I wanted to be critical of it after all the hype but ended up enjoying it. it's sufficiently different to the 10 to have a place in the line up but it's too close in price to the superior 10, in my opinion, to make it anything other than a once in a blue moon purchase. If it was a wee bit cheaper I'd be more enthusiastic. I do think, however, that some people that are not mad about Ardbeg 10 may actually prefer it's sweeter tones. Great review as always. Cheers. WT
Nice to see Ardbeg offering a more affordable whiskey. The Uegeadail and the 10 are both good value here in Canada. The others in their core range don't justify their price point imo. Another integrity review. I love this channel for it honest and critical analysis of spirits.
If you guys haven't reviewed Port Charlotte 10 yet (and I don't think you have?), I'd very much encourage you to do so. It's a bit pricier, about $60 USD, but it's 50% ABV and a bit more complex than the competition IMO.
@@TheWhiskyExplorer The 10 is the only Port Charlotte I've bought or tried, so I'll take your word for it. Generally speaking, this is the only Bruichladdich bottling I'm really a fan of, with their standard Bruichladdich bottlings being a bit blah, and Octomore being a bit of a joke, and are not nearly as smoky on the palate as one might think given their pedigree.
Hi guys 👦 I think the five year old is at the $40.00 range because ardbeg core line is going up in price, and the 5 will stay the price it is now, I like the 5 year old because it is totally different than the 10 year old, and is a standard on its own, just wait ✋ you will see the core line go up in price, I suspect within a year or less, have you done the ardbeg blaaak yet, I think ardbeg dropped the ball on this expression, just remember what I said about the core line, it's going up in price, have a great day, and cheers 🍻 fellows and stay safe out there !!!
A very fair review. Your scores obviously reflect the fact that this is not substantially different or more enjoyable than the 10 YO but for a considerably higher price. A fascinating comparison in age is the Kilchoman 100% Islay 5th Edition (5 Years) with the 7th Edition. Same distillation batch, same casks but a couple of years more. They are soooooo different. I suppose we were expecting something like that with this Ardbeg Wee Beastie.
@sneksnekitsasnek To what? Kilchoman 100% Islay? No! Machir Bay is bottled at 46% abv. 100% Islay is bottled at 50% abv. At least in Israel, Machir Bay is a lot cheaper.
@sneksnekitsasnek Oh, Sorry. Err. Similar. The Wee Beastie is 47.4%, both are a combination of Ex-Bourbon and Ex-Sherry casks. Both similar ages. As for price, that's interesting. It depends where you live! The Machir Bay is readily available all over the world (about £45 in the UK). It's actually cheaper here in Israel. The Wee Beastie, RRP is £40 in the UK. I saw it on Amazon UK for that price + P&P. However, living outside the UK, because of Supply and Demand, the bottles are being sold at considerably higher prices. So, if you live in the UK, then yes, you are correct.
@sneksnekitsasnek Sorry for not replying sooner. Here in Israel it is the festival of Sukkos (and Shabbos). The first and last day of the festive week, we turn off all devices etc so I've only just seen your comment.. (Outside of Israel, Jews have the first two and last two days of festival when they "switch off" from the world). For religious (Kosher) reasons, I won't be drinking any whisky which has been matured, even partially, in Ex-Sherry/Wine casks (unless the sherry...was kosher), so I won't be drinking the Wee Beastie. But, let me know what you think. You know, the first time I tried Ardbeg 10, oh, 20 years ago?, I hated it! It tasted like hospital disinfectant and burnt bandages. Now, I would not be without the stuff in my cabinet! You just have to get used to Islay peated whiskies slowly. The one that really connected with me first (and I still love it), is Caol Ila 12. Slightly less peaty and much sweeter.
@sneksnekitsasnek You keep saying that "they" have run out of this and that...Which area of the world do you live? Do you only have a single outlet? Maybe it might be easier to tell me what "they" do have in stock and I'll give you a basic review of each one? It's funny you saying the Laphroaig 10 lacks depth. A lot of people say this, problably due to the fact that it's bottled at the minimum allowed 40% abv. Those who say this, prefer the Laphroaig Quarter Cask, bottled at a higher 48% abv (but containing younger whisky). I understand what they are saying but still prefer the the Laphroaig 10, finding the QC a bit too young with some off notes like burnt plastic. My favourite Laphroaig is the Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength which I order from London even though I have to pay very high taxes. The Cask Strength is worth it. A taist of liquid heaven in a glass. A few years ago, the Laphroaig 18 was readily available where I live. I still have a couple of bottles left. I heard the distillery are re-releasing this soon. Expensive but worth it. A very elegant dram where peat flavours have withdrawn to the background and all those luscious yellow fruits are now talking front stage. Given the choice, I'd still say the 10 Cask Strength is the best example of this distillery, possibly of Islay.
