Going on with my favorite Islay distillery, Laphroaig. I fin great pleasure in those high strength young Laphroaigs at about 10yo and 60%abv. Lets instead have a few older ones in this session, and at lower strength. And the recent PX-finished OB is also under the telescope.
Laphroaig NAS 48% OB PX
PX stands for Pedro Ximenez, which is a sweet sherry. The combination of peat and sherry sure isn't for everyone. I've tried bot good and bad. I do not know how long this will be on the market considering that sherry casks usually are expensive. The color is amber. It smells of sherry, mushrooms, stilton cheese, mustard, flinty, raw, once again it seems the peat and sherry battling a bit and as a result the whisky becomes a bot hard to follow. The taste is sweet, perfumy, blood oranges and grapefruit before it becomes more vile. Peat, mint, peppermint, corn, floral, not much Laphroaig character, but it reminds me a bit of the Bowmore Dawn actually.
Better than the QC and 10yo imho: 6
Laphroaig 17yo 1993-2010 48.2% Old Malt Cask Douglas Laing cask#6630
From a refill hogshead. If OMC-bottlings are under 50%abv, that means they're always bottled at CS, so in a way, low strength could be good news when it comes to this series. Pale white wine color. I know DL made their reputation on some old sherry casks, but I think there are some great bourbon casks in the OMC-series as well. It smells of canned peaches and marshmallows, fruity for a Laphroaig. It's peaty and fruity, a bit like Caol Ila? The taste is vanilla and peat, some hints of banana and sugar syrup. All in all its the least demanding and least complex Laphroaig I've ever tried.
Fruity, sweet Laphroaig: 4
Laphroaig 22yo 1988-2010 49.6% Creative Whisky Company Anniversary Bottling cask#8301
I've not tasted much from the Creative Whisky Company, but I did buy a Glengoyne CS from then a couple years back, not bad stuff! Another one that carries a strength under 50%abv even though being bottled at CS. The color is lightamber. It smells of peat, iodine, camphor, medicinal, smoke, charcoal, big peat in this one. The taste is of camphor and vanilla, grainy, sesame seeds, bacon, smoked ham, sour cream, vaseline, smoked salmon. It ends on a short note with some oak, grains and bitterness.
Good Laphroaig, just a bit too tamed I think: 7
Laphroaig 20yo 1990-2010 52.8% Nectar of The Daily Dram
Another older Laphroaig with a bit of a low strength despite being bottled at CS. No, not really, at 20yo this is a good strength(!). The color is light golden. It smells of aubergine, pickles, acidic, peat, floral, vegetable stock, wax, butter, potato chips, deep fry, oily, clay, rotting tomatoes, peppery, aniseeds, cod liver. A bit of a tamed Laphroaig so far. The taste is burnt, licorice, peppermint, cloves, onions, plastic, acidic, futile, a lot of acidic notes, but not much else.
Futile is perhaps the right sum-up: 3.5
Laphroaig NAS 51.2% OB Cairdeas for Friends of Laphroaig
I guess Friends of Laphroaig is pretty much the same as The Ardbeg Committee, a club for hardcore fans. I'm not a member, even though I own one square foot of Islay:). A lot of gimmicks on Islay. Light golden color. It smells of peat, honey, salt water, rubber, ammonia, seaweed, smoked salmon, briny, sweat(!?!), grease, yarn, oily, gasoline, markers, a nice one. The taste is of vanilla, honey, leather, tea, floral, syrup, gin, very light but utmost pleasant young Laphroaig.
Friends with benefits...: 7
Laphroaig NAS 58.8% Lp1 Elements of Islay
Ending this session with a young and powerful Laphroaig (hopefully). This series is great as it focuses on one region only and tries to capture each distillery in it. Let's hope this one shows Laphroaig from its best side. The color is light golden. It smells of spirity and citric notes, a bit burnt, cough syrup, lime rind, not very pleasant, but short. The taste is sweet and peppery, some peat, some lavender some apricots, but all in all its peppery and spirity more than anything else. The initial flavors are good, plums, honey, melon, fruity, but the finish is just too dry and volatile for my palate. Hard to enjoy.
A bitter, peppery and a bi fruity Laphroaig: 3
Next tasting: Arran Distillery
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