Head to head · same category, comparable price
Aberlour A'bunadh vs Ardbeg Uigeadail
They diverge on 4 of our eight axes, most of all peaty, 0 against 9.
Compiled by WhiskeyCask Editorial · Last verified 2026-07-30
Specifications side by side
| Aberlour A'bunadh | Ardbeg Uigeadail | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Single malt | Single malt |
| Origin | Speyside, Scotland | Islay, Scotland |
| Age | No age statement | No age statement |
| Strength | Not published | 54.2% ABV |
| Cask | Oloroso sherry butt | Ex-bourbon cask, Oloroso sherry cask |
| Bottle | 700 ml | 700 ml |
| RRP observed | £70 | £60 |
| Per 10cl | £10 | £8.57 |
| Per litre of alcohol | — | £158 |
| Chill-filtered | Not stated | No |
What separates them
Both from Scotland: Aberlour A'bunadh from Speyside, Ardbeg Uigeadail from Islay.
Neither carries an age statement, so neither discloses its youngest spirit.
Cask as each producer describes it: Aberlour A'bunadh in oloroso sherry butt, Ardbeg Uigeadail in ex-bourbon cask and oloroso sherry cask.
Chill filtration: Aberlour A'bunadh does not say, Ardbeg Uigeadail is not.
What the price buys
Aberlour A'bunadh is £10 dearer a bottle than Ardbeg Uigeadail.
Aberlour A'bunadh publishes no strength, so we will not cost it per litre of alcohol.
Flavour, compared
View as table
| Axis | Aberlour A'bunadh | Ardbeg Uigeadail |
|---|---|---|
| Peaty | 0 | 9 |
| Sweet | 8 | 5 |
| Fruity | 7 | 4 |
| Spicy | 6 | 7 |
| Woody | 6 | 5 |
| Sherried | 9 | 6 |
| Cereal | 5 | 4 |
| Oily | 9 | 9 |
4 of the eight axes clear 3 points; after peaty comes sweet at 8 against 5, fruity at 7 against 4 and sherried at 9 against 6.
Level only on oily, 9 each.
Each bottle in its own right
Aberlour A'bunadh
Enormous sherried fruit at cask strength. Batch to batch it moves, which is the point.
We publish no ABV because there isn't one: A'bunadh is released in sequential batches, each bottled at its own cask strength, and Aberlour states only 'cask strength' with no number. Any single ABV you see quoted for it is batch-specific. A'bunadh means 'the original' in Gaelic.
Full record →Ardbeg Uigeadail
Tar, raisin and smoked meat at 54.2%. The best-value cask-strength Islay there is.
A batched vatting, so the strength has varied slightly over time — 54.2% is the current stated figure, not a permanent one. Named after the peat-laden loch supplying the distillery's water.
Full record →No overlap in what we list them for: Aberlour A'bunadh for cask strength and sherry bombs, Ardbeg Uigeadail for value at cask strength and after dinner.
Where these specifications come from
Producer and retailer pages for Aberlour A'bunadh and Ardbeg Uigeadail: aberlour.com, ardbeg.com. Figures are what those pages published when we last checked them, on 2026-07-30.