@sneksnekitsasnek Yep. You are correct, the Laphroaig 10 in the USA comes in 750ml bottles instead 70cl in the rest of the world plus is bottled at 43% abv, whereas everywhere else its 40% abv. When I try and get into totalwines.com I get a message saying that they cannot sell outside the USA and will not let me enter the site!!!
Seems to be the direction Ardbeg may be headed toward based on the "Wee Beastie" reference. (I would pay money for a cask strength version). This is a nice dram and fits into the lineup as a "house" whisky in my home.
Looking back through and enjoying the videos, you have never reviewed the 10 year old, although might be a cut and paste for the An Oa review, I’d be interested what you would score the 10 year old being labelled as the Ultimate Islay Single Malt? It is so consistent and still the only non colour/non chillfiltered peated Islay Single Malt at 46 abv readily available in our UK supermarkets.
Another prime example how different perceptions of a whisky can be, to me this is a completely different animal than the ten year old (which also dropped in quality a lot in the last 3 years or so). I only had this at one incident so far and it was a huge let down for me. Not even anywhere close to some stellar batches of the ten we had had in the past, even worse, it reminded me of youngish heavily peated indy Bunna, to me identifiable by an upfront note of of natural yoghurt/whey and a hugely farmyardy style of peat.
Thanks guys. It should have just been priced lower. I believe they will drop the price right after the hype dies. It’s a hard pass for me at $80 CAD. Brilliant marketing, but people who know Scotch and Ardbeg may try this once, but will be right back to the 10.
It's a good but an odd bottle in the Ardbeg range if you ask me, with the much more layered & better TEN selling for only about $6 USD more. I think a 5 yo @ 43% sold for about $30-35 would've made much more sense.
@sneksnekitsasnek The 5? That's a lot, but it doesn't surprise me, I'm in NYC and a $40 bottle can cost $60+ in a store across the street. It pays to shop around.
The An oa,....it is a version of the regular 10yo just made worse. The 10yo is far superior IMO. Can't wait to open my Wee Beastie,...just waiting for the right time. Excellent review boys. BTW, a decent shotgun mic will improve the sound of your reviews immensely -- Rode VideoMic would do the trick. Cheers!
When you don't see the upload updates and have over a month of SMRs to catch up on now, yippee! My only worry is that they phase out the 10 if the this 5 is popular. Half the age and yet the still charge 80-90% of the price of the 10.
Thanks for the review. This one definitely needs a bit of water to open up. I didn't like it as much as the 10 without water. And i'm not the biggest fan of 10 as it comes across as a one trick pony mostly. Laga 8 takes both of these easily as a more balanced, complex Islay.
Tried this , the 10 and the an oa. blind. Picked this out as the 5 and also not near as good as the other two. Confused the an oa for the 10 which surprised me as I was expecting the 10 to be better than the an oa. Blind I liked it just as much as the 10. You should retry the an oa if you get the chance!
Never did it blind, but I could see that... The an oa seemed similar to the 10 to me, just with slightly less peat and more muted general flavors. Slightly rounded off and less interesting than the 10 in my experience.
Interesting review but I think you over-analysed the whisky and did not rate it on its own merits but relative to your expectations. You should try it again, blind ! For myself, just drinking it side by side with the Ten, I find it very good. It is indeed close to the Ten with the fresh lemony peat but still different with the mouthfeel less oily and more powdery.
Wee Beastie blows the 10 away according to my unsophisticated palate!
I liked it. I think that it is different enough from anything in the core range to deserve its own place.
I wanted to be critical of it after all the hype but ended up enjoying it. it's sufficiently different to the 10 to have a place in the line up but it's too close in price to the superior 10, in my opinion, to make it anything other than a once in a blue moon purchase. If it was a wee bit cheaper I'd be more enthusiastic. I do think, however, that some people that are not mad about Ardbeg 10 may actually prefer it's sweeter tones. Great review as always. Cheers. WT
Nice to see Ardbeg offering a more affordable whiskey. The Uegeadail and the 10 are both good value here in Canada. The others in their core range don't justify their price point imo. Another integrity review. I love this channel for it honest and critical analysis of spirits.
The Uigeadail has been a favorite of mine for many years now.
If you guys haven't reviewed Port Charlotte 10 yet (and I don't think you have?), I'd very much encourage you to do so. It's a bit pricier, about $60 USD, but it's 50% ABV and a bit more complex than the competition IMO.
