Ardbeg has closed the Vintage Y2K series with the oldest bottle of the three, and in doing so turned to a cask Islay had never seen: Tempranillo from Toro. Vintage Y2K 25 Year Old is a single malt at 48%, matured in ex-bourbon and finished in red wine casks from Bodega Numanthia, in north-west Spain. The list price is £730 in the UK, €850 in Europe. It was announced on 8 September 2026.
What is in the bottle
The spirit dates from 2000, the year Ardbeg returned to full production after its rescue: The Glenmorangie Company had bought it in 1997 and spent three years putting it back together. It is also among the last spirits to run off the original still, retired in 2001 after 51 years of service and now on display in the distillery courtyard. The series plays on the millennium bug, the fear that computers would stop at the turn of 2000, but under the joke sits a plain fact: this spirit cannot be made again. The 25 Year Old is the third and final chapter, on sale from September 2026, after the 23 Year Old of 2024 and the Amontillado-finished 24 Year Old of 2025.
Why Tempranillo
Bill Lumsden, director of whisky creation, moved part of the bourbon-matured stock into Tempranillo casks from Bodega Numanthia. It is the first time Ardbeg has used this wine, just as last year was the first time for Amontillado. The choice has an explanation the press release leaves out: Ardbeg and Numanthia sit in the same group, LVMH, the first through Glenmorangie and the second among the Moët Hennessy wine houses. Numanthia works old bush-trained Tinta de Toro vines, some over a century old, and makes dense, intense wines: casks like these push hard on the spirit, and at 25 years that is the point. The official 2026 notes list smoked blackcurrants, chilli chocolate and aged balsamic vinegar on the nose, then coffee grounds, dark chocolate, barbecued spare ribs, eucalyptus and camphor on the palate, with a long finish of lime pickle and tar.
Price and availability
Ardbeg quotes £730 in the UK and €850 in Europe, with sales through the distillery website, the visitor centre and specialist retailers. As of 9 September 2026, though, the bottle does not yet appear on the ardbeg.com shop or at The Whisky Exchange, and the Spiritory marketplace lists a mid-October arrival. In Italy no retailer lists it; for comparison, last year’s 24 Year Old sells at Aquavitae for €599, below its £680 list price.
