Ardmore 12 Year Old 2012 Cask #802004 (Signatory Vintage)

A 12 year old single cask Ardmore released by Signatory Vintage in 2025, distilled in 2012 and bottled at 60.7% natural strength. Signatory Vintage is run by the Symington family from Edradour Distillery in Pitlochry, with one of the longest standing programmes in independent bottling. 194 bottles for the German market from cask #802004. The 2012 vintage falls in the late Beam Global ownership period at Kennethmont with steam heating on the wash stills since 2001, before the 2014 sale of Beam Inc to Suntory Holdings.

Filled at 63.5% into a single ex Bourbon refill American oak cask in 2012, the spirit matured at Kennethmont under the post 2001 steam heating regime. Twelve years brought the strength to 60.7%, indicating dry warehouse conditions across the period with ethanol concentration rising rather than falling.

Refill Bourbon at this strength delivers distillery character with concentrated intensity. Cis whisky lactone reads as coconut and pine, vanillin from oak lignin shows as light custard. Steam era distillate sits prominently at the centre with apple and pear esters from the Kerry yeast component, with citric and cooked fruit notes from extended ester development. The 12 to 14 ppm peat phenols read as heather smoke, dry leaf and earthy phenolic at moderate integrated intensity. Hay like malt extract closes a long warm finish at full strength.