Category Archives: Laphroaig

Laphroaig 25 y.o. Cask Strength (2009 Edition) Review

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Laphroaig 25 y.o. Cask Strength (2009 Edition)125

51% abv

Score:  92.5/100

 

By no means can Laphroaig be considered a subtle dram. Its reputation as one of the most defining and polarizing single malts in existence is not without merit. Even the more readily available expressions in the Laphroaig line-up (Quarter Cask and 10 year old) are enough to have some swooning and some bolting. Taking this self-same malt from the isle of Islay up to cask strength (51% abv) only helps to reinforce this characteristic might.

But then again…who needs subtlety? There are enough bland and homogenized whiskies bending the shelves worldwide. Whiskies such as this, with its profoundly jagged and flavor-filled profile, should be embraced and, when the occasion calls for it, revered. There is just no way around it. This is an enormously aggressive whisky.

Nose:  Smoke, licorice and peppered greens. Some lime, mild chocolate and fresh tropical fruit. Sweet unidentifiable fruits carried over, I’m sure, from the Oloroso cask. Dry grainy/cereal notes come through as it opens up and the initial bite retreats a little. There is also a wee bit of caramel adding some smooth sweetness. Tack on the typical Islay profile notes of peat, fishiness and iodine and you pretty much have what I’m getting on this one. Quite a busy one.

Palate:  There is a peppery bite on first sips. An odd and fleeting hint of red licorice as it first crosses the palate. The caramel notes absolutely do not carry over to the palate, however the chocolate does, and carries a hint of honey. A great delicious briny tang puts down roots as well.

Thoughts:  Not a lot one could drink after this in a sitting. Most likely a malt you want to close your evening with.

 

– Reviewed by:  Curt

– Photo:  Curt

The Cure For What Ails Ye

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All right, hill people!

Come forth and claim your rightful accolades.  From the Appalachian moonshiners to the Scottish excise-dodgers, we raise a glass in salutation to the tenacity of those who have fought through the ages, allowing the spirit to flow and soothe the souls of savages.

Through the years countless examples of clever folk (from toothless backwooders to the heads of organized crime) have found ways to duck the heavy hand of the law in a noble crusade to bring alcohol to the working man (and woman).  Arguably the worst hit region was America, where prohibition blotted out reason from 1920 through 1933.  Al Capone did his piece, smuggling Canadian Club whisky across the line from Ontario into Michigan.  Granny Clampett did her bit as well, passing around her jug of “Roomatiz Medicine”.  Most importantly though, at least to us scotch whisky snobs, Ian Hunter, owner of Laphroaig in the 1920s, did his part.  Legend has it, Mr. Hunter passed US authorities samples of his enormously iodine-laden and peaty Laphroaig, and due to its medicinal qualities, was able to elude the net of prohibition.  If rumor speaks any truth, apparently Laphroaig was actually even attainable by prescription.

Hmmmm…<cough cough> Feel a bit of a cold coming on.

One final note:  In recent years, Laphroaig has pioneered a move to quarter-cask maturation.  These quarter casks, as the name suggests, are smaller than standard whisky barrels.  Ideal for…yep, you guessed it…smuggling.  Many, many moons ago, a beast of burden would be laden with quarter cask on either haunch and used to move spirit discreetly and easily (well…maybe not so easily if you were the horse or mule).  In recent years, this quarter cask idea has proven ridiculously profitable and utterly successful in creating bold and charming malts.

So…glasses high to our friends at Laphroaig, who, since 1815, have worked to keep the chill off my bones…the cough from my throat and sobriety at a respectable distance.  Slainte!

 

Without further ado, a few members of The Collective gathered to pay homage to the might bog beast…

 

Laphroaig

 

Laphroaig Quarter Cask – 48% abv

Nose:  Playfully youthful.  Smoky and raw.  Briny and citric.  Sharp and prickly.  Earthy and woody.  Anise.  Sweet peated barley.

Palate:  Dry earthy peat.  Baker’s chocolate.  Smoke and dirt.

Finish:  Drying and earthy with burnt wood.  Lingering and large.

Assessment:  One of the best young whiskies on the market.  Absolutely epitomizes the Laphroaig profile.

 

Laphroaig 10 y.o. – 43% abv

Nose:  Green apple.  Smoked peach.  Grains.  Weed-like pungency.  Jolly Ranchers.  Fruity soap.  Crab apple jelly.  Seaside froth.  Tarry.

Palate:  More Jolly Ranchers candy, but stale and short of the fruit promised on the nose.  Thick barley and green grass.

Finish:  Mouthcoatingly oily and dense.  Surprising for 43%.

Assessment:  Much better than the old 40%’er, but still falls just a hair short in a stable full of brilliant expressions.

 

Laphroaig

 

Laphroaig 10 y.o. Cask Strength – 58.7% abv

Nose:  Smoke.  Brine.  Crème brulee.  Cacao.  Pink chewing gum.  Honey and white chocolate.  Mild spice.  Cured meat.  Charcoal ash.  Floral minty tones and a hint of pickle.

