Ardnamurchan AD/04.22:02

Bottled in April 2022 as the second batch of that month, AD/04.22:02 is an Ardnamurchan core release at 46.8% ABV from ex Bourbon and Oloroso casks. The distillery filled 25,200 bottles for the European market.

The release vats both peated and unpeated production runs from the distillery's split regime. Concerto barley is milled into a copper topped semi lauter mash tun, fermented 72 to 120 hours in seven stainless steel washbacks on a single strain distiller's yeast, then double distilled through wash and spirit stills with reflux boil balls to a new make of 74 to 76% ABV. Spirit was filled at 63.5% and matured on site at Glenbeg in dunnage warehousing.

Ex Bourbon American oak frames the citric brightness and vanilla in the profile through vanillin and oak lactones released from the char layer. The Oloroso fraction drives the chocolate and toasted character through rancio chemistry, where slow oxidation of polyphenols and aldehydes during years of sherry contact generates the Maillard reaction products characteristic of sherry maturation. Fresh fruit notes reflect ester compounds carried from the long fermentation (ethyl hexanoate for apple, isoamyl acetate for banana) that the higher new make strength preserves. The peated portion's phenols (guaiacol, syringol, 4 methylguaiacol from St Fergus Highland peat at 30 to 35 ppm) sit as supporting structure rather than dominant note.