Laphroaig NAS 48% OB Triple Wood
After a couple of really good cask strength Laphroaigs lately I'm down to find out if my palate has changed and perhaps I've become custom to the peaty Laphroaig character. Maybe this standard OB can shed some light? Smells delicious, peaty and floral, quite subtle for a Laphroaig. The taste is even more peaty and floral, very good, no question about that, but it lacks some rawness. The aftertaste is peaty and long, intense smoky flavours, sort of like a sweet cigar.
Light and easy peaty Laphroaig: 6
One bourbon matured Laphroaig bottled for the german whisky retailer Whisky-Fässle which combines low-prices with big selection. I find that the modern bottlings from Laphroaig lacks some of the peaty character of older days, but maybe the high %abv will make up for it in this one. Smells huge peat and full of nice floral detergent notes as well as some sweet creamy oyster and shrimp eggs. So far this is fantastic!!! The taste is of citrus fruit, lemon, peppery and salty. But it's still incredibly fat and creamy and sweet... The finish just goes on and on and on with peaty notes.
This might be the best Islay malt I've ever tried: 9.5
Laphroaig 25yo 50.9% OB
I liked the 10yo CS, and now they've performed a CS version of the 25yo as well. The nose shows a much rawer peat, almost like some new make peated whisky. At 25yo that means to me its a very burnt odor, like some burnt rubber. The taste is coastal, licorice, long and peaty with a massive finish on vanilla and rustic dried lemon notes upon mustard creme.
A palatable Laphroaig, very good: 8
Laphroaig NAS 48% OB Triple Wood
One that's always stood in the shadow of the quarter cask version. I have tried some triple woods before, with the Auchentoshan coming out on top if I remember correctly. A totally fidderent malt than Laphroaig. Smells sort of clean peat with some red wine nuances. needs some time, it's not bad at all, clean and nice, but as far as peat and the well known coastal laphroaig character are concerned there's not much left. The woodwork overpowers much of the distillery character and it becomes sort of impotent. The taste is Vanilla, peat, licorice, red wine, citrus-flavored ice cream, honey, a lot going on here. The aftertaste is more classic Islay Laphroaig with medicinal notes as well as a dry sherry fragrance in the end.
A very good Laphroaig that I actually prefer to the QC: 7.5
Laphroaig NAS 1996 49.8% Whisky and Cigars Port
A port wine finished Laphroaig from the Whisky und Cigar shop in Berlin, I've tried this once before from a friend that brought a bottle home, and as far as I remember it was definately the best Islay malt I've ever tried. Oh the smell! It is so thick and fat, smoked ham, blue cheese, grilled peppers, sweet, salty and some restrained beautiful bitterness. The taste has some really pronounced flavours of chorizo, aslt and dry red wine, amazing. This is a whisky for gods, to drink and enjoy this is nothing short of heaven.
Score, well, absolute stunner, no surprise here: 10
Laphroaig 18yo 1990-2008 55.2% Berry Bros & Rudd cask#2251
I don't think I've ever tried such an old Laphroaig, will the raw medicinal notes in this one be more restrained? The smell is round, full of nice vanilla and honey notes with some discreet smoke. If I didn't know better I'd think this might be a peated speysider or highlander, peaty tang? The flavours shows that the cask have done some really nice work, lots of sweet vanilla and peppery notes. Far from the rawness of younger versions. But again that seems to be some of the problem here, all the balls that makes laphroaig stand apart from other whiskies tastewise seems to be gone. The aftertaste is fairly short and plain.
If you want a light and easy Laphroaig initiation, try this: 5
Laphroaig 11yo 1999-2010 42% Vinmonopolet
I don't know who's bottled this Laphroaig, but my sources says it's bottled in Denmark. Now this has some heavy medicinal notes, not far from the standard 10yo OB, a bit darker in colour, could this come from a single cask? Here's peat, ashes, dry notes, herbs, salt, peppery notes, a hardcore old style Laphroaig. If you're a peathead, and I don't say that in a bad way, this for you. Reminds somewhat of the peatiness in Ardbeg just without
the lemon and sugar notes. Like chewing lime seeds, quite bitter.
A typical Laphroaig: 6
Laphroaig 11yo 1999-2010 59.5% Daily Dram
My first, at least that I know, all exclusively sherry matured Laphroaig. And at this strength!! This could be a killer. This one reeks of smoke, smoke, coastal salty dry character and black pepper. But not bad, I've felt that the charismatic Laphroaig profile have faded a bit the last years, so perhaps this IB can show former glory? The taste is sweet, peppery, salty, but most of all PEATY!!!, which makes it hard to find other flavours, except small hints of the aforementioned sweet, peppery and salty.