The PC 10 is wonderful! I feel the Wee Beastie has a role and appreciate a few new thoughts about it in this review.
I completely agree. The regular Port Charlotte is not very good imho. The 10 is excellent.
@@TheWhiskyExplorer The 10 is the only Port Charlotte I've bought or tried, so I'll take your word for it. Generally speaking, this is the only Bruichladdich bottling I'm really a fan of, with their standard Bruichladdich bottlings being a bit blah, and Octomore being a bit of a joke, and are not nearly as smoky on the palate as one might think given their pedigree.
Hi guys 👦
I think the five year old is at the $40.00 range because ardbeg core line is going up in price, and the 5 will stay the price it is now, I like the 5 year old because it is totally different than the 10 year old, and is a standard on its own, just wait ✋ you will see the core line go up in price, I suspect within a year or less, have you done the ardbeg blaaak yet, I think ardbeg dropped the ball on this expression, just remember what I said about the core line, it's going up in price, have a great day, and cheers 🍻 fellows and stay safe out there !!!
@@TheWhiskyExplorer Thanks for the tip, I'll head straight for the 10!
A very fair review. Your scores obviously reflect the fact that this is not substantially different or more enjoyable than the 10 YO but for a considerably higher price.
A fascinating comparison in age is the Kilchoman 100% Islay 5th Edition (5 Years) with the 7th Edition. Same distillation batch, same casks but a couple of years more. They are soooooo different. I suppose we were expecting something like that with this Ardbeg Wee Beastie.
@sneksnekitsasnek To what? Kilchoman 100% Islay? No! Machir Bay is bottled at 46% abv. 100% Islay is bottled at 50% abv. At least in Israel, Machir Bay is a lot cheaper.
@sneksnekitsasnek Oh, Sorry. Err. Similar. The Wee Beastie is 47.4%, both are a combination of Ex-Bourbon and Ex-Sherry casks. Both similar ages. As for price, that's interesting. It depends where you live! The Machir Bay is readily available all over the world (about £45 in the UK). It's actually cheaper here in Israel. The Wee Beastie, RRP is £40 in the UK. I saw it on Amazon UK for that price + P&P. However, living outside the UK, because of Supply and Demand, the bottles are being sold at considerably higher prices. So, if you live in the UK, then yes, you are correct.
@sneksnekitsasnek Sorry for not replying sooner. Here in Israel it is the festival of Sukkos (and Shabbos). The first and last day of the festive week, we turn off all devices etc so I've only just seen your comment.. (Outside of Israel, Jews have the first two and last two days of festival when they "switch off" from the world).
For religious (Kosher) reasons, I won't be drinking any whisky which has been matured, even partially, in Ex-Sherry/Wine casks (unless the sherry...was kosher), so I won't be drinking the Wee Beastie. But, let me know what you think.
You know, the first time I tried Ardbeg 10, oh, 20 years ago?, I hated it! It tasted like hospital disinfectant and burnt bandages. Now, I would not be without the stuff in my cabinet! You just have to get used to Islay peated whiskies slowly. The one that really connected with me first (and I still love it), is Caol Ila 12. Slightly less peaty and much sweeter.
@sneksnekitsasnek You keep saying that "they" have run out of this and that...Which area of the world do you live? Do you only have a single outlet? Maybe it might be easier to tell me what "they" do have in stock and I'll give you a basic review of each one?
It's funny you saying the Laphroaig 10 lacks depth. A lot of people say this, problably due to the fact that it's bottled at the minimum allowed 40% abv. Those who say this, prefer the Laphroaig Quarter Cask, bottled at a higher 48% abv (but containing younger whisky). I understand what they are saying but still prefer the the Laphroaig 10, finding the QC a bit too young with some off notes like burnt plastic. My favourite Laphroaig is the Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength which I order from London even though I have to pay very high taxes. The Cask Strength is worth it. A taist of liquid heaven in a glass.
A few years ago, the Laphroaig 18 was readily available where I live. I still have a couple of bottles left. I heard the distillery are re-releasing this soon. Expensive but worth it. A very elegant dram where peat flavours have withdrawn to the background and all those luscious yellow fruits are now talking front stage. Given the choice, I'd still say the 10 Cask Strength is the best example of this distillery, possibly of Islay.
@sneksnekitsasnek Yep. You are correct, the Laphroaig 10 in the USA comes in 750ml bottles instead 70cl in the rest of the world plus is bottled at 43% abv, whereas everywhere else its 40% abv.
