Ardbeg Vintage Y2K 25 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Ardbeg Vintage Y2K 25 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky is a 750mL Islay single malt bottled at 48% ABV (96 proof), non-chill-filtered. Distilled in 2000, the year Ardbeg returned to full production, it is the third and final release in the distillery's Vintage_Y2K series and the oldest of the trilogy. The whisky was made on Ardbeg's 51-year-old still, retired in 2001, so this spirit can never be made again.
- ABV: 48% (96 proof), non-chill-filtered
- Size: 750mL
- Age: 25 years
- Distilled: 2000
- Origin: Islay, Scotland
- Maturation: Bourbon casks, finished in Tempranillo red wine casks from Bodega Numanthia, Spain
The Final Chapter of Vintage_Y2K
The Vintage_Y2K series revisits the handful of casks laid down as Ardbeg reopened at the turn of the millennium. After the 23 Year Old (bourbon and Oloroso sherry casks) and the 24 Year Old (Amontillado sherry finish), this 25 Year Old closes the trilogy. Each release wears a colour from the RGB spectrum; the finale arrives in a black presentation case picked out in red, alongside collectors comparing it with the distillery's permanent Ardbeg 25 Year Old.
A First for Ardbeg: Tempranillo Casks
Whisky creator Dr Bill Lumsden first rested the spirit in bourbon casks, then selected Tempranillo red wine casks from Bodega Numanthia in north-west Spain for the finish, a cask type Ardbeg had never used before. The wine casks layer dark fruit and spice over Ardbeg's heavily peated, coastal spirit. If you are exploring the distillery's range, Ardbeg Uigeadail shows the sherry-cask side of the house style.
Tasting Notes
Nose: Subtly smoky, with smoked blackcurrants, chilli chocolate and a note of aged balsamic; a little water brings linseed oil and smoked paprika. Palate: Rich and spicy, moving through coffee grounds, dark chocolate and smoked fruit to barbecued spare ribs, with classic Ardbeg medicinal touches of eucalyptus and camphor, plus paprika, mustard seed and sweet chilli. Finish: Long and zesty, recalling lime pickle and tar.
Ardbeg Vintage Y2K 25 Year Old is listed at Del Mesa Liquor. Browse our full Scotch whisky range and the wider whisky collection for more rare and limited Islay bottlings, available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor.