Thursday 23 August 2012

The House Is On Fire!

 

 

 

Whisky: Laphroaig 10 year old

 

Distiller:

Laphroaig

 

Bottle:

Laphroaig 10 Year old

Region:

Islay

 

ABV:

40%

 

Colour:

Pale Straw

 

Review:

So the other day my brother and sister in law came over to the house to join us all at dinner. Us all being my wife, my parent in laws, and myself. We each brought out a bottle to share.
My bottle was Shackleton's Replica which everyone enjoyed, my brother in laws was Lagavulin 16 yr old, which was also enjoyed by everyone, and my father in laws bottle.

Laphroaig 10 yr old.

Now this is one I've never tried before, but I'd heard good things about this one and having had Ardbeg and Lagavulin before I was very keen to give it a shot!

So everyone grabs a glass and pours their own dram so I happily help myself to a dram of Laphroaig.

I offer the glass to my wife and she noses it a little bit then recoils immediately.

"I don't like that!! Too smokey!!"

So I take a nose on my glencairn.

BAM!!!!

The smells of bonfire smoke and peat beat me in the face, with undertones of iodine, burnt bandaids, and seaweed. Very very primal smells for me. It makes me think that this must be what whisky smelled like a thousand or so years ago in Europe.

I offer my wife the glass to take a sip, which she does and then immediately informs me...

"Don't like that, at all. My throat is on fire!"

She then takes a huge glass of water and drinks it.

I then cautiously take a sip.

WOOOEEEEEEH!

In my mouth there is pretty much what I was smelling....Lots of peat, lots of smoke, iodine, and seaweed. This whisky definitely sets me back in time that thousand years ago. I see the Crusades, I see villages on the seaside burning as horsemen ride over a grassy hill.

The finish is fairly short with lots of spice, black peppers kicking me in the throat with smoke and peat following it.

This was definitely the least favorite whisky of the night.

Is it a bad whisky? Nope!

I just have to be in a special mood to want to drink any.

Maybe a pillaging mood!

Mmmmm pillaging.

I will have to pick up SOME sort of bottle from Laphroaig eventually, but I'm not sure if this will be the bottle for me.  I'm thinking maybe the Quartercask or the Triple wood as they're both higher ABV's which I tend to enjoy more.

It runs for around $80 AUS at Dan Murphy's. Which isn't half bad, but I think I'd rather grab a bottle of Lagavulin 16 yr old or Ardbeg.


Nose:           21/25
Taste:          21/25
Finish:          18/25
Balance:       20/25

Overall:      80/100

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