Ardbeg 15-year-old (D.1964, B.1979) Wm Cadenhead / 80 Proof / 262/3 Fl. oz.
- It is hard to believe that back in the 1990s, Ardbeg Distillery was fighting for survival and experienced long periods of closures. Should Glenmorangie not acquire Ardbeg in 1997, some whisky writers would perhaps only mention today the brand’s name.
Product description
It is hard to believe today that a quarter of a century ago, Ardbeg Distillery was struggling to survive using a fraction of its modest production capacity and if it had not been taken over by Glenmorangie plc in 1997, it might have faded into history.
The distillery was founded in 1815 by John McDougall. Its name is a transcription of the Gaelic "ad bheag" meaning "small hill". The distillery went bankrupt in 1835 and in 1922 returned to the founding family. In 1959, Ardbeg Distillery Ltd. was established, in which the Lawson family and the DCL and Hiram Walker & Sons concerns held shares. The 1960s brought a significant revival on the whisky market, of course blended whisky, combined with the participation of malts with a smoky and peaty profile. It was then that Ardbeg entered its first period of prosperity. The production of its own malt house turned out to be insufficient - in 1974 the plant began using malt from Port Ellen. Three years later, the distillery stopped malting.
For the most dedicated Ardbeg fans, this year marks the end of the ‘original’ chapter in the distillery’s history, a period of self-sufficiency. The whisky distilled there in the 1960s is now both collectible and historical. The one presented here was bottled at 45.7% abv by Wm Cadenhead Ltd. in 1979 after 15 years of maturation.