Some rather old Laphroaigs and secret Islay, part 2


June 24, 2025

Some rather old Laphroaigs and secret Islay, part 2
I think the title speaks for itself. This time, we’ll go at it randomly, except for our traditional little aperitif...

Laphroaig 1983/1999 (43%, MacKillop’s Choice, Moon Import, Italy, cask #1711)

We tasted a cask strength version of this one many moons ago and found it rather underwhelming, but that was before WF even existed, which says a lot. This is a selection by the distinguished Lorne MacKillop, said to be a descendant of one of the few survivors of the redcoats’ massacre of his clan in 1745, just quoting the back label, mind. Colour: white wine. Nose: it’s pure, soft, with touches of plasticine, tangerines, a little soot, almond milk and tiny flat oysters from the furthest reaches of Brittany. It’s elegant, it’s charming. Mouth: much smokier on the palate, quite in the style of the old official bottlings, not much in the way of tropical fruit but with a lovely dryness, ashes, and a good dose of brine. The 43% works very well here, perhaps even better than a cask strength version might have. Finish: rather long, salty, lightly sooty, fairly peppery. Comments: it’s almost missing a classic marker, the medicinal side! Which means all is well, ha. A fine selection by Pepi Mongiardino.
SGP:466 - 89 points.

Laphroaig 25 yo 1998/2023 (54.8%, OBE, Club Bâtard, 198 bottles)

OBE is an exclusive whisky bar nestled within a private dining club in Hong Kong, known as Club Bâtard. Love the cheeky name. Cheeky in French, at least. This bottle also marked the advent of the Year of the Snake. Colour: light gold. Nose: more gentian than in a gentian eau-de-vie from Michel’s in La Chapelle sous Bois, and just as many maritime elements as in a heaving seafood platter. The rest splits itself between sesame oil and fairly gentle citrus fruits. With water: hessian sack and brand-new jumper in pure virgin wool. Mouth (neat): a landscape not far from that of the finest officials. Peppery presence, iodine, zest, smoked almonds, a few drops of limoncello… With water: still that relative softness, a perfect balance, saline, mineral, crystalline and most delightfully fermentary (fresh bread). Finish: not eternal but very clean, if you see what I mean. Lemon cocktail, lapsang souchong, seawater and gentian eau-de-vie. Cheers. Comments: another version of Laphroaig’s potential gentleness in its natural state.
SGP:566 - 90 points.

Laphroaig 26 yo 1998/2025 (57%, Whiskyland, Chapter 10, 212 bottles)

From two refill barrels, later finished in refill sherry for two years. The mighty forces of refill. To the question ‘do two successive refills equal a first fill?’ I’d reply that it depends. I’ll add that it’s glorious to see these 1998 indies appearing under their proper name! Colour: full gold. Nose: a butter and lemon cream, lightly smoked with hay by a three-star pastry chef. With water: those typical wafts of lapsang souchong return, along with touches of iodine tincture. Mouth (neat): plenty of oomph, green pepper, lime, bitter liqueurs, a little mint and let’s say it, a Jamaican side. We’re talking about high-ester rum here. With water: a whirlwind arrival of all manner of marmalades, in their salted versions. Finish: long, with a rather terrifying balance. Comments: the spiel with the casks seems to have worked to perfection. Note that this tasting note could easily have been much longer, but one must impose limits now and then. Grand Laphroaig.
SGP:567 - 92 points.

An Islay Distillery 24 yo 2000/2025 (51.8%, Maltbarn, sherry cask, 175 bottles)

The label, bathed in that typically sunset-red glow of Islay’s southern coast, hints at a distillery that seems to be neither Ag. nor Ln. Colour: full gold. Nose: the sherry brings that slight gunflint edge and a touch of tallow, blood oranges, a dab of mustard sauce, and of course both fresh and older walnuts. With water: natural rubber steps in, new trainers, used matches… Mouth (neat): pink peppercorns, bay leaf, chilli, walnuts… This is markedly different from the earlier ones we’ve tried! With water: the sherry’s influence eases off a little, but it remains salty, peppery and spiced, almost in a Creole rougail fashion. Finish: long, with walnut wine, chocolate, glacé cherries and still those soft peppers. Comments: the cask must have had quite a personality, it nearly managed to tame the proud distillate.
SGP:567 - 87 points.

