2025 Ardnamurchan ‘ArdnAmerica’ Tour Tasting

Written By Me, My Wife & Whisky

Indianapolis, Indiana – Local specialty spirits retailer Storied Company hosted a second tasting with the Ardnamurchan distillery, led by Carl Crafts, a sales executive for the brand.

Ardnamurchan is owned by independent bottler Adelphi; because of that association, we see the same quality-focused production in the single malt as we see in the related independent releases. All of the distillery’s whiskies are bottle at a strength of at least 46% ABV, so there’s no chill filtration used after maturation; no artificial coloring is added, either, so we get a fully natural presentation. Speaking of nature - Ardnamurchan also focuses on keeping their environmental impact to a minimum, using hydroelectric, solar, and biomass boilers as energy sources for their production.

In our previous Ardnamurchan tasting, the focus was on the components of their flagship single malt, with a breakdown of peated vs. unpeated single malt components, as well as a comparison of ex-bourbon cask samples and ex-sherry cask samples. This time, the flagship AD/ single malt is the appetizer, and we’re digging into the limited releases from the distillery, which have become much more common over the last 2 to 3 years.

Before that, though, we start with a product that doesn’t carry the Ardnamurchan name: this is Maclean’s Nose, a blended Scotch whisky. It’s a malt-forward blend with 70% of the batch being made from single malts, while the remaining 30% is grain whisky. Ardnamurchan distillate makes up about 50% of the overall blend; the other 20% in the malt category is sourced from a Campbeltown distillery. The grain whisky comes from an undisclosed source in the Edinburgh area; one neat fact about this grain is that it’s made with corn, while most other Scottish single grains are made using predominantly wheat. The corn used in the mashing and fermentation process adds a signature sweetness to the grain whisky, and therefore, this blend.

Maclean’s Nose Blended Scotch Whisky

Nose: savory, orange, soft grain, soft peat, slate, salt

Palate: Stronger peat, lemon-lime soda, corn bread, malt, brown sugar

Finish: malty, cardamom, brown sugar, mild peat, oranges, creamy

Notes: 46% ABV, 4 to 7 year old components; lightly peated, heavily sherried maturation

This is a very solid blend - the extra malt content helps this to be more flavorful and refined than a lot of the competition; the soft peat influence and stronger sherry cask maturation ensures that it’s also complex and full of flavor. At the $39 asking price, this is a bargain of a bottle.

Now, to the main course of the tasting experience: the Ardnamurchan core range and limited releases:

Ardnamurchan AD/

Nose: moderate peat, slate, salt, hay, barley sugar, hint of dark fruit, ash

Palate: soft peat, barbecued meats, charcoal, orange, fizzy

Finish: lemon-lime soda, vanilla, pepper, peat

Notes: roughly 50% unpeated distillate, 50% peated distillate; 2/3 matured in ex-bourbon casks, 1/3 in sherry casks (mostly Oloroso, a hint of Pedro Ximenez); 46.8% ABV

Check out our full review of Ardnamurchan AD/ here!

Ardnamurchan Cask Strength Release (2024)

Nose: stronger peat smoke, a little sharp, barley, lemon, grass, peach

Palate: peaty, honey, jalapenos, lemon, white pepper, malt

Finish: salty and slate, mineral, stronger peat, lemon, refined sugar

Notes: roughly 90% peated distillate and 90% ex-bourbon casks; 6 to 8 year old whisky components; 58.3% ABV

Ardnamurchan Madeira Cask Release

Nose: fudgy, smoky, charcoal, cranberry sauce, raisin, chocolate truffle

Palate: tiramisu, stronger peat smoke, pecans, chocolate, viscous

Finish: raspberry, wood smoke, cherry, brown sugar, soft peat

Notes: just under 7 years old; 26 month Madeira finish; roughly 60% unpeated distillate, 40% peated distillate; 52% ABV

Ardnamurchan Mezcal Cask Release

Nose: sweet vanilla, spirity, yogurt, slate, honey vegetal, earthy funk

Palate: honey, sharp smoke, golden apple, sweet

Finish: vanilla honey, earthy, moderate smoke

Notes: just under 7 years old; 20 month finish in Mezcal casks; 100% peated distillate; 55% ABV

A really interesting variety of whiskies here - the variety of cask types and levels of peat makes each whisky very unique. The standard AD/ is a classic, with great coastal notes of salt and mineral and just the right amount of peat smoke; the Cask Strength versions amps all of that up, with a particularly heavy emphasis on peat.

The Madeira Cask Release was a favorite in the tasting - so rich, fudgy, absolutely bursting with fruit and dessert notes. It’s a decadent dram, not a subtle one, and the texture is fantastic. The Mezcal Cask Release, on the other hand, was lighter and brighter with surprisingly strong sweetness and nice earthy notes.

At the end of the tasting, we get a final treat: the latest edition of the ArdnAmerica bottling! This is the third version after releases in 2023 and 2024, when the ArdnAmerica tour was on the West Coast and East Coast of the US. This year’s small batch focuses on the interaction of peated distillate and sweet Sauternes wine casks, with a bit of ex-bourbon cask thrown in the mix:

Ardnamurchan ArdnAmerica 2025 Tour Bottling

Nose: honey, golden apple, white chocolate, soft smoke, green apple

Palate: creme brulee, vanilla, sweet, apples, spirity, slate, peaty

Finish: honey, fizzy smoke, petrichor, mandarin orange, warm

Notes: 3 6 year old casks aged in both bourbon casks and Sauternes casks (a 3+ year finish); 1 bourbon cask aged 8 years; 57.5% ABV

Check out our full review of the 2025 ArdnAmerica Tour Bottling here!

All in all, another great night of tasting high-quality whiskies at Storied Company with one of our favorite single malt whiskies brands, Ardnamurchan. Because the prices on all of the bottles are fair, there’s value to be had all around - we would be happy picking up any of these bottles, and we have no hesitation recommending that others try this brand, too, if they haven’t yet taken the plunge.

-Ethan and Hannah (Me, My Wife & Whisky)

Check out our previous Ardnamurchan tasting at Storied Company:

Ardnamurchan & Adelphi Tasting

Me, My Wife & Whisky
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