I’ve been wary of Laphroaig Lore. In fact, I was a bit dreading to taste and review it as it’s the official replacement for Laphroaig 18 which I dearly love. I admit I was angry at Laphroaig’s decision to drop the 18 year old and bring Lore instead as I hate the on going trend of replacing a good matured whisky with a NAS expression.
Usually we don’t know much about the composition of NAS whiskies but John Campbell, the manager of Laphroaig distillery, told the world that Laphroaig Lore is a vatting of casks aged 7 up to 21 year old. But since vatting can change for future batches, I assume they went the NAS route and also because a 7 years old label doesn’t cut it for a whisky replacing a 18 year old expression ah?
So let’s go ahead and check if Lore is indeed ‘The richest of the rich’ and is a worthy replacement for the 18 year old.
Nose: Fruity with apples, red apples peels, a touch of peaches, it very much reminds me some of official Craigellachie lineup traits with those apples, roasted/burnt matches and the oily and smooth feeling. bakery full of fruit cakes, some nuttiness, cream, ginger and spices. 
Nose: Sherried and a bit dirty nose with struck matches, weak sulphur, sour berries, cinnamon and nutmeg, espresso, dark chocolate and wax. After a while more coffee and dark chocolate shows up and it becomes less sulphury. With water it’s fruitier with cherries and raspberries, some malt and chocolate with lower percentage of cacao. 
Nose: It’s a very fruity nose with a lot of pears and pineapple notes. Also some creamy malt, liqorice, bitter grapefruit and gentle oak wood spices. After it sat down in the glass for a few minutes there were red apples, lemon, herbal eucalyptus and light spearmint perfume. 
Nose: Malty which isn’t surprising as I assume it will be young, and energetic (thanks to those extra %), strong sherry impact, dried berries, sultanas, white pepper, demerara sugar, vanilla pods are scatter through, quite lively and punchy. 
Nose: For a 10 year old it’s very mellow and very mature. Good sherry influence here with mellow dried fruits and lots of nuttiness, definitely not overpowering. Wood spices and gentle peat smoke. I really like it.
Nose: I thought (and hoped) it will be a classic meaty Mortlach nose but it’s not. Not that it’s a bad nose mind you. There are raisins and sweet dried red berries on the top with some cloves and cinnamon, overall feels a bit jammy. One time Lemon pie note, big brown sugar sweetness, A bit floral and polished furniture library. After a while finally some stronger meaty notes shows up here and there. 
Nose: Strong waxy note at first (from the Clynelish), vanilla, some muted oak spices that smells like they stop the sweetness in its track, floral edge and then it’s mostly soft oak spices. After a while the sweetness is back along with some green bark. 
Whisky Gospel 