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Day 15: Islay
The last full day in Islay, a day of just bits and pieces. Today was Ardbeg day, so just about everyone here for Feis Ile headed to the south end of the island for that. So we headed west, first stop the no-longer newest distillery on Islay, Kilchoman. This distillery generally produces a peaty, a little oily spirit, for me it works better in bourbon barrels but they do spend a lot of time using sherry. After several full days of whisky, plus cheese and spicy foods, and some ibuprofen, I found myself with a bit of reflux so I passed on doing any tasting. I was content just to…
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Day 13: Islay
First full day on Islay, an island of whisky, peat, and history. We did a bit of all three. We kicked off the day at Ardbeg, a distillery currently thriving but went through some challenging times through the 1970s to the late 1990s. Last time I was here they had not long restarted distilling, and I bought a bottle of their Very Young for about 25 pounds. I’ve had a lot of Ardbeg since then, of many expressions, and while I’ve enjoyed some more than others I’ve never had one that I haven’t found something good in. I’ve also never had an Ardbeg like the 4 that I tasted today.…