one hand, and also mature & characterful on the other. Ardbeg 8 "For Discussion" was an absolute bargain at the original retail pricing, even here in Australia - which is not something we can say very often these days. Let's hope that low pricing and also the good amount of stock means that this whisky is opened & enjoyed and then discussed at length, rather than being flipped on auction sites or collecting dust (like the 19-year old will be at its new price). Let's also hope that this 8-year old Ardbeg isn't a one-off! Well done to Ardbeg & Moet Hennessy Australia. Highly recommended.

Cheers!