Laphroaig 10 Year Old is an iconic Islay single malt whisky, renowned for its heavily peated profile. Expect intense smoke, medicinal iodine, and a hint of seaweed. This whisky captures the bold spirit of Islay and is one of Scotland's most characterful drams. Islay's world-famous Laphroaig distillery is known for its medicinal malts, and its signature 10-year-old is no exception thanks to its full maturation in bourbon barrels, which serves to highlight that individual distillery character. This beauty has won a slew of industry awards over the decades and we love it.
Non-chill filtered for maximum flavour. A must-have for peat lovers!"
Our tasting notes feature a contribution from the longest-serving distillery manager in the brand's history, the wonderful John Campbell, who worked at Laphroaig from 1994 until 2021.
This opens on big, smoky muscular peat notes. There are spices, and liquorice, as well as a big dose of salt. This whisky has become slightly sweeter in recent years, and it appears beautifully on the nose, amidst the classic iodine/sticking plasters and cool wood smoke we love.
Seaweed-led, with a hint of vanilla ice cream and more than a whiff of notes from the first aid box (TCP, plasters etc). The oak is big, and muscles its way into the fore as you hold this whisky over your tongue. An upsurge of spices develop – cardamom/black pepper/chilli.
Big and drying, as the savoury, tarry notes build up with an iodine complexity.
The only malt from Laphroaig’s range that John Campbell recommends with water; try it, it opens up the palate massively, providing a dazzling array of additional flavours…
This is a very powerful, full flavoured Scotch which represents the smoky Islay style of malt from what I have read. I tried Aberlour and Bowmore before but apart from that am new to single malts. I like this - it is smoky and has a kind of medicinal flavour that I like but others may not. It is like the Bowmore but even further in the same direction. Subtle it isnt but it is a whisky with a strong character and its gained a new follower in me. Its nay for the lassies! Cheers!
I never really could get into Scotch that much. I usually prefer Rye's and Bourbon's, like Michters and Booker, respectively. That changed with this. I pretty much can't stomach any other Scotches except the peated varieties like Laphroaig and Lagavullin. I can drink blends like Johnnie Walker, but anything other than that and the Islay Scotches and "no thanks I'm not interested." This is the best of them in my opinion. Way better than Lagavullin and much cheaper. If you like smoke, this is your bottle.
Okay, so I'm a bourbon drinker who prefers big bold bourbons like Bookers, Noah's Mill, and Knob Creek barrel strength. I recently had the good fortune of acquiring a bottle of George T. Stagg 2014. Once that happened, I strangely went thru a period of remorse: unless I stumbled upon a bottle of Pappy's, I might have reached my zenith in the bourbon world...so I bravely saddled up and decided to try some single malts. I purchased a bottle of Macallan 12 and it was a wonderful drink. Smooth, mellow, and so much different than bourbon. I thoroughly enjoyed it. But, I wondered, how much different could Scotch be? So the next night I purchased a bottle of Laphroig 10 bottled at 43 ABV in the States. I poured a dram and damn, did it smell like a campfire. I added a few drops of water and let is breath for 15 minutes or so and took my first drink: at first is was big and bold, not entirely unlike a bourbon. I could taste the sweetness and the oak, but then the smoke and the peat took over in the finish and I wasn't at all sure I liked it. I finished the dram with mixed feelings and the next morning I could still taste the smoke. It tasted like I'd smoked cigars all night. But here's where it gets interesting. The next night I went back to the Macallan's and damn if it didn't taste thin and, and...I don't know, just missing something. It felt very uninspired. So I poured myself a bit more of the Laphroaig and it was wonderful! The second night all my misgivings simply evaporated, and I thoroughly enjoyed my dram. It simply rendered the Macallan 12 bland in comparison. Now I'm not sure where to go in the Scotch world. Suggestions are gladly accepted.
Way to peaty for my pallet. I felt like I was drinking a pine tree. I know it's good stuff, just not for me
Having previously tried the Quarter Cask, i found this more reserved. Definately pretty easy to drink and in no way a 'peat monster'. I would call this a good entry Islay, to get the basics upon which to base further enquiries. Good, but i deffo prefer the QC!
