As I promised earlier this month in the Laphroaig 32 year old review, here’s the Laphroaig 21 Year Old review. The Laphroaig 21 is a Friends of Laphroaig (FoL) exclusive, that was distilled during 1993 and bottled earlier this year after spending all this time in 1st Fill Ex-Bourbon Barrels.

This combination means we can expect a matured (and perhaps a bit muted) peat profile with huge fruity side.

Laphroaig 21 (48.4%, 350 ml, £99 for FoL members)

Nose: Oh it’s indeed very sweet. whiff of vanilla and honey at first with some lemon. There’s sweet peat smoke with hints of medical notes. Slowly the first wave recedes a bit and we’re exposed to some fruity notes. Peaches, citrus (oranges and lime), pineapples, mango, quite tropical. Sweet smoke with a briny edge, a very rich nose. Continue reading →

Anyone who knows me, personally or follow me via the blog, know that Laphroaig is my favorite distillery. With Laphroaig celebrating 200 years this year I was very excited and keen to try anything new they throw at us: the re-invented 15 Year Old (which I already reviewed here), the 21 Year old (soon to be reviewed) and the ultra premium 32 Year Old.

When the 32 Year Old expression was announced, I knew it will be expensive and well beyond me and my poor wallet. After all, it’s not too common to find old age Laphroaig in sherry casks and in the age where old and premium whiskies prices are sky rocketing, it was very slim possibility. It didn’t stop me from having wild dreams where I snap out my credit card, buy a bottle and enjoy it, but of course I then woke up (and sadly without a bottle).

But I got lucky and got a sample, a gift from a friend which was delivered to me as a blind dram (No, I didn’t guessed it to be Laphroaig 32…). So what did I think of it? Should I follow my dreams and buy a bottle while ignoring the hefty price tag?

Laphroaig 32 Year Old (46.6%, $1259.99/€1,279)

Nose: Hmm this is one complex nose with everything is meshed together. It needs a few minutes to open up and deliver recognizable notes. First there’s slow, deep and gentle peat with deep dark fruit sweetness that reminds me of first fill bourbon cask impact with some vanilla, but slowly slowly subtle sherry notes shows up, getting stronger with time. There are berries, brown sugar and it stays subtle. Continue reading →

A while ago when I tasted the old and new Laphroaig 15yo (see the results here) I was also bestowed by a friend (Thanks A.!) with a sample of an indie Laphroaig 15yo for scientific comparison 😉

It’s a single cask from the warehouse of A.D Rattray and it’s actually a 1998 vintage (distilled 04.11.1998) from a bourbon barrel which yielded 226 bottles after it was bottled in 2014 (24.10.2014), so it’s a bit “older” release than the recent new OB 15yo. How does it stand up against the official 15yo?

Laphroaig 1998 15yo A.D Rattray (58.4%, bourbon barrel #10479, 226 bottles, €114)

Photo credit: Whiskybase.com

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It’s time to resume the Headbangers series reviews. But as I want to review another Laphroaig whisky before the summer finally settle in here (which is late by normal standards), Let’s do a headbangers review of Laphroaig 15. We’ll pit the old (pre-2009 Laphroaig 15 vs Laproaig 15 the 200th Anniversary version.

Yes, a fight of the same expression but the truth is it’s not exactly the same expression. The old 15 Year old was a very popular, being milder than the 10 year old and more delicate. But in 2009 they stopped producing it and instead we got the 18 yo (which is my top favorite OB Laphroaig).

But since then a lot changed in the whisky industry and as the demand is skyrocketing and stock levels are going down in an alarming rate, it was time to revert to the old lineup and reintroduce the 15 instead of the 18.

But it’s not only time (six years) that differentiate between those expressions. Production and materials may have changed. Perhaps even a conscious decision to change the whisky profile to fit the current demand? Let’s check then!
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I think I’ll prolong the headbangers break for one more day to review another new Laphroaig expression – the latest batch (007) of their ever-popular 10 Year Old Cask Strength expresison. Although it was bottled in January 2015, It arrived to market and webshops without much fanfare in May and the release proximity to Feis Ile and the new new 15 yo and Cairdeas releases made it coast to sold-out state under the radar.

