After 20 Years of Begging, Ardbeg Just Dropped A Cask-Strength Version of Its Iconic 10-Year-Old Scotch
For 20 years, whisky aficionados have begged famed single malt Scotch brand Ardbeg to bottle a cask‑strength version of its award-winning flagship Ten Year Old Whisky.
“Ardbeg Ten Cask Strength has been on the wish list of Ardbeg lovers for some time,” says Dr. Bill Lumsden, Ardbeg’s Director of Distilling and Whisky Creation. “Over the years, when meeting fans around the world and at our distillery on Islay, we realized just how big the demand was for a global release of our beloved Ardbeg Ten years old at a greater strength.”
Courtesy Ardbeg Scotch Whisky
Their prayers have finally been answered. Today, the distillery is releasing Ardbeg Ten Cask Strength, which is a robust 61.7% ABV and has a suggested retail price of $90. It is part of the brand’s Committee release series, which is selected by a group of more than 180,000 super fans. (You can join the Committee for free here and help select the next special release.)
As cask‑strength versions of core malts have become standard across Islay and beyond — Laphroaig’s 10 Year Old Cask Strength, for example, has become a seasonal staple — Ardbeg Ten has stood out as a major flagship without a high‑ABV counterpart.
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But this Ardbeg release isn’t just a response to fan pressure — it’s also the conclusion of Lumsden's long‑running experiment about how the strength of the alcohol affects the way a spirit interacts with the barrel it’s aged in. A decade ago, he filled a set of casks with new‑make spirit, which came off the still at a strength of 71% ABV. Normally, Ardbeg proofs the spirit down to 63.5% by adding some water before it goes into a cask.
As a control for his experiment, Lumsden used the same American oak barrels that the standard Ardbeg Ten is aged in. Filling at a higher alcohol strength, he says, means “the new make’s interaction with the wood is slightly different in terms of flavor extraction. There is a slight shift in the overall flavor complex. Less herbal top-notes, more basal woody flavors.”
You can definitely smell the difference. The cask strength whisky has aromas of maritime salty citrus and plenty of sweet wood smoke. On the palate it has plenty of Ardbeg’s signature grittiness — what the distillery calls tar and “sweet sooty tastes.” But there’s also a spiciness that remains even after adding water, as well as toffee, cinnamon and biscuit notes.
Now the bad news. Ardbeg fans shouldn’t expect this whisky to become a permanent addition to the Ardbeg lineup. “Ardbeg Ten Cask Strength is our Committee release for 2026 — and so there are only a limited number of bottles available; once they are gone, they're gone,” Lumsden says. “There are no plans for this to become a permanent expression in the range at present.”
Ardbeg Ten Cask Strength Availability
Ardbeg Ten Cask Strength whisky is available online and a select number of retailers across the country. There will also be an allotment of bottles available at the distillery in Scotland.