Ardbeg

Ardbeg lies alone on a small bay on the south coast of Islay. Illegal distillation used to take place here, when smugglers took advantage of a remote location and exceptional conditions for whiskey production. Eventually, people from the control of the sale of spirits confiscated the original illegitimate buildings from smugglers and destroyed them. It was not until 1815 that the legal distillery was founded by John McDougall. Ardbeg, located close to the influential distilleries Laphroaig and Lagavulin, has always produced the highly sought-after single-species whiskey, despite the fact that its production range is smaller than half of its neighbors.

After some financial difficulties, the distillery closed in 1981 and did not reopen until 1989, albeit to a very small extent. After another closure in 1996, the owners, Allied Domecq, put the distillery up for sale. It was bought by Glenmorangie Co. in 1997 and has finally been restored to its original grandeur. Its main source of water, Loch Uigeadail, or the "dark and mysterious place" in Gaelic, became the inspiration for the 2003 edition under this name. Ardbeg Uigeadail was later the 2009 World Whiskey for Jim Murray, a title previously held by ten-year-old Ardbeg whiskey. Ardbeg has become famous for its rich, peat whiskeys, which can be very easily detected by full consistency and perfect harmony of taste.