Laphroaig 26 yo 1998/2024 (56.8, Douglas Laing, Xtra Old Particular, The Queen & King Black Diamond Collection, refill sherry hogshead, cask #DL18841, 191 bottles)

This baby is one half of a duo, the other being a 35-year-old Bowmore that’s really quite the dazzler. Colour: gold. Nose: Laphroaig and sherry, even in small doses, often spark fireworks, though here it’s all very restrained. Just a touch of flint to start, then those smoky, salty citrus fruits of great beauty. Followed by herbed breads, caraway, aniseed, poppy seeds, altogether rather lovely. With water: classic, chalk, Islay earth, virgin wool (Islay-sourced as well, naturally), bread dough… Mouth (neat): tight, very lemony, earthy and above all stuffed with menthol and other molecules of the same ilk. Verbena and a faint note of pencil lead. With water: everything melts together into a joyous maelstrom of salty and peaty notes, with citrus taking up its post at the watchtower. Finish: long, nicely candied, with an ultra-classic aftertaste by now. Pepper and shoe polish. Comments: these 1998s really are of a very high calibre.
SGP:567 - 91 points.

Laphroaig 25 yo 1998/2024 (54.2%, Jon Tung ‘Noah's Ark’, cask #8612, sherry hogshead, 200 bottles)

Let’s see if this 1998 is of biblical simplicity, and if it takes to water, of course. Right. Colour: deep gold. Nose: more extractive, more concentrated, more medicinal too. More camphor, lemon balm, ointments, grapefruit zest, ashes… With water: back to wet wool, an old Harris tweed jacket, baker’s yeast… Mouth (neat): aligns with the previous one, though leaning more into the ashes, with a very dry side, bitter cocoa, paraffin, a few drops of lemonade, bergamot… With water: careful now, not too much water, but otherwise, these slightly invasive ashes are quite beautiful. Very fine lemon. Finish: long, on a mix of ashes and earth. Comments: same conclusion about the Laphroaig + sherry duo. This one handled it with grace.
SGP:566 - 90 points.

Laphroaig 31 yo 1993/2024 (52.4%, Abyss Synergy Collection, #002, barrel, cask #4406887, 109 bottles)

We’re still in Hong Kong, which we really don’t mind at all, it must be said. Colour: pale gold. Nose: back to a well-mannered austerity, with great elegance, yellow citrus fruits, and above all, that proverbial medicinal side of Laphroaig, less present in the 1998s. Lovely camphor, fine green Chartreuse. With water: a bit of potting soil, small citrus fruits, green teas, lemon and mint marmalade… Mouth (neat): here we’re edging back towards the best officials, with tight, lemony peat, a bit like a 10-year-old C/S that’s aged for much longer. Watch out, this one seems indestructible, it could probably have gone on to 50 years. With water: the magic of the barrels. Pure, precise, magnificently lemony, medicinal, peppery, salty… Finish: long, always chiselled, tireless, with notes of bitter almonds and ashes. Comments: a thoroughbred Laphroaig.
SGP:567 - 92 points.

Admirable Laphroaigs. We’ve soared very high today, and it’s not over yet, hold on tight. The scores may seem high, I realise that, but compare all these Laphroaigs to young Speysiders flavoured with cabernet sauvignon, or even to a few wood-pumped NAS Laphroaigs, and you’ll probably think we could have gone even higher. Really! Right then, let’s have one last dram, a younger one, for the pleasure and a bit of perspective...

Big Peat’s Finest Distillery on Islay 13 yo 2010/2024 (62.4%, Douglas Laing, Old Particular, for Whisky Picnic Bar Taiwan, refill butt, cask #DL18001, 611 bottles)

This remarkable youngster was also bottled for Isman whisky tasting room, O’my bar, Get lost in the Whisky and Flavour of the Night. All sounds like great fun, perfect for some quality bar crawling… Colour: full gold. Nose: staying within the same groove, mind you, with mentholated peat, citrus marmalade, ashes, camphory ointments and some rather charming rooty notes. With water: still fairly close to fresh oak, but without tipping into planky territory. Very nice indeed, though still some distance from the older, more complex versions. Mouth (neat): definitely in the modern OB style this time, with toasted oak, coffee, peppered lemons… And really quite a lot of ethanol here. With water: turns creamy in texture, like lemon liqueur with pepper, smoke and salt. Big Peat indeed. Finish: long, very peppery at this stage. Ashy aftertaste. Comments: we made a bit of a mistake, really, this sort of youthful peater shouldn’t be tasted after the splendours of 25- or 30-year-olds. Still, it held its ground rather well in the end, despite its, say, simplicity.
SGP:657 - 86 points.

(Merci to Aaron, Fuji, Jon, KC)

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