A tastebomb: 6
Laphroaig NAS 48% Quarter Cask
Time to try this double matured Laphroaig, or is it really double matured when the casks both bourbon, but the size is the difference? The label states that smaller casks enhances flavours that used to be in whiskies of bygone days. Let's see. This smells like thunder, musky, muscat, peaty, dry, strong, earthy. The taste is peppery, floral, cedarwood, mustard, honey, waxy, many flavours I don't recognize in the 10yo. Not as coastal, but pleasant however. I believe this is one for Laphroaig fans mainly. Not my favourite Laphroiag, but if you like to try a new expression, go on.
Special Laphroaig, one that handles water: 5
Laphroaig 10yo 58.3% OB Batch#2
This is the second batch of the 10yo cask strength Laphroaig distillery released a couple years ago, if I remember correctly. It smells classic Laphroaig, peppery, coastal, peppery and even more peppery. The %abv's been raised, but I guess the whisky stock included should be pretty similar. The taste is stearic, burnt rope, sea salt, chilli and butter. So far it's a vast improvement from the earlier batch. This is classic Laphroaig with much of the hardcore peatiness that I feel is missing in many of the recent bottlings. The aftertaste is fairly long, peppery and just a slight disappointment when compared to the nose and palate.
Very well Laphroaig: 7
Laphroaig 12yo 57.5% OB Cairdeas
Laphroaig can be fantastic, and it can be crap, I have a more ambivalent impression of their malt than the one of any other distillery. This one has the usual smell of disinfect balm and dry liquorice. Sweet, spirity, liquorice, peaty, salty and once again, extremely sweet. Please do add water, it becomes a bit less sweet and a rounder and more mature taste appears, dry red wine, raw tuna and mustard. It's one for the Laphroaig geeks, and I guess to them it will be an absolute treat. For me on the other hand, It's not what I'd prefer other than on a small boat on the ocean in a storm while freezing.
A macho-whisky: 7.5
Laphroaig 10yo 43% OB
This is a flat bottled version from the 80's or earlier. It's up 3%abv compared to the recent 10yo. Other than that its also packed with E150. I've heard/read that older bottlings from Laphroaig should have much more punch and balls than the newer versions. It smells very good, peaty, coastal, salty, vanilla and spice. The taste is classic Laphroaig, peaty, peppery and sweet. I'm not getting the medicinal notes people seems to be talking about, this is maybe a more elegant Laphroaig? Anyway, its got a drying and sweet finish that complements the style perfectly.
My favourite OB Laphroaig so far: 8
Laphroaigh 12yo 1996-2009 56.9% The Perfect Dram II
I haven't yet quite understood why they put roman letter behind the "Dram", but there's probably a good reason. Anyhow, a bourbonmatured young cask strength from Laphroaig, this should do the trick! This nose is more like it, much more coastal with some medicinal hints. The taste is at first sweet, with much vanilla. Then the peat really shows and creates a wonderful warming, salty, coastal and herbal aftertaste that's quite long. I have to admit that it lacks some integration between the initial sweetness and later peat attack. It doesn't quite hang together. Other than that it's a good old Laphroaig within it's traditional characters.
Just what to expect from a Laphroaig: 6
Laphroaigh 16yo 1987-2004 46% Silver Seal
I'm feeling a bit of a cold coming on today, that's why I'll try a double of the good old Laphroaig to cure myself. This one is dark, seems like a sherried malt. The nose is very nice, some fine creamy sherry notes, but no sign of smokiness whatsoever, could the peat be so easily camouflaged? The taste is very sweet, sherried, a bit dry, wineish, like a Glen Moray? The aftertaste is also very weak, coming from Laphroaig that is, like a Bowmore Legend or even Benriach Authenticus. There's something strange here, it's a decent whisky, but not like any Islay I've ever known.
Laphroaig shows a soft side: 5
Laphroaig 10yo 55.7% OB
This Laphroaig bottled on cask strength of 55.7 smells like a classic Islay malt. Lots of smoke, peat, salt and pepper. Surprisingly sweet taste, much more robust than other Laphroaigs I've tried. An exciting creamy vanillaflavour stands out, but the finish is very peaty and phenolic. I think many would like this, but personally I like to add a bit water, and for this one it doesn't take away any of the flavour, just makes the finish a bit more smooth.
A peppery massacre: 6
Laphroaig 10yo 40% OB
One of the most peated and smoky Islay malts, but also one of the mildest after my taste. The first thing hitting the palate is some smoke and burnt sugar, then nothing... A good finish with some hints of apple, cigar and citrus. A good whisky that doesn't require much.
Fruity smoke: 6
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