Taster

Nose: Heady, fruity and faintly medicinal.

Palate: Big, malty, sherryish with background sooty smoke.

Finish: Spicy, smoky and dry.

Comment: Big and old fashioned feel.

Score: 7.5

Taster

Nose: Carbolic soap. Smoke, beeswax, church-like.

Palate: Flavours tightly bound together, and reluctant to unfurl. At first, a retrained, malty sweetness, then suddenly a surge of incense-like smokiness, this happens more easily after a dash of water.

Finish: Cereal-grain oiliness. Fairly dry, but soothing.

Comment: I have always thought of Ardmore as having a rather bluff character, but on this occasion I found it both welcoming and comforting.

Score: 7.5