How Ardbeg Smokiverse Gets Its Uniquely Fruit-Forward Flavor
Distillers love to say that you can’t make whiskey without first making beer. And it’s true: If you stopped the whiskey-making process after fermentation and added some hops, you’d end up with beer. It’s the distillation and maturation stages that turn the beer into whiskey.
But unlike at a brewery, which might produce West Coast IPAs, pilsners, imperial stouts, and sours, most of the “beer” that becomes whiskey doesn’t vary. It’s made the same way every single time: same grain, same yeast, same end flavor. Distillers are going for a consistent beer so that they can better control the outcome of the final whiskey.
At least, most of the time.
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History of Experimentation
One Scotch distiller hasn’t shied away from doing things differently. Ardbeg, best known for its heavily peated single malts, has a history of experimentation, trying out different techniques to showcase in limited editions, like the annual Ardbeg Day release. Master distiller Bill Lumsden says, “We’ve had a lot of fun over the years. Within reason, we’ve had pretty much a free rein to do whatever we want.”
Lumsden loves to poke the famously strict bear of the industry’s regulator, the Scotch Whisky Association. He confesses to keeping a copy of the rules on his lab table “so I can see what I can contravene.” In the past this has included burying casks in a peat bog (for Ardbeg Fon Fhòid, which included an NFT—remember those?). That peat bog, by the way, was a location that was decidedly not a government-licensed warehouse as required by law.
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Tinkering With Flavors
But most of Lumsden’s experiments aren’t contrary to the rules at all. They’re just downright nerdy, tinkering with esoteric parts of the whisky-making process that most drinkers aren’t even aware of. There was Ardcore, which incorporated roasted black malt into its grain bill to create deep, dark flavors that dovetailed with the prominent peat. And Ardbeg Heavy Vapours, distilled without using a part of the still called a purifier. The resulting whisky was indeed heavier than typical Ardbeg, with savory licorice and coffee notes.
Ardbeg Smokiverse
Lumsden’s latest experiment, Ardbeg Smokiverse, is coming out now as the 2025 Ardbeg Day bottling. It's being released as part of Fèis Ìle, the famous Islay Festival, when every distillery on the island hosts a special celebration over the course of a week.
This particular Ardbeg came about via a trial of high-gravity brewing—making a version of the distillery’s beer with more fermentable sugars than normal. What this means is that the final whisky is much fruitier and more tropical than typical Ardbeg.
“It’s one of the geekier Ardbegs—ruthlessly geeky,” Lumsden says, explaining that he was inspired years back by drinking a high-gravity beer from Green King Brewery. “I was gobsmacked at how rich and fruity this beer tasted,” he adds. “I became fascinated about where all these lovely, estery, fruity flavors came from.”
Fruity Flavors and a High-Gravity Recipe
He learned that it all comes down to the way the barley is mashed—mixed with hot water to unlock the natural enzymes that change its starches to sugar. To make a high-gravity recipe, the brewer either uses more barley or less water. The process yields more sugar for yeast to feed on—and the more yeast eat, the more fruity flavors they produce.
Lumsden had to find out what would happen to Ardbeg at a higher gravity. He changed nothing else, using the same barley, water, distillation process, and barrels. The only variable was mashing the grain to a higher original gravity.
Ardbeg’s normal gravity is in the range of 1.055 to 1.065, but for the whisky that would become Smokiverse, the number was 1.075. “It doesn’t sound like much more, but it is,” Lumsden explains. And it made a difference; the level of acetate esters (aka fruity flavors) in the new-make spirit was 25 percent higher than normal.
“This is not just Billy Lumsden bullshit here,” the distiller says. “It’s backed up with scientific fact.”
We can confirm that. The flavor profile of Smokiverse—which is aged somewhere in the 10-year window—is much brighter and more fruit-forward than usual, with a note that Lumsden describes as “smoked bubblegum.”
It’s unique even among Ardbeg’s experimental offerings. And it’s delicious—by our reckoning, one of the best Ardbeg Day releases in years. Look for it on shelves now for $125.
Ardbeg Smokiverse Tasting Notes
Courtesy Image
Bright, expressive fruitiness is immediately apparent on the nose, mingling with Ardbeg’s signature heavy peat smoke—juxtaposed, but not disparate. There’s a warm breadiness that carries over to the palate, where tropical fruits like mango and pineapple pop amid earthy ash and smoke. It’s a lively and enticing whisky, the kind that will have you pouring another glass without second thought.
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