Ardbeg Day 2012 Whisky Review!

The inaugural 'Ardbeg Day' release, the one that started it all over 13-years ago. The rarest of the Ardbeg Day bunch, the only one without a silly marketing story, and the one that everyone forgets about!

This wasn't the first Ardbeg Feis Ile release, there were single cask Feis Ile bottlings released for each festival around a decade or so prior, the first being released in 2002, and we shouldn't forget the legendary "El Diablo" PX cask release of 1,200 bottles from 2011. But this 2012 'Ardbeg Day' release was the first to be branded as an 'Ardbeg Day' bottling rather than a Feis Ile release, and it was the first of these to be distributed outside Islay during the festival rather than an actual distillery exclusive. Which is something they've done every year since, albeit now in larger quantities with higher prices, and with lower bottling strengths. This 2012 Ardbeg Day bottling, with 12,000 bottles released at a cask strength of 56.7% ABV, retailed for just £65 (roughly $130 AUD). It was followed by 2013's delicious "Ardbog" bottling (the only Ardbeg Day bottling with an age statement), 2014's lightly peated and diluted (not cask strength) Auriverdes, and 2015's Perpetuum, which celebrated the distillery's 200th anniversary. From 2015's "Perpetuum" until 2023's "Heavy Vapours" there were two versions of each Ardbeg Day bottling, a higher strength version 'Committee Release' bottling sold without a box, and a more numerous boxed release at a lower strength - generally 46% ABV. For 2024 & 2025 there has only been one version of the Ardbeg Day bottling, the 46% ABV one, the latest of which is priced at $200 and is still readily available on the shelves and sites - as are many of the recent releases. The highlights of the Ardbeg Day releases over those ten-ish years were, in my opinion, the Dark Cove Committee Release from 2016, and... err... that's probably it. Maybe an honourable mention for 2020's Blaaack Committee Release and 2021's Scorch Committee Release, I suppose. Some of the others have been enjoyable of course, but others have ranged from average, to downright disappointing. 

In more recent years Ardbeg have also released other limited edition whiskies in addition to the Ardbeg Day bottling, such as the very lacklustre Fermutation, the pretty good BizzareBQ, the very good 8 Year Old For Discussion, and the solid Eureka release from early 2025 - if you ask me those latter three have been the sweet spots of the Ardbeg line-up over the last few years, easily beating each year's Feis Ile / Ardbeg Day release, which have been steadily dropping in both quality and value for money. On the other end of the pricing scale there have also been older releases like the five different batches of 19-year old Traigh Bhan, the 21 Year Old, the 25-year old, and the three releases in the 'Twenty Something' series, plus a few others that were less notable - including a ridiculous cryptocurrency / NFT bottling that you couldn't buy with real money. Great idea there, coked-up marketing executives at LVMH... While these shenanigans were going on and the supporting marketing rubbish was getting all the attention, Ardbeg's core range of the Ten Year Old, Uigeadail, and Corryvreckan, have been quietly doing their thing, while easily surpassing the majority of the distillery's special releases in terms of quality and value for money. Unfortunately both Uigeadail (first released in 2003) and Corryvreckan (first released in 2009) have jumped up significantly in terms of pricing over the last few years, and batch quality has been up & down, but both are still bottled at the same high strengths of 54.2% and 57.1% respectively, while Ardbeg 10 (first released in current guise in 2000) remains one of the best bang-for-buck Islay single malts on the market. Unfortunately the extremely undercooked 5-year old Wee Beastie has since also joined the permanent line-up, which initially made us all concerned about the future of the flagship 10-year old, but so far, so good! 

All three of those original core range releases were already well-established when this Ardbeg Day bottling hit the airwaves in early 2012, with the major claim being that it was finished in ex-Uigeadail sherry casks. Supposedly this bottling is comprised of two different styles & vintages of ex-bourbon matured Ardbeg that were married together and finished in refill Oloroso sherry casks that were previously used for the sherry component of Uigeadail. The back label states that the finishing period was only six months, and while it's worth noting that some of the earlier vintages of Uigeadail used older ex-sherry casks, it's unlikely that this was still the case in the early 2010s. However, Uigeadail in this era was an excellent whisky until there seemed to be a change in style around 2014 - to a younger whisky with less sherry influence. With no age statement on this Ardbeg Day bottling - 2013's Ardbog is still the only Ardbeg Day release to have an age statement - it's hard to gauge ages, but based on taste I'm going to guess that this whisky is mostly on the young side, probably around 8-years. But there's nothing wrong with that when the right casks are used, like the 8-year old "For Discussion" has proven. 12,000 bottles of Ardbeg Day were released at a cask strength of 56.7% ABV, and it is non-chill filtered and natural colour. Let's get stuck in!

Ardbeg Day 2012, NAS, 56.7% ABV. Islay, Scotland.

Inaugural Ardbeg Day release, June 2012. Finished for six-months in refill sherry casks, rumoured to be ex-Uigeadail casks. Non-chill filtered, natural colour.

Colour: Bright gold. 

