Ardbeg 17 Year Old 2002 Release 70cl

Now increasingly hard to find, this expression was introduced in 1997 when The Glenmorangie Company acquired Ardbeg from previous owners, Allied Lyons. At that time, the distillery was emerging from many years of reduced production with long periods of inactivity. This meant that there was only enough stock of aged whisky to keep the Ardbeg 17 Year Old on shelves until 2004, at which point it was discontinued for good. A tantalising glimpse of the spirit from of Scotland’s greatest distilleries at the end of the 20th century.

Assembled originally from stocks distilled before the distillery went into mothballs in 1981, Ardbeg’s 17-year-old was the oldest entry-level official bottling on the Scotch whisky market at the time. The distillery had made very little whisky during the 1980s and 1990s, but the extraordinary quality and popularity of these 17-year-olds helped spark Ardbeg’s renaissance.

About Ardbeg

Ardbeg distillery has been producing whisky since 1798. The distillery is owned by Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy, and produces a heavily peated Islay whisky. The distillery uses malted barley sourced from the maltings in Port Ellen.

The Ardbeg distillery was officially founded in 1815 by John McDougall. But Whisky was distilled there long before that. There are no documentations, as Ardbeg was an illegal business back in 1794. The distillery is now owned by LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy), which also owns Glenmorangie distillery in the Highlands of Scotland. The current capacity is just over one million litres per annum and its water source is Loch Uigeadail, after which one of its famous releases is named.

40% ABV

70cl