Cream of Laphroaig and aperitifs


June 5, 2024

Feis Ile Special (sequel sessions)

Cream of Laphroaig and apéritifs

Here is Laphroaig, the star of Islay and, above all, the distillery with the most old bottles, especially for the USA and Italy but also for Germany, the UK, France, and quite a few other countries. It is thus a truly historic distillery, whose ten-year-old expressions with their white labels have delighted many enthusiasts since the 1950s and even before the Second World War. Perhaps the famous myth that a Scottish malt whisky had to be very smoky originated from this Laphroaiggian presence. Well, let's start with the small fry... By the way, no Williamson or 'hardly secret Islay' today.

Laphroaig 'Oak Select' (40%, OB, Cask Collection, +/-2024)

This fairly new bottling is supposed, according to the label, to be their 'most laid-back expression'. I'm not quite sure if it's the same juice as the rather poor 'Select' we tasted back in 2019 (WF 74). In theory, they should have improved it; at any rate, they claim to have used five different types of casks. Around €35 in supermarkets in France. Colour: pale gold. Nose: not bad, very smoky and peaty, with plenty of ashes followed by apple and lime juice, then the expected tincture of iodine and mercurochrome. In short, it's unmistakably Laphroaig, perhaps just a tad fruitier. Mouth: I like it, it's more robust than the infamous Select of yore, with a sense of peated apples and ashes doused in grapefruit juice. The texture is somewhat light but not as frustrating as one might have feared. Finish: it's at this stage that the lack of oomph becomes apparent, the finish is short, but nonetheless on pleasant notes of lapsang souchong and oysters. Comments: really not bad for a simple, cheapo NAS.
SGP:556 - 82 points.

Laphroaig 'Càirdeas 2023' (52.3%, OB, Friends of Laphroaig/Feis Ile, White Port & Madeira)

Aged in 2nd fill Madeira casks, a quarter of it having been finished in 1st fill white Port. So NAS and with heavy wood technology inside, let's see what happened. Colour: gold. Nose: much rounder and softer on the nose to start with, clearly very influenced by the wines, but the combination with the smokiness of the distillate works well. We've noticed several times that peat and Madeira can work quite well together. There's wood smoke, smoked herrings, oranges, sweet mustard, and strawberry-filled chocolate... In short, it seems to be a pleasant recipe. With water: not much change. I find this concoction quite likeable. Mouth (neat): it initially feels like an old fino or a dry PX from Malaga, for example, but it then becomes increasingly sweet. With water: it's more peppery, but still as soft. Lots of orange jam, figs... The salinity of the distillate balances all this nicely. Finish: long, balanced, the malt holding up well against the onslaught of the wines until the end. Comments: typically a malt whisky 2.0, very marked by the previous contents of the casks. Very well executed but, of course, far from the great Laphroaigs of yesteryear or today. Whisky 2.0 for 2.0 enthusiasts, I'd say.
SGP:766 - 85 points.

Let's move on to Laphroaig 1.0…

Laphroaig 10 yo (43%, OB, unblended, +/-1984, 1l)

With a wee code stamped onto the label, '84063', so probably bottled on the 63rd day of 1984. Colour: full gold. Nose: terrifyingly precise, on mango jam, citron liqueur, tiny shellfish (whelks, periwinkles, cockles) and just the ashes from last night's campfire on the beach. And a touch of honey. Mouth: my God, this is good. The epitome of Laphroaig 10 years, a great whisky if there ever was one, with just honey and sultanas of the highest, highest, but really the highest calibre. This time, the citrus and other exotic fruits stay slightly in the background, which also works wonderfully well. Finish: beautiful length, with a perfect sweet-salty-peaty profile. Comments: I didn't want to overdo it, but frankly, what a splendour. A slightly higher voltage, around 46% ABV/80° proof, would have propelled it even higher. Incidentally, there were some earlier at these strengths, but those were for the USA.
SGP:655 - 93 points.