Nose: Rich, peaty, creamy. Big muddy peat, very salty (sea salt flakes), ground aniseed, salted limes, and some dried herbs. Plus a couple of honey-eucalyptus / honey-menthol cough drops. Dark chocolate with lime zest, sweet seaweed, black pepper, and jalapeno (smoked green chilli) flakes with more time. 

Texture: Medium-heavy weight. Oily, creamy, peaty, sweet, salty. No heat at all. 

Taste: Big oily entry, creamy vanilla, , brown sugar caramel, and sweet fruits in syrup. Then big sharp peat comes through, muddy & chunky, followed by a big pinch of sea salt, some seaweed, and dark chocolate. And those honey-eucalyptus cough drops, plus a slight touch of burnt bacon. A couple of dried currants, raisins, and coffee grounds around the edges heading into the finish. 

Finish: Long length. Still sweet, syrupy & peaty, a creamy & ashy peat smoke now with seaweed, brown sugar caramel, jalapeno flakes, and some warm powdered ginger. The currants, raisins, and coffee grounds come through, along with some herbal honey, lime marmalade (far superior to the orange stuff), and some dark chocolate. Touches of burnt bacon and ashy peat smoke to finish things off. 

Score: 4.5 out of 5. 

Notes: Delicious whisky, and a delicious Ardbeg. One of the best Ardbegs that I've had in quite a while, in fact. That sweetness, peatiness, saltiness, and creaminess - plus the lime and dark chocolate notes, point this out as a great "classic" Ardbeg, from before they started trying to fix what was never broken. I've read some reviews over the years that pegged this dram as hot & rough, but they mustn't have let it breathe properly - I'm not getting any of that, and this bottle has only had a few drams out of it after opening about a month ago. The short sherry cask finish does make itself known, but they were refill sherry casks, so the balance is pretty much spot-on in this Ardbeg Day bottling. I'd say they've just added some extra sweetness, some more fruitiness, and a few of those "darker" notes that show up around the edges. Plenty of flavour, plenty of character, and good balance. It's whiskies like this that put Ardbeg on the map for us Islay whisky fans back then, and, well... Sadly, they don't seem to make 'em like they used to. 

Please, Ardbeg, just give us a cask strength 10-year old. No playing with the recipe, no excessive marketing, no graphic novels bullshit, and no cryptocurrency ridiculousness. Just a cask strength ex-bourbon Ardbeg 10-year old. Don't muck with it, just skip the dilution down to 46% and give us the eau naturel version, and we'll all love you for it. You've let the independent bottlers have all the fun for a long time now, it's high time that your official bottlings got back in on the action. Rumour is that Laphroaig are dropping their 10-year old Cask Strength because their corporate overlords don't think it sells well enough, so it's time for Ardbeg to take up the mantle and give the fans what they want. Pretty please Dr. Bill, if you're reading this; you can do it, we believe in you! **EDIT: It looks like this might actually be happening! Labels are circulating online for a potential 10 Year Old Cask Strength committee release next year!**

Cheers!

Highwayman Tokyo Nights Whisky Review!

A small batch Highwayman single malt bottled in collaboration with Tokyo's outstanding Aloha Whisky Bar and Japan-based whisky personality & consultant Armando Sandoval. Half of the 240 x 500ml bottle batch stayed in Australia, while the other half travelled all the way from Byron Bay to Tokyo! 

Almost sounds like the opening to one of those "walks into a bar" jokes, doesn't it? A bald-headed Australian man named Dan and a bald-headed Mexican man named Armando walk into a whisky bar owned by a Hawaiian man (with a full head of hair) named David, and they decide to bottle a whisky together... But it's certainly not a joke! This is a Highwayman single malt whisky distilled and matured in Byron Bay, NSW, Australia, which was bottled as a share between Highwayman Whisky proprietor Dan Woolley, Japan-based whisky personality & consultant Armando Sandoval (@armandrinksss on Instagram), and Aloha Whisky Bar proprietor David Tsujimoto. Highwayman Tokyo Nights features Dan's trademark Grim Reaper theme on the labelling, but with unique artwork to mark this special occasion. Dan also travelled to Japan to launch the whisky at Aloha Whisky Bar - it's a tough life, hey Dan? Someone has to do it I suppose...

I've had the pleasure of visiting Aloha Whisky Bar a couple of times now, and it's an absolute must-do for any whisky fan visiting Tokyo. Aloha is located in Ikebukuro in north-western Tokyo, an easy walk from Ikebukuro Station on JR's 'Yamanote' train lines that loop around Tokyo's main districts. Owner & operator David Tsujimoto is from Hawaii and famously doesn't speak fluent Japanese, despite having run a popular bar in Tokyo for many years now! But he's an absolute gentleman and a true hospitality professional, and his knowledge of whisky, rum, and spirits in general, is beyond reproach. The extremely well stocked and organised back bar consists of mainly Scotch whisky, but also packs a huge variety of Japanese whiskies, American and Irish whiskeys, and a carefully selected range of quality rum and other spirits. I'm yet to meet Armando, but a few chats over Instagram and his general reputation in the whisky world has me regarding him highly, and having tasted his private bottling of Shizuoka Japanese single malt, I have no doubts about his taste in whisky! That Shizuoka was cleverly named "MexicaNOH" with artwork featuring the masks worn by the Luchadores in Mexican wrestling as a nod to the legendary 'Noh' series of Karuizawa bottlings which featured the masks worn by the actors (and latterly also actresses) in traditional Japanese theatre. The connection is deeper than that however, since one of the pot stills used at Shizuoka Distillery was originally used at Karuizawa Distillery which closed in 2000 and was demolished in 2016, and Armando's private cask was distilled on that still. Most importantly, it was a delicious whisky!

