Ardbeg 1978 The Syndicate's 10 Year Old

You would not think it to see it now, but Ardbeg had a difficult time of it for much of the 20th century. The distillery was bought in a joint venture between Hiram Walker and DCL in 1959, both intending to supply their blends. The subsequent years were very successful, but DCL backed out in 1979 (closing many of their other distilleries a few years later), and Hiram Walker then struggled in the 1980s era oversupply when interest is blended Scotch was waning. They closed it down for the majority of the decade. It re-opened briefly in the 1990s before being revived for good by Glenmorangie plc in 1997. The lack of demand in the period prior to this, thankfully, saw a lot of casks sold to independent bottlers, many of which have gone on to become legendary releases.

This Ardbeg was distilled in 1978 and matured for 10 years. It was bottled on islay by The Syndicate in 1988.

The Syndicate was founded by John McTaggart, an Islay property investor who had been acquiring casks of Islay whisky for his estate as early as the 1970s, and had a habit of bottling these in a myriad of containers for visiting guests and workers there. MacTaggart later invited some friends to join him in the purchase of some 1970s vintage casks, the most famous of these was a parcel of 1979 vintage Lagavulin, and The Syndicate was born. Having been involved in the re-opening of Bruichladdich distillery, John was able to hold his casks in bond there, as well as having access to its bottling hall. Notable for its simple and elegant label designs, The Syndicate bottlings let the whisky do all the talking, and are increasingly sought after.