Ardbeg Dolce Limited Edition
Released in a single limited run. Once Singapore's allocation clears, there is no second shipment.
Sicilian sweetness against Islay smoke. Cue The Smoke.
Ardbeg's limited edition takes the distillery's peat somewhere it has never sat before: a Sicilian dessert wine cask. Marsala comes in three grades of sweetness, Secco, Semisecco and Dolce. Ardbeg chose the sweetest of the three and named the bottle after it. The result is smoke that arrives softened rather than stripped back, carrying stewed fruit, marmalade and dark chocolate on its back.
Matured in Marsala Dolce wine casks alongside classic American oak bourbon barrels, the whisky pours a deep sunset orange. Bottled at 47.8% ABV, non chill-filtered, no age statement, 70cl. Inspired by the slow pace of Sicilian island life and the glamour of 1960s Italian cinema, it is a Mediterranean sensibility fused to the rugged, windswept character of Islay.
The sweetness does not blunt the distillery. Add a splash of water and the deeper layers surface: pine needle, roasted mushroom, salted fish, caper and olive. An Islay pantry meeting a Sicilian garden. Best served neat, or with a single rock, alongside salted almonds, aged cheese or dark chocolate.
- Matured in Sicilian Marsala Dolce wine casks and American oak bourbon barrels
- Nose of apricot, plump raisin, sticky date and orange marmalade over softened smoke
- Palate of cinnamon, star anise and liquorice, then maple-smoked wood, honeycomb, baked dates and dark chocolate
- Long, layered finish of smoked applewood, drying tobacco, bonfire embers and chewy peat oils
- 47.8% ABV, non chill-filtered, NAS, 70cl. Limited edition, no restock
Ardbeg - The Ultimate Islay Single Malt
Founded in 1815 on the wind-battered south coast of Islay, Ardbeg built its name on peat pushed further than anyone else dared. The distillery fell silent in the 1980s and was brought back from the edge in 1997, since when it has become the reference point for smoke in Scotch whisky. Islay is pronounced eye-lah. The whisky needs no such introduction.
The cask that makes it
Marsala comes in three sweetness grades: Secco, Semisecco, and Dolce. Ardbeg went for the sweetest of the three, and named the bottle after it. That cask choice is why the smoke arrives softened rather than stripped back, carrying stewed fruit and honeycomb instead of fighting them.
Perfectly peated cocktail
Apricot, plump raisin, sticky date and tangy stewed apple lift first, cut through with orange marmalade. Cinnamon, star anise and a flicker of liquorice lead the palate before maple-smoked wood, baked dates and dark chocolate take over. The finish is long: smoked applewood, drying tobacco and thick peat oil.
Still unmistakably Ardbeg
The sweetness does not blunt the distillery character. Add water and the deeper layers surface: pine needle, roasted mushroom, salted fish, caper and olive. Islay pantry, Sicilian garden. If you drink Ardbeg for the smoke, the smoke is still here.
Limited allocation worldwide
Ardbeg limited editions are single-run bottlings. Once Singapore's allocation clears, there is no second shipment.