Origin: Isle of Islay (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 58.3%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex Bourbon
Chillfiltered: No
Additional coloring: Yes
Owner: Suntory
Average price: € 100.00
Official website: www.laphroaig.com
The 2024 edition of this series, much loved by Laphroaig fans, was released in July despite being declared as bottled in November 2023, as always aged in ex-bourbon barrels for the standard ten years.
It is curious that colouring has been used when the distillery’s claim is to offer a “true natural experience”, but then again, colour does not (or should not) affect the nature of the whisky, so…
Tasting Notes
Every vegan’s nightmare, lots of meat sizzling on the grill on the nose, sprinkled with aromatic herbs (thyme, marjoram), spices (nutmeg, paprika, turmeric) and teriyaki sauce, accompanied by grilled peppers and a honey glaze. There is an underlying sweetness of caramel, liquorice and pineapple syrup, infused with medicinal and coastal notes, somewhere between a ship’s keel and freshly caught mussels. A touch cloying, but definitely Laphroaig.
On the palate, it is pleasantly oily and spicy, with black pepper, paprika and ginger, emphasising the aromatic herbs that surround a sweet heart of caramel, baked apple, Haribo, marzipan, sugar paste and candied fruit (pineapple, orange, coconut). The meaty part is overshadowed by the iodine and medicinal spirit of the peat, which is not dominant but acts more as a backdrop to the sweet nature of the whisky, veering towards burnt tyre on the finish. Slight balsamic inflections in the length.
The finish is quite long and spicy with marzipan, toasted sugar, liquorice, iodine, burnt soy sauce and mentholated hints.
Review: Too much sweetness for my taste, especially when drinking, suffering from very heavy casks that cover the soul of the distillate with waves of cloying sweetness. Diabetics should stay away!
Vote: 83/100