By Richard Thomas
Rating: B+
(Credit: Richard Thomas)
Although Laphroaig’s classic, core expression is its 10 year old single malt, for some reason The Whiskey Reviewer has never gotten to writing it up until now. Although we did cover the cask strength version a decade ago, the staple 43% version that is so renowned as being an Islay flagship sat neglected all that time.
Sitting on the south coast of the famed island of peat and neighboring Ardbeg Distillery, Laphroaig was opened in 1815 by Alexander and Duncan Johnston. That is before Scotch distilling was properly legalized in the 1830s, but the Johnston family continued to own and operate Laphroaig until the 1950s. The distillery is the only one in Scotland to have ever been given a Royal Warrant, which is to say named as an official vendor to the royal family. However, it was the discontinued Laphroaig 15 Year Old expression that was the favorite of King Charles III, who was responsible for getting them the warrant; the king renewed the warrant in 2024.
Through various corporate spin-offs and and reorganizations that characterized the break-up of great liquor and holding companies during the late 20th Century, Laphroaig eventually found itself in the same corporation as Jim Beam, which was then named Beam Global. In 2014, Beam Global was bought by Suntory Holdings, now known as Suntory Global Spirits.
The Scotch
The pour has a pale bronze coloring, which is quite a little something at this age and at 43% ABV, given just how many Scotch whiskies are gold or paler in color. Even moreso when one realizes the stock it was drawn from is mostly ex-bourbon barrels, mostly coming from Maker’s Mark if the reports are correct.
I’m told Laphroaig 10 has been evolving in a sweeter direction and away from being a peat bomb, but I wonder how true that really is for the nose. When Padre John wrote up the cask strength version in 2016, he had Batch 7; we’re now on Batch 16. He didn’t report a smoke-heavy nose, and neither do I. I got pears, seasoned with clove, and accented by a dash of ash and a handful of salty dry wood shavings. The latter makes me think of someone breaking up an old boat for firewood.
The liquid is silky on the tongue, opening with a current of honey, caramel and salt, like an artisanal candy. The dry oak develops into a larger presence, bringing along cardamon and black pepper with it, with the rear brought up by a modest current of smoke. That last note turns into an onrush of smoke on the finish, though, closing like its peat bomb reputation says it should. In fact, the finish is so smoky as to, like the smoke plume from a campfire, border on acrid. So, those who don’t already enjoy peaty whisky will be quite turned off by it. However, that smoke plume gently turns over to cinnamon as the finish runs on, and fades away with the spice rather than the peat.
The Price
Expect to pay $60 to $65 for what is often still a 750ml bottle.
