Ardbeg is back with what looks to be another Committee Release special, this time titled "Heavy Vapours".

What pray tell might be the story this time?

Right now we've only got the labels to work with so you know the drill. Parsing through the back label, we're told the following...

"A missing purifier. A dram forsaken. The balance... lost."

"Something weird is going down at the Distillery. The purifier - responsible for Ardbeg's exalted balance - is missing. And this whisky is the consequence. Heavy vapours have risen, making this dram thew most full-blown Ardbeg ever.

Enter a hero to save it all...

Interplanetary detective Agent 46 arrives at the Distillery, determined to save Ardbeg as we know it. Can she restore the balance? Take a deep breath, then a sip. And step into the ARDverse through the QR portal above, for the full incredible story..."

There's also an alternative back label for a differently proofed version of the expression that reads:

"Uncharted territory...

It is said that the merest whiff of classic Ardbeg transports you to another time and place. However, the aroma of this formidable smoky malt takes to to another dimension altogether. For it answers the improbable question: how would Ardbeg be without the pivotal influence of its legendary purifier? You're about to find out. For this dram is the most full-blown Ardbeg ever. Take a deep breath, then a sip. And follow Agent 46 into the ARDverse through the QR portal above..."

So many questions...and so much hyperbole... is it that every time something breaks down or goes awry at the distillery, it's cause for a new Committee Release? Remember Fermutation with the fermentation tanks going wrong and resulting in some unusually long fermentation times. It's as if every couple of months they take just roll a dice and take apart something or just toss the recipe book aside and wing it... and there you have it Ardbeg's latest..."Islay Sea Water".

Also... is this lowkey some Metaverse thing? ARDverse...? We've scanned the QR code folks, it just brings you to ardbeg.com.

On the front label, it reads "Pungent earthiness fills the lungs. Aromatic clouds of darkest chocolate and sharp peppermint ascend. Aniseed and powdery cinnamon billow, while the tang of menthol lingers. With the purifier gone, who will restore the balance?"

From the two versions of labels, we're told that one will be bottled at 50.2% ABV and the other at 46% ABV.

What can we expect from this new expression? Who knows? The labels say alot but at the same time very little...also who was the person asking this improbable question regarding Ardbeg's purifier? You know air travel's back and you can go outside and do stuff right?

(Image Source: Dave's Whisky Reviews)

But of course, for those who're really curious, a purifier is what's connected to the spirit still that takes out the - yes, you guessed it, heavy vapours, providing a lighter and fruitier spirit. For Ardbeg, the distillery uses the purifiers, alongside upward-sloping lyne arms of its pot still to cause rising vapours to condense and fall back into the pot stills for re-distillation - all of which strips out the heavier vapours to create a lighter and fresher, fruitier and sweeter whisky to emerge.

So, with this new expression, we'll probably see a "dirtier" more heavy-bodied whisky, whatever that could mean.

Well, we'll wait to find out more.