When I try and get into totalwines.com I get a message saying that they cannot sell outside the USA and will not let me enter the site!!!
Thank you for sharing professional reviews Gentlemen!
Stay healthy, stay safe, may the malt be with you.
Greetings from old Germany 🇩🇪
Moses
My guess is give it a few years and we will see Ardbeg Big Beastie at Cask Strength.
Seems to be the direction Ardbeg may be headed toward based on the "Wee Beastie" reference. (I would pay money for a cask strength version). This is a nice dram and fits into the lineup as a "house" whisky in my home.
Looking back through and enjoying the videos, you have never reviewed the 10 year old, although might be a cut and paste for the An Oa review, I’d be interested what you would score the 10 year old being labelled as the Ultimate Islay Single Malt? It is so consistent and still the only non colour/non chillfiltered peated Islay Single Malt at 46 abv readily available in our UK supermarkets.
Another prime example how different perceptions of a whisky can be, to me this is a completely different animal than the ten year old (which also dropped in quality a lot in the last 3 years or so). I only had this at one incident so far and it was a huge let down for me. Not even anywhere close to some stellar batches of the ten we had had in the past, even worse, it reminded me of youngish heavily peated indy Bunna, to me identifiable by an upfront note of of natural yoghurt/whey and a hugely farmyardy style of peat.
Thanks guys. It should have just been priced lower. I believe they will drop the price right after the hype dies. It’s a hard pass for me at $80 CAD. Brilliant marketing, but people who know Scotch and Ardbeg may try this once, but will be right back to the 10.
I agree that for something that purports to be half the age, the price hardly follows suit.
@sneksnekitsasnek No the 10 isn't going anywhere. Probably just some supply problems given the current economic climate.
It's a good but an odd bottle in the Ardbeg range if you ask me, with the much more layered & better TEN selling for only about $6 USD more. I think a 5 yo @ 43% sold for about $30-35 would've made much more sense.
Completely agree.
@sneksnekitsasnek The 5? That's a lot, but it doesn't surprise me, I'm in NYC and a $40 bottle can cost $60+ in a store across the street. It pays to shop around.
The An oa,....it is a version of the regular 10yo just made worse. The 10yo is far superior IMO. Can't wait to open my Wee Beastie,...just waiting for the right time. Excellent review boys. BTW, a decent shotgun mic will improve the sound of your reviews immensely -- Rode VideoMic would do the trick. Cheers!
When you don't see the upload updates and have over a month of SMRs to catch up on now, yippee!
My only worry is that they phase out the 10 if the this 5 is popular. Half the age and yet the still charge 80-90% of the price of the 10.
Thanks for the review. This one definitely needs a bit of water to open up. I didn't like it as much as the 10 without water. And i'm not the biggest fan of 10 as it comes across as a one trick pony mostly. Laga 8 takes both of these easily as a more balanced, complex Islay.
@11:40 - In preparation for the 10 to be going up in price??
Just try it 5 wee beast ardbeg. It’s better than the 10 ardbeg
Love this one (although it’s quite young)
Good review
Great review, guys. Did you try the Bunnahabhain Staoisha? This is a very similar style. Strictly for peat lovers. Cheers, mates.
We've not tried that one as yet. Bunnahabhain beyond the 12 is getting harder and harder to find down here.
Tried this , the 10 and the an oa. blind. Picked this out as the 5 and also not near as good as the other two. Confused the an oa for the 10 which surprised me as I was expecting the 10 to be better than the an oa. Blind I liked it just as much as the 10. You should retry the an oa if you get the chance!
Never did it blind, but I could see that... The an oa seemed similar to the 10 to me, just with slightly less peat and more muted general flavors. Slightly rounded off and less interesting than the 10 in my experience.
My God the posh guy let the beardy guy speak without interupting!
Notice he still can't taste unti his queued though.
I know, right?
All their videos are like that. Hard to watch
Interesting review but I think you over-analysed the whisky and did not rate it on its own merits but relative to your expectations. You should try it again, blind ! For myself, just drinking it side by side with the Ten, I find it very good. It is indeed close to the Ten with the fresh lemony peat but still different with the mouthfeel less oily and more powdery.
Did you guys ever get to try the Traigh Bhan?
I (Tim) tasted it on a couple of occasions. I thought it was an interesting insight into old Ardbeg, but not a particularly transformative whisky.
@@TheSingleMaltReview I kinda felt the same way. Wouldn't spend $300 for a bottle.
is this tim and eric?
It's Tim and Dave, so I guess you're halfway there.
Everyone is talking about this right now.