Highwayman of course needs no introduction here, and you'd struggle to find an Australian whisky fan who isn't aware of the stuff! But the international audience may be a different story, and it's been a couple of years since the last review regardless, so we're overdue for a refresher! Highwayman Single Malt Whisky is fermented and distilled on Dan's own equipment which (for licensing & practical reasons) is housed at the Restall family's Lord Byron Distillery in Byron Bay. Once distilled and filled into Dan's own casks, the spirit then travels a whopping 10-metres to Dan's Bond Store - Australian industry speak for maturation warehouse - and Cellar Door pictured above, aptly named Highwayman HQ. Since the spirit is entirely made literally next door Dan has full control over the production and maturation, while Lord Byron produces their high quality rum and other spirits on their own separate equipment. Highwayman's unpeated spirit is produced from NSW-grown malted barley, while the peated spirit is a combination of Scottish peated malted barley and the NSW-grown unmalted barley. More recently though Dan has been upping the percentage of the peated malt to create a heavily peated spirit, and having tried a couple of different cask samples so far - and begging him to bottle one straight away, which sadly fell on deaf ears! - they're quite special. When it comes to casks Dan comes into his element here, playing around with a multitude of different & unusual cask types like ex-stout, ex-rum, and ex-tequila, and different cask sizes ranging from 20-litres to 200-litres, with many of his whiskies going through multiple different cask types. In the heat and humidity of Byron Bay, those casks often don't need long to make their presence known!

As usual with Dan's whiskies, the details behind this 'Tokyo Nights' bottling are quite the mouthful! Highwayman Tokyo Nights is comprised of 2/3rds peated single malt that was initially matured in a first-fill fino sherry cask and finished in a second-fill apera (Australian sherry-style fortified wine) cask, and 1/3rd unpeated single malt that was fully matured in a second-fill bourbon cask fitted with virgin (new) American oak heads. Naturally it's bottled at Dan's standard strength of 55.0% ABV, and is non-chill filtered without added colouring. As mentioned above, half of the 240 x 500ml bottles went to Japan, and the other half remained in Australia for sale on the Highwayman website , where a small quantity are still available at $249 AUD. 

Highwayman Tokyo Nights, NAS, 55.0%. Byron Bay, Australia.

Vatting of 1/3 unpeated single malt aged in second-fill ex-bourbon barrel with virgin American oak heads, and 2/3 peated spirit aged in first-fill Fino sherry cask and finished in second-fill Apera (Australian sherry-style fortified wine) cask. 

Colour: Bronze. 

Nose: Nutty, rich, sweet & savoury. Salted caramel, fizzy lemonade soft drink, salted peanut brittle, with a few salted brazil nuts & smoked almonds thrown in. Cola bottle lollies (not the sour kind), meat-y mushroom-y earthiness, toasted oak. Touches of ashy smoke & soy sauce around the edges. 

Texture: Medium-heavy weight. Silky, rich, warming. Salty, not overly sweet, no spirit heat. 

Taste: Big salty entry, with rich salted caramel and more salted nuts - peanut brittle, salted brazil nuts, and smoked almonds. Cola bottle lollies, soy sauce, and that meaty mushroom-y earthiness again. Buttery oak and oily furniture polish around the edges. 

Finish: Medium length. Ashy peat smoke (especially on the exhale), more cola bottle lollies and soy sauce, then the salted nuts come back through with the savoury earthiness. Buttery oak around the edges. 

Score: 4 out of 5. 

Notes: Very tasty and nicely savoury, salty, rich whisky. Fans of salted caramel, peanut brittle, or cola bottle lollies, will love this one - and who isn't a fan of all of those? Highwayman whiskies are always rich, but in peated form - and particularly with fortified casks involved - they tend to have this earthy, mushroom-y, forest floor sort of savoury character which is very different to both the unpeated ex-bourbon casks and particularly the unpeated ex-fortified or wine casks, which can swing way over to the sweet side in comparison. That earthy mushroom-y savoury character helps balance out cask influence and add complexity, which when combined with the big saltiness and nuttiness in this 'Tokyo Nights' bottling, is delicious! 

We need to see more peated Australian whisky spending time in ex-Fino sherry casks if you ask me, or maybe ex-Fino casks married with ex-bourbon casks. For that matter, we also need to see more peated Australian whisky in general! 

Cheers!