Ardbeg Anthology 13 Year Old The Harpy’s Tale

Ardbeg Anthology 13 Year Old The Harpy’s Tale is the first release in the Ardbeg Anthology Collection — a marriage of Islay single malt matured in sweet Sauternes wine casks together with classic Ardbeg aged in ex-bourbon casks, where smoked lemon peel soars alongside balsamic vinegar before fresh apricots roll into tarry rope — a spirit that achieves the ultimate equilibrium between sweetness and smoke.

The Harpy’s Tale is inspired by the seldom-seen Harpy — a winged beast said to inhabit Islay in local folklore — whose nature embodies the battle between smoke and sweet that defines this expression. Sauternes is a prestigious sweet white wine from the Bordeaux region of France, produced from botrytis-affected Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc grapes — the resulting wine casks carry the intensely honeyed, apricot, and stone fruit character of Sauternes directly into the Ardbeg peat smoke base. It is the first Ardbeg expression to use Sauternes wine casks at this level of influence, representing a genuinely new dimension of Ardbeg’s character. Browse the full Scotch whisky collection at Wooden Cork.

Tasting Notes

• Nose: Smoked lemon peel soaring alongside balsamic vinegar from the Sauternes and ex-bourbon combination on the classic 13-year Ardbeg Islay base
• Palate: Fresh apricots rolling and banking into notes of tarry rope — the battle between smoke and sweet that the Harpy’s Tale name references
• Finish: The ultimate equilibrium between sweetness and smoke from the Sauternes wine cask and ex-bourbon Ardbeg marriage

Specs

• Distillery: Ardbeg, Port Ellen, Islay (est. 1815)
• Region: Islay, Scotland
• Series: Anthology Collection — First Release, The Harpy’s Tale
• Age Statement: 13 Years
• Cask Types: Sauternes wine casks + ex-bourbon casks
• Size: 750ml

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes Sauternes wine casks unusual in Scotch whisky maturation?

Sauternes is one of the world’s most prestigious sweet wines, from botrytis-affected grapes. The intensely honeyed, apricot, and stone fruit character of Sauternes wine casks is rarely applied to Scotch whisky production — making Ardbeg Anthology The Harpy’s Tale a genuinely innovative and unusual cask combination in the context of Islay peat-heavy single malt. Limited allocation. Order online.