I started the week (and ended October) with a young, heavily peated whisky from Islay. I now end the week (and begin November) with a young, heavily peated whisky from Islay. The 2023 Cairdeas does not, of course, carry an age statement but it’s probably still at least a few years older than this Ardbeg. This is the five-year old, dubbed “Wee Beastie” that joined the distillery’s core lineup in 2020. This sample, indeed, comes from that original release. It is a vatting of spirit matured in both ex-bourbon and ex-oloroso sherry casks—I don’t know about the proportions—and the distillery’s website pronounces it the “rawest, smokiest Ardbeg ever”. I don’t know that that first adjective really gets me very excited but I am famous for the openness of my mind: if the whisky is good, I won’t care what they say about it. I do appreciate that they put the 5 yo age statement on the bottles, but not enough to forgive the owners all the rest of the tomfoolery they’ve gotten up to in the last decade or so. Okay, let’s get to it.

Ardbeg 5, “Wee Beastie”, 2020 Release (47.4%; from a bottle split)

Nose: Big smoke with a mix of phenols and char; creme brulee with extra caramelization. A bit of rubber emerges as it sits. Less phenolic with time; the char and the cream meld. A few drops of water push the char/bitter smoke back and bring the phenols out again, turning it more medicinal. A bit of apple too now.

Palate: Comes in with the char leading the way; some leafy notes accompany it here. A good drinking strength; decent texture. Sweeter on the second sip but the bitter smoke is still the top note. Continues in this vein. Okay, let’s see what water does for it. Brighter, more phenolic smoke here too with water and the texture gets fatter. Instead of apple it’s lime that shows up here.

Finish: Long. Lots of char and woodsmoke here. And even more as it sits, with a big bucket of soot joining the party. As on the palate with water; the bitter smoke is almost gone now.

Comments: If big, un-nuanced smoke is what you’re after, then this is the whisky for you. No flaws as such but also nothing of particular note. You wouldn’t expect complexity at 5 years of age; the real achievement is that the less positive markers of youth are effectively masked. I liked it a lot more with water; but why anyone would want this, with or without water, when the 10 yo is there for just $10 more (in most markets) is beyond me.

Rating: 84 points. (Pulled up by water.)