I sit down. It had been a hard day at work and I quite fancied a wee dram. I saw Lucas had raved about the New Supernova. Was I gonna try it? You bet! But I was apprehensive. Was a cask strength peat sandwich likely to relax me or get me more wound up? I guess the only way with these kind of decisions is to jump in and get involved.
Nose: I ordered a dram and took a deep breath of fresh air, followed by a deep breath of peat. It was literally like shoving my head in a peat bog on Islay (ok I haven’t exactly done that, but I think it is as close as I am going to get to it). Could I get past the peat to the sweet Ardbeg house style? That is the sad part for me. With the mountains of peat used and the sheer volume of alcohol, I couldn’t. Ardbegs light, clean, apple and zesty spirit had been overpowered by this peat monster. Instead all I got was a sheer wave of coal fires, peat bogs and the sad remnants of a barbeque.
With Water: Please don’t add water to this. It really isn’t a good idea. I am actually going to buy another dram to test this, because I couldn’t believe how off the nose went with water. The peat bog turned into a muddy mire
Palate: A massive impact of smoke, peat, earth and a bit of burnt bbq embers, followed by a feeling of disappointment. It is such a blunt instrument, I couldn’t enjoy it.
When it comes to smoky whiskies, I enjoy the BBQ notes, or sweetness or oiliness that go with the smoke. These little complexities make Ardbeg 10, Uigeadail, Lagavullin 16, Laphroaig Quarter cask, Bowmore Tempest, Bunnahabhain Toichtech (I could go on) excellent whiskies. I just couldn’t get my head round the Supernova.
Overall: Arbeg collectors should buy this whisky and already have in their droves. Everyone else, try it at a bar first. It definitely splits opinion.
Chris
At first I wanted it badly but more I read about it
people are less content.
Afriend will have this soon Sobieski will first
taste then seer how I like it.
It’s so hard drinking peaty drams at summere here
in israel when weather is always 30 deg and up.
I prefer the first edition, but 2010 is not a bad whisky. Recognize the batch difference is a good thing.
Chaps,
Thought your readers might be interested in the fact that we’ve just added this as a dram – it’s available for only £4.95…
http://www.masterofmalt.com/whiskies/ardbeg-supernova-2010-whisky/
I wasn’t a huge fan of the 2009 but enjoyed it as a bit of a novelty. Recently bought the 2010 and can’t say I like it even as much as the 2009. I’m hoping this doesn’t become a yearly release from Ardbeg as they’ve got MUCH better stuff with which to keep our rapt attention. As such, I’m holding off on posting my review of the 2010 until I work out how I feel about it…
I just got 2 bottles of the Supernova 2010 today and I am going to be reviewing it on my website also….I already have a few reviews on my blog and I think any scotch lover will love to read them…..cheers!
http://blog.dalucastraps.com/ and http://www.DaLucaStraps.com
-Daniel