Williamsons, as if they were falling from the sky, part 2


July 2, 2025

Williamsons, as if they were falling from the sky, part 2

Alright then, we’ll try to speed things up…

Williamson 10 yo 2014/2024 (57.1%, Whisky Sponge, hogshead, Laphroaig butt finish, 100 bottles)

Some Williamson finished in Laphroaig, that’s funny and rather tautological, ha. Colour: pale white wine. Nose: lovely! Zesty and lively, very medicinal, but wrapped in sesame and pistachio oil, giving it both richness and lift. With water: nice touches of fresh rubber and gentian, this is a young Laphroaig both fresh and classic. A few more notes of walnuts, probably from the sherry. Mouth (neat): very lemony and very medicinal. Camphor solution, Mercurochrome etc. plus green pepper. With water: the salt and ashes come rushing in. Finish: long, taut, still very saline and medicinal. Comments: a very dry and tight young Laphroaig, fairly demanding. In short, perhaps not for the neighbours.
SGP:367 - 88 points.

Williamson 16 yo 2006/2023 (51.5%, Casky & The Antelope, barrel, Ferry Ticket Series 1, cask #800128, 198 bottles)

A bridge between Hong Kong and Macau, in a way. Colour: very pale white wine. Nose: very close, just with a little more roundness and fruitiness, also more almonds and olives. That’s a martini right there! With water: a slight retreat into natural rubber and sourdough bread. Mouth (neat): excellent, if you’re into ashy olives and slightly rough mezcal. With water: arrival of minty and camphory notes. Finish: long, bright, precise, very smoky. Comments: ultra-precision here, same top league as the Sponge, though the extra 6 years do make themselves felt a bit.
SGP:467 - 89 points.

Laphroaig 7 yo 2014/2021 (48%, The Single Malts of Scotland, Reserve cask, Parcel No.1, USA exclusive)

We almost forgot this little one which is not, as you’ll have noticed, a Williamson. Well, yes, it is. That is to say, no it isn’t (you’re being tiresome, S.) … Colour: pale gold. Nose: fruitier, closer to apples and pears, easier going if you like. Lovely bitter almonds, kirsch, lemonade… Mouth: very good, but a little fatter than the others, slightly less precise, with more vanilla, though still very good. Finish: long, saline, with youthful pear in support. Comments: now this one’s for the neighbours!
SGP:556 - 85 points.

Williamson 9 yo 2012/2022 (60.5%, Whisky Picnic Bar Taiwan, Just Dram It, refill butt, cask #SI 2022-02, 267 bottles)

Colour: very pale white wine. Nose: a bit of burnt rubber this time, some salsify, lemon zest, eucalyptus syrup, and quite a bit of ethanol. With water: back come the new wool and damp chalk, with touches of pickled gherkins. Mouth (neat): young Laphroaig, earthy and fruity. Powerful and spicy. With water: becomes more approachable, easier going. Nice lemon, salt and eucalyptus sweets. Finish: long, salty, medicinal to the max at this point. Comments: truth be told, it cuts you up a bit, as they say on the rugby pitch (in France, that is).
SGP:467 - 86 points.

Williamson 17 yo 2006/2023 (58.7%, The Whisky Blues, barrel, cask #800135, 193 bottles)

A great many of these #800*** casks seem to have made their way to the Far East, where our friends clearly have good taste. Colour: pale white wine. Nose: rather gentle, on lanolin, modelling clay, almond milk and kirsch. The ash and seawater notes are definitely there, though more in the background. With water: new basket and linoleum. Who remembers linoleum? Mouth (neat): malted barley eau-de-vie blended with ash, lime and seawater. It’s really quite beautiful, very lively. With water: now it’s perfect, more subtle, yet still with a rather stunning body. Finish: superb salinity, oysters, clams… Comments: a much livelier palate than the nose suggested. In the end, a magnificent Islay.
SGP:467 - 89 points.

Williamson 12 yo 2010/2023 (54.2%, The Whisky Agency for Oxhead, refill sherry hogshead, cask #4795, 118 bottles)

Williamson 12 yo 2010/2023 (54.2%, The Whisky Agency for Taiwan, refill sherry hogshead, cask #4795, 118 bottles)

Colour: chardonnay. Nose: gold. Mouth: ultra-classic, very peaty, very close to the OBs. Ashes, apples, lemons, seawater, menthol, camphor. With water: very nice, with well-roasted pistachios and salted butter caramel. Mouth (neat): oilier, heavily citrusy and medicinal, yet wrapped in a bit of honey and barley syrup, which makes it oddly sweet. With water: back to earthy and rooty notes. Gentian, wild carrots, green asparagus… Finish: long, again more saline and maritime, as it should be. Three olives in the aftertaste and plenty of brine. Comments: another rather terrific young indie Laphroaig.
SGP:466 - 87 points.

Williamson 12 yo 2010/2023 (54.2%, Morisco Spirits, refill sherry butt finish, 150 bottles)

Colour: white wine. Nose: now this is different, and that surely comes from the sherry, with walnut wine, cologne, grenadine syrup, and lavender cordial… It’s true, some aspects recall 1980s Bowmore or Glen Garioch, but with a more garden-like side, more floral greenhouse. Indeed. With water: five-star hotel soap. Mouth (neat): those ‘funny’ notes return, with perfume, violet, geranium… But what’s really amusing is seeing the massive and very saline peat come in to balance the whole thing. With water: still very unusual, and now edging even closer to, say, a 1985 Bowmore. Finish: long, very salty. Salt and green orange cologne (Hermès). Comments: there may have been some form of contamination (tape?), but in the end this is very pretty. And what’s more, it makes us smile.
SGP:656 - 85 points.

Right then, one last young Laphroaig from the old stocks to wrap up this tasting series, during which we must have got through at least 25 kilos of peat.

Laphroaig 11 yo 1992/2004 (57.8%, Douglas Laing, Old Malt Cask Advance Sample for Alambic Classique Germany, refill butt, cask #1080)

A very likeable series from back in the day, with 70cl bottles but also 20cl minis that had one major flaw: the Bakelite screw caps would undo themselves, so you had to give them a twist every now and then. Colour: gold. Nose: very nice indeed, though perhaps a little less precise than the more recent vintages we’ve just sampled. That said, there’s something we really like in some peaters: whiffs of strawberry yoghurt. Lovely blood oranges too. With water: classic stuff appears, hessian, Islay mud, fresh tweed (from Islay’s Woollen Mill of course), a few coffee beans, liquorice… Mouth (neat): this is good, unusually floral and marked by varnish. In that sense, it’s not far off the previous one, without going full Bowmore either. With water: arrival of orange zest, salted to boot. Finish: long, softer than recent vintages, a little ‘jammier’ but that’s probably the butt talking. Orange liqueur. Comments: a very entertaining style of Laphroaig, one we don’t come across very often these days.
SGP:556 - 86 points.

This baby wraps up our Laphroaig series, whether those were supposedly secret or supposedly blended. Still, it’s one hell of a malt whisky, clearly among the stars of the category alongside three or four other distilleries. Hasta la vista, keep in touch.

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