But with all due respect to the new 15 Year Old and the Cairdeas, there’s no doubt that the 10 Year Old CS  does stands on it own as the series bottlings are always a favorite of many Laphroaig fans and the new batch is no exception. So let’s check how good is this batch.

Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Batch 007 (56.3%)

Nose: Intense with lots of peat, ashes, smoke and to lesser degree iodine/TCP. Lurking right behind the corner are the fruity notes, saucy smoked meat and some touch of vanilla. Also playing: machines diesel oil, oak wood. With time it’s meatier and fruitier with more honey. With a few drops of water there’s also white pepper and touch of oak Continue reading →

Time for some interlude in the headbangers reviews series. I finally got my Laphroaig Cairdeas 2015 liquid and I just had to taste it as soon as possible 🙂

It’s the Laphroaig 200th anniversary bottling, wholly produced in Laphroaig with 100% usage of malting floor barley and according to John Campbell, it should represent how old Laphroaig was used to taste.

Laphroaig Cairdeas 2015 (51.5%)

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It’s Laphroaig open day in Feis Ile 2015 festival. I don’t hide the fact that it’s my favorite distillery and it kinda kill me that I’m not there as Laphroaig is celebrating their bicentenary (200 years).

Because it’s their bicentenary, I’ll review two Laphroaig whiskies today. The first one is last year Cairdeas 2014 and the other one is the special release for Feis Ile 2015 from Douglas Laing – the Old Particular Laphroaig 14.

The Cairdeas (which is pronounced ‘car-chase’, means ‘friendship’ in Gaelic) 2014 was matured in bourbon barrels and Amontillado hogsheads, which is different sherry type from the more commonly used Oloroso/PX and it boasts different flavours on the whisky.

Laphroaig Cairdeas 2014 (51.4%)

Nose: Sweet peat and tropical fruits with strong papaya and banana notes. Sour unripe forest fruits, yellow plums and sour bitter oak. Slowly the peat smoke rises up with charcoal and touch of medicinal/iodine note but the sweetness fights back and the balance is between the sweet and peat is rolling back and forth. With water it’s sweeter, fruitier and almost flowering. Continue reading →

It’s a gloomy and wintry weather here this week and the forecast for the weekend promise a real cold, rainy and snowy weekend around here. I guess it’s time to prepare with another peated dram, right?

Let’s get back to my favorite distillery and pick a 15 year old bottling by Signatory, bottled as part of their Un-chilfiltered Collection from  a refill sherry butt.

Laphroaig 15 yo (1998-2014) Signatory Vingtage Cask #700384 (46%, 797 bottles, €69.90)

Nose: Ahh, love that Laphroaig nose – Peat and soot, engine oil and BBQ coal, a bit of burnt matches, dry warm rubber boots. There’s the sherry impact with nutmeg, soaked raisins, sour berries. Continue reading →

Laphroaig is my favorite distillery and the next whisky I review here was the first one to utterly disappoint me. When it was released it was following the successful Laphroaig PX Cask (which I love) and so I was eager to try the next installment. When the first reviews trickled in I was really surprised to hear how many were regarding this as a bad Laphroaig and so my urge to buy a bottle was curbed down and I didn’t get to taste it till very recently as I got a sample from a friend.

Laphroaig QA cask is initially matured in bourbon barrels before being finished in charred American white oak casks, so supposedly we should have a tamed down Laphroaig expression, richer in vanilla, honey and spices – does it work well?

Laphroaig QA Cask (40%, £56.95/£50 (TR)/€50)

Nose: I instantly recognized the Laphroaig profile. There’re the peat and smoke, it’s very sweet and heavy on vanilla and honey. With some time, smokier, brine, but didn’t find much iodine & TCP. It’s rounded and very tamed comparing to previous OB expressions. Continue reading →