Ardbeg Dark Reserve

This is a bottle of Ardbeg history. Islay’s cult distillery has been making whisky since 1815, and in an exceedingly rare exclusive collaboration they've created a one-off batch, just for Members.

Fitting the occasion, they’ve supercharged Sherry cask maturation, using beyond-rare Black Sherry casks from Bodegas José y Miguel Martin in Jerez, Spain. This secret Sherry recipe was the Sherry world’s best kept secret for decades, until the early 2010s. That’s when Ardbeg’s Dr Bill Lumsden got on the phone and convinced the José y Miguel Martin team to send him a parcel of these ultra-sticky PX-dialled-up-to-eleven beasts.

Dr Bill and the Ardbeg team immediately filled the luscious casks and tucked them away out of sight.

After only being used as a component of the landmark Dark Cove (which goes for $350+ these days) and to finish a 2022 Feis Isle single cask, Dr Bill finally decided this rare parcel was ready for the ultimate ‘Dark’ Ardbeg, ten years on from Dark Cove: Ardbeg Dark Reserve, Created Exclusively for The Whisky Club.

Matured in a marriage of the secret Black Sherry casks and American oak, then vatted and re-racked into Black Sherry casks for a secondary maturation, this is Ardbeg at its delicious, sherried best.

Rounded, briny and dripping with juicy fruit and aromatic spice at a proper 49.4% ABV, this epic world-exclusive is ONLY available to Members of The Whisky Club from Friday October 2nd, while stocks last.