The kilns sit a few miles away down winding roads and are where the peat works its mysterious magic in the malting process, ensuring that Ardbeg is the smokiest single malt available, at 50 parts per million of phenolic malt.
Back at the distillery, the malt is then crushed by a beast of a machine dating to 1921, a Bobby malt mill, into a product called mash. Water is piped down from Loch Airigh Nam Beist three miles away, heated to 63.5°C, then mixed with the mash to ensure maximum sugar extraction. It’s cooled and yeast is added to begin fermentation in washbacks made of Oregon pine.
Distillation comes next, a boiling and condensing process where alcohol vapours evaporate in a two-step process that brings balance and complexity. Finally, maturation in ex Bourbon oak casks, sherry butts and even French oak barrels.
SCOTTISH CEVICHE
Ardbeg drinks beautifully on its own but also pair with pristine produce, especially when it comes from the shores of Islay.
One of the experiences that Ardbeg House offers is a boat trip along the craggy coast to the distillery, passing castles, catching glimpses of red deer frolicking in the woods, and watching large white seals lolling on rocks, eyeballing us as we chug past.
On board, Captain Gus, a short, stocky Islayman, hauls in some of the maritime bounty from under the waves in a lobster pot. Although the cynic in me wonders how it contains such a pristine selection of seafood, it’s still an unbridled joy to watch as he carefully pries open an enormous shell, cuts the flesh from the foot and then passes it around to let us taste the sweetest scallop of all time.
Discover more from PressNewsAgency
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.