Mark Adams
Batch 11 of Laphroaig’s riotously popular small-batch edition of its 10-year-old single malt. Hard to find outside of the distillery, these whiskies are rightfully critically acclaimed, offering a punchy and intense take of the 10-year-old’s medicinal and maritime character.
Ladle of Contents
Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Review:
Nose: Warm with salty, peaty fruitiness. The combination of sea breeze, oyster, white pepper and banana is let loose to reveal a vibrant, rounded dram, a little too dryingly intense at its start, though with a pleasant conclusion. The opening is mild and respectful, the finish is intensely magnetic giving without being distracting.
Palate: It has a sharp, gleeful contrast to build itself up to a wonderful intensity with a piquant roundness. Lighter and warmer than the nose, more complex as it stretches on. But careful, this is the side of the dram which can be a little harsh, so enjoy this fresh and crisp start.
Finish: Warm and salty but brisk, giving back with a whiplash, although this time without losing its identity. Laphroaig 10 is a stark, focused dram. The bitter sea breeze recedes and is replaced by a warm salty wind, leaving you with a lingering, luscious aftertaste.
The final affable notes of this 10 year-old cask-strength Laphroaig give you a fine a cask-strength companion.
Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Review:
Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength is full, bold and spirited. It offers serious intensity & punch, but pays careful attention to balance. It might be a little intense at first, but with time to develop and a bit of water it can grow on you. As I have said before in my Laphroaig review, it is an excellent, accessible dram just bursting with character and complexity.
Thanks for reading this review. More reviews of products such as Laphroaig 10 will be published shortly whilst I continue to make an effort to catch up on reviews. Cheers!
Recently started a new column: Drinks of the for the site I write for. This is also being done for a similar site, but having an older audience and more about drinks, rather than whisky reviews.
I have only been doing this for a few days, and am starting off with a review of the drink Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength. I will be writing reviews here and there when they appear.
Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Review:
I really like this bottle and I think it is the most widely available amongst Laphroaig fans. It is a bottle of Laphroaig 10 which has been aged in a young cask for 10 years. I will not go into the ins and outs of the Laphroaig 10 as I have, as the company’s own website goes into quite a lot of detail about this as you may find it useful if you are interested in buying a bottle or you have the addiction.
The Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength is one of the most exclusive bottles of Laphroaig, even more so than the 10 year old and the 40 year old. In order to get the stock, you need to actually contact the distillery themselves and ask for it or negotiate for a bottle. (Klonopin) This bottle is only available at the distillery and only receives the lightest of bottlings. It is meant to be a light and warming dram which shows the sweet balance of the 10 year old Laphroaig, but with a more complex and warming finish. I have tried bottles from the distillery and I do believe this is the one they use for the branding.
The distillery does a couple of other special bottlings of Laphroaig 10, one a 40 year old bottled at cask strength as well. I have not tasted either of them, so I cannot speak of them. But I emphasise it because of the rarity of this bottle. I have had bottles too which have been mixed from a handful of casks. And one particular occasion, I met a manager at a hotel bar in the US and managed to get this; so I cannot fully vouch that this is an anniversary bottling. I personally don’t have any, I have no idea if they should be considered an Anniversary bottling or not.
Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength Review:
Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength is a bottle of Laphroaig 10 which has been released at cask strength, but matured in an ex-sherry cask for a period of 10 years.
