Ardbeg Traigh Bhan 19 Year Old Batch 5 / 46.2% / 0.7l

Ardbeg Traigh Bhan debuted in 2019 as a permanent and oldest entry in the core range.

This 19-year-old whisky is named after the famous beach on Islay known locally as the Singing Sands. Traigh Bhan’s annual releases have their own codes and symbols and are signed by one of the distillery’s employees. The fifth release, released in September 2023, is marked with the initials GM (Gillian Macdonald, blender). Each release features a different selection of casks, with Batch #5 dominated by sherry casks. The distillery claims that “this is the most tropical whisky to come out of Ardbeg Distillery.” (Official tasting notes.)

Nose: An unusual combination of sea breeze, juicy tropical fruits, herbal incense and peat smoke. Mint drops and saddle polish mingle with notes of grilled green peppers, while the final accord is played by smoky mango, coconut and guava.

Palate: Initial creaminess soon gives way to a symphony of herbal and spicy flavors; maple-cured smoked bacon, charcoal, white pepper and cloves served over a wave of sea breeze and campfire smoke.

Finish: satisfyingly long, with notes of tropical fruit, fragrant heather, warm toffee and butter, wrapped in peat smoke.