Ardnamurchan 2017 AD2 Spirit Adelphi 53,6%

The bottle did not say whisky, and that was deliberate. Scottish law requires three years in cask before the word can be used, and Ardnamurchan had not got there yet. So they called it Spirit and sent it out anyway, so people could follow the distillery from the very beginning.

The Expert's Description

Ardnamurchan 2017 AD2 Spirit is a Highland Single Malt Spirit from Ardnamurchan Distillery, bottled at 53.6% by Adelphi. It is the distillery’s second annual release of young spirit and may not be called whisky, because it has not spent the three years in cask that Scottish law requires.

Ardnamurchan was built by the independent bottler Adelphi on the remote Ardnamurchan peninsula on Scotland’s west coast. There had never been a legal distillery on the peninsula before the site opened in 2014. The distillery makes two styles, one peated and one unpeated, matured in American and Spanish oak.

The run of Spirit releases spans 2016 to 2019, and AD2 is the second in the sequence. The distillery’s first proper Single Malt Whisky arrived in September 2020. The spirit is neither chill filtered nor coloured.

Tasting Notes

Nose

Young and direct. Fresh malted barley first, then pear, green apple and a clear cereal sweetness. A light peat smoke sits beneath it all along with a clean, almost bready note you only meet in spirit that has not had time to be rounded off.

Palate

Powerful and raw in the good sense. Malt and grain fill the middle of the mouth, while the cask’s vanilla has only just begun to report in. There is a peated undercurrent and a peppery warmth, and at 53.6% the texture is oily and full.

Finish

Medium and dry. Grain, malt and a lightly smoky edge that lets go sooner than an older whisky would.

Specifications

Name: Ardnamurchan 2017 AD2 Spirit Adelphi 53.6%
Distillery: Ardnamurchan
Bottler: Adelphi
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Spirit
ABV: 53.6%
Size: 70 CL
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2017
Edition: AD2 Spirit
EAN no.: 5060386504023

Flavour Profile

Young · Malty · Fruity · Lightly Smoky · Cask Strength · Grain Forward

Investment Potential

Medium. The Spirit releases were made during a short window before the distillery could call its spirit whisky, and they will never come again. For anyone collecting a distillery’s history from the first bottle, AD2 is a link in a sequence that cannot be recreated.

Did You Know?

Ardnamurchan draws all its electricity from a hydro generator on the river beside the distillery. The location is so remote that producing its own power was easier than running a supply network out there. The environmental case was there too, but the practicality came first.

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Frequently Asked Questions about Ardnamurchan 2017 AD2 Spirit Adelphi 53.6%

Why does the bottle say Spirit rather than Whisky?

Because Scottish law requires at least three years in oak before something may be called Scotch Whisky. This release has not reached that threshold and is therefore legally a Single Malt Spirit. The contents are otherwise made in exactly the same way.

Is young spirit interesting to taste?

Yes, if you want to understand a distillery. Without many years in cask you can hear the spirit itself: the cereal character, the fermentation, the cut points and the smoke. That is harder to hear through twelve years in an active cask.

What does AD2 mean?

That it is the second annual Spirit release from Ardnamurchan. The series ran from 2016 to 2019, after which the distillery could release its first true Single Malt Whisky in September 2020.

Is it worth the outlay?

The case rests not on age but on scarcity. The Spirit releases were made across only four years and cannot be remade, and they form the opening chapters of a distillery’s history. For collectors that is the kind of bottle that becomes hard to find afterwards.

How is young spirit best enjoyed?

Neat and in a small measure, so you can follow the grain and the smoke. At 53.6% a few drops of water can soften it, but go carefully, as there are no layers of cask character to carry the dilution.

What does the distillery make today?

Finished whisky. See our full range of Highland Whisky, where Ardnamurchan’s later releases can also be found.