Laphroaig 19 yo '19.0' (54.9%, OB, cask #5836, 190th Anniversary, Friends of Laphroaig, 175 bottles, 2005)

Laphroaig 19 yo '19.0' (54.9%, OB, 190th Anniversary, Friends of Laphroaig, cask #5836, 175 bottles, 2005)

Whether 1815 was indeed the real first year of Laphroaig Distillery remains a subject of controversy, but for us mere drinkers, pardon, tasters, the debate becomes increasingly superfluous as the years go by. We shall leave it to the historians among us to disagree. Colour: pale gold. Nose: it slightly recalls the great 10 yo C/S of yesteryear, with perfect balance between ashes, seaweed, camphor, and citrus, before pine needles, iodine, bandages, ointments, and balms take over. With water: much more brine, pickles, and vinegared samphire... Mouth (neat): wonderful combination of salt, bold and massive peat, lemon zest, chartreuse, razor clams, coal, a feeling of iodine tincture... With water: the minerality comes out, with even more camphor and lemon marmalade. Finish: long, saline, very peaty, with an aftertaste of candied citrus. Comments: the exotic fruits are less present in these bottlings, but still, it's grand Laphroaig. Perhaps the mangoes will appear after another twenty years in the bottle.
SGP:657 - 91 points.

Laphroaig 27 yo 'Director's Special' (51.2%, Elixir Distillers, 1st fill barrel, 210 bottles, 2024)

Colour: gold. Nose: softer, rounder, more civilised, with overripe apples, liquorice, drops of absinthe, sage, rain-soaked fabrics (that famous old tweed jacket), mead, and quite a bit of ham and bacon... In fact, it's rather unusual, one might have thought it came from another distillery from the south. I mean, the south of Islay. With water: and here come the island's damp lands, along with notes of almond milk and pistachios. Mouth (neat): excellent, more tense, very much on lemon and seawater. It gains in precision what it loses (a little) in complexity. With water: it loves water. Lemon marzipan, ashes, manzanilla (I saw it was a barrel, but I love manzanilla). Finish: only of medium length but with very nice freshness. Magnums, please. Comments: it needs a bit of time. The notes of roasted and salted almonds and the sweetness of the peat are magnificent.
SGP:566 - 91 points.

Laphroaig 26 yo 1996/2022 'Yggdrasil' (48.7%, Jack Tar, cask #5391, 101 bottles)

It looks a bit like the love child of a bottle of Ardbeg and a bottle of Springbank, don't you think? Good fun! Colour: gold. Nose: territory very close to that of the Elixir. Very ripe fruits (banana, apple) and mead, aromatic herbs, a fine slice of Parma ham, orgeat, a touch of seawater, wet ashes, marzipan... Let's say we're leaning a bit more towards apple here. Mouth: yes, the same impressions. Seawater, oysters, shellfish, almonds, samphire, mustard, wasabi, green walnuts, manzanilla, cider apples, and sesame oil to round it all off. Finish: long and sweet, rather oily. Superb salinity and fresh nuts. Yes, that's it, manzanilla. Comments: what more is there to say? Yet another magnificent Laphroaig, both soft and sharp at the same time.
SGP:566 - 91 points.

A final one that can hold its own after all these marvels…

Laphroaig 32 yo 1990/2023 (51.4%, Signatory Vintage, 35th Anniversary, bourbon barrel, cask #81, 195 bottles)

There were some rather marvellous drops within this little series from last year. I believe this is the last bottle we haven't yet tasted. Colour: full gold. Nose: a completely different style, reminiscent of Meursault and jambon persillé. It feels like being in southern Côte de Beaune! In the background, there are almonds and hazelnuts, smoke (from some dirty old lamp oil), quite a bit of tarragon, parsley, much smoked kippers, and equally smoked salmon... It's really different and very beautiful. With water: few changes. Mouth (neat): magnificent herbaceous tension, peppery, salty, a bit acidic. Sherry vinegar, dill, pine smoke... With water: candied lemon, green pepper, honey vinegar, and increasingly more nutmeg. It is really quite different. Finish: very long, both sweet and honeyed, and lemony and herbaceous. Comments: I see no reason to give it a different score. Perhaps we should stop mocking tasters who use scales out of 100 plus halves and even quarters of points, the latter would have been quite useful today.
SGP:565 - 91 points.

(Thanks a lot Boris, KC, and Logan)

Check the index of all Laphroaig we've tasted so far