100 proof is not a round number, it is a historical measure. In the British system it corresponds to 57.1% alcohol, and that is exactly where every single bottle in this series sits, whatever the distillery and whatever the age.
The Expert's Description
Ardmore 2010/2023 Signatory Vintage 13 Years Old 100 Proof Edition #4 is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill Oloroso Sherry Butts and bottled at 57.1%. Cask 137 was distilled in 2010 and bottled on 5 December 2023.
The 100 Proof series gathers single malts from different Scottish distilleries, all bottled at precisely the same strength. That makes the series an unusually clean comparison: with the alcohol content identical, the differences between distillery and cask stand out without the strength clouding the picture.
Here Ardmore’s peated Highland spirit meets first fill Oloroso wood. It is a forceful combination, since fresh sherry casks give dark fruit, tannin and colour in quantity, and the smoke has to work to get through. The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured.
Tasting Notes
Nose
Dark fruit first: raisins, prunes and preserved cherries. Beneath sit dry smoke and roasted nuts, along with a resinous sherry note that only first fill casks provide.
Palate
Full and dark. Raisins and bitter chocolate open, then the smoke arrives as a dry undercurrent alongside spiced oak and black pepper. At 57.1% the concentration is considerable, and sherry and smoke pull in opposite directions all the way.
Finish
Long and spiced. Dark fruit, ash and oak tannin, with a warmth that lingers well afterwards.
Specifications
Name: Ardmore 2010/2023 Signatory Vintage 13 Years Old 100 Proof Edition #4 Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky 57.1%
Distillery: Ardmore
Bottler: Signatory Vintage
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 13 years
ABV: 57.1%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill Oloroso Sherry Butts, cask no. 137
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2010
Bottled: 5 December 2023
Edition: 100 Proof Edition #4
EAN no.: 5021944125081
Flavour Profile
Sherry Matured · Smoky · Dark Fruit · Spiced · Cask Strength · Nutty
Did You Know?
The proof system comes from an old British method of checking whether spirit had been watered down: you poured it over gunpowder and set it alight. If the powder burned, the spirit was strong enough and had passed the proof. One hundred degrees proof was later fixed at 57.1% alcohol, and that is exactly the strength this series is bottled at.
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