Palate:  Green grass.  Kippers and anise.

Finish:  Very drying with tobacco and clean smoke.

Assessment:  Yes!  Chock full of nifty notes and nuances, surprisingly none of which are buried by peat or alcohol.

 

Laphroaig 18 y.o. – 48% abv

Nose:  Orange and chocolate.  Cedar.  Fruity.  Heavy vanilla and black licorice flavored jujubes.  Pear drops.  Sambuca and fruit bowl with dominant bananas.

Palate:  Poached and caramelized white fruits.  Floral smoke.  Some dark chocolate and Worther’s Originals.

Finish:  Drying with tobacco and clean smoke.

Assessment:  Mild and overwhelmed by the others in this range.  When not stacked up against scorching young peat, cask strength aggression or the untouchable austere beauty of the 30 year old, this is a phenomenal dram.  Sadly…it was nearly lost tonight.

 

Laphroaig 18 y.o. SMWS 29.72 “Not Pink and Fluffy”– 54.5% abv

Nose:  Buttery.  Sharp sherry.  Nut.  Syrupy.  Maple smoked bacon.  Fishy.  Red berry fruits.  Dried tobacco.  Fruit leather.

Palate:  Treacle and bacon.  Cigar smoke.  Nutty and leathery notes with more fruit leather.

Finish:  Bacon.  Caramelized brown sugar.  Brine and cigar leaf.

Assessment:  Just moving towards subtle maturity.  A very unique and atypical cask.  The dominant ‘breakfast’ notes in this one are almost a caricature.  Neat…not bad…not a favorite.

 

Laphroaig 25 y.o. Cask Strength – 51% abv

Nose:  Smoke.  Licorice.  Pepper.  Iodine.  Lime.  Orange.  Chocolate and caramel.  Dry hay.  Green and weedy.  Cream toffee.  Soft melon fruits.  Fishy.  Vanilla cream-filled chocolates.  Coconut rum and canned pineapple.

Palate:  White chocolate and macadamia nut cookies.  Dark chunky peat.  Hard dark chocolate.  Spotted dick and honey.  Fleeting glimpse of red licorice as it first crosses the palate.

Finish:  Honeyed and creamy.  Lingering melon.

Assessment:  Oh my.  This is it.

 

Laphroaig 30 y.o. – 43% abv

Nose:  Peach and melon.  Tar and rubber.  Citrus.  Blueberry.  Fruit compote.  Cask dust and wood influence.  Waxy.  Cherry.  Wisps of smoke…but much mellowed.  Cream and maple syrup.

Palate:  Creamy and fruity.  Burnt fruits.  Warm scones and homemade butter.  Soft and oily.  Dried apricots and other fruits.

Finish:  Drying with more fruits and honeyed melon.

Assessment:  Swirling depths of flavor.  Keeps changing in a myriad of fruits and complexities.   One could get lost in this one.  Best of the bunch and absolutely exudes sexy maturity.

 

Tasting notes courtesy of the Collective.

 

Until next,

– ATW

Tale Of Two 25 Year Old Laphroaigs

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Shouldn’t 25 year old siblings taste the same?  After all they were born and raised ( we hope ) on Islay.  They both share Spanish and American heritage.  They both have a yellow gold hue appearance, round bodies and have the same smokey nose .

The nature vs. nurture debate is one of the oldest issues in Whisky (the other is did the Irish invent Whiskey).  The debate centers on the contributions of materials (Nature) such as cereals, yeasts, wood and Production Methods (nurture) such as cut, still variation, storage methods.

Well let’s taste them and see what we can discern about these two 25 year old siblings.

LAPHROAIG 25 YEAR OLD 40 % ABV.  PARTLY MATURED IN OLOROSO SHERRY CASK

NOSE: Aged smoke, winey, almonds and soft apples & pears

TASTE: Sweet ripe nectarines.  Raisins

FINISH: Medium and a bit more

ASSESSMENT: Nice Laphroaig even without the big robust smoke.  Could use with a little more % of alcohol

Laphroaig at 25 years.

LAPHROAIG 25 YEAR OLD 51 % ABV.  PARTLY MATURED IN OLOROSO SHERRY CASK 2009 EDITION

NOSE: Lively smoke but more medicinal than the 40 %.  Light bubble-gum and pears

TASTE: Smooth sweet tropical fruit.  Creamy caramel.  Stunning

FINISH:  long. A little harsh in the middle then warm at the end

ASSESSMENT: Liked the taste far better than the nose.  Nice dram

Although they shared many similar traits, they really tasted different. Was it the wood influence (first / second / third fill casks)? Maybe the blender vatted older Laphroaig with the 25 year old casks or more bourbon casks in one. Maybe one was matured on Islay and one was matured on the mainland.

I say vive la difference.  Without some difference by unknown factors or change in the process our endless quest to find the perfect dram would cease. After all it’s all about the journey.

Maltmonster