Ardmore 1977/2003 (45%, Samaroli 35th Anniversary, C#7631, 738b) : nose: why, this has a very interesting mix of sliced strawberries, drying in the sun, and ash -- as in: ashtray. Fruit tree, burnt on a campfire overnight, and reduced to smoky ashes by the morning, smoked-strawberry sweets, hot twigs, perhaps smoked banana skins... It goes quiet, after a few minutes. Let us come back to the nose later. ZzzzZZZzzzZZZzzz... A bit of rest helps shy seafood pierce through, alongside the fresh-ish fruit; it is not Gaston Lagaffe's morue à la fraise (© Franquin), rather oysters or mussels with a strawberry coulis on top. Most amusing! The second nose seems more overtly berry-driven, deeper and darker, while the smoke appears to take a back seat. Mouth: it has an acidic attack, as if strawberry were a citrus. Strawberry it most definitely is, though, smoked strawberry, to be precise, which adds an acrid layer to complement the sweetness and acidity of the fruit. That smoke is potent indeed, unexpectedly so, with charred jams tarring up the bottom of the pan, itself licked by the flames of a fruit-tree fire in a dusty cottage. The reduction is felt, yet it does not feel weak in any way; 45% is perfectly fine. It may fare less well in different circumstances, as we saw the first time we had this. The texture seems thin and stripping to start with, but it thankfully turns sweet and sticky over a minute or so. Finish: the everlasting fight between strawberry and smoke continues, and it is hard to tell, at any moment, which of the two has the upper hand -- the fruit, or the smoke? It makes for a beguiling finish too. Seafood makes a timid comeback, still mussels or smoked oysters with a drop of lemon juice. The second sip has a more-pronounced smoke, even if it is not shouty, as well as jam made of darker, tarter berries: blackberries or blackcurrants. Let us call that smoked-berries jam. Efficient and a half. Oh! It keeps a spoonful of mussel cooking water or warm seawater until the end, discreet, sure, but adding complexity. 9/10
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