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…
The quarter Cask is not as good as it used to be but I find great comfort in this one. Heavily peated but When you add a drop of water it opens up a whole range of flavors and a medium long finish. I think they might have used first Fill Ex bourbon casks, The quantity seems to be quite good. I really like the balance between Heavy peat and all the other flavors, I highly recommend this one, but stay away from the non-H statement versions
The default malt for the lover of smoke and peat. I love the rugged harshness of it. Certainly not everyone's cup of tea and perhaps not one for a new whisky lover, but it's absolutely everything you hope for from ancIslay.
The first time i tasted a Laphroaig 10, i almost spat it out. Only politeness and the eagerness on my brother-in-law's face prompted me to hold on to it and force a sound of appreciation. A week later, the taste was still on my mind but I wanted to taste it without supervision and make up my own mind. On the way home, I bought a bottle of Quarter Cask. From the very first taste I loved it. Quarter cask reconciled me to the muscle of Laphroaig but now i have gone back to the 10 for its boldness... it's also easier to find here. If you don't like Laphroaig the first time you taste it, do yourself a favor and don't write it off until you've gone through a bottle. Also a shout-out to all other malt-loving ladies... simply too few of us.
I tried Talisker a few weeks ago, and had to choke it down as I imagine anyone who's not accustomed to a strong peaty/smoky scotch does. So now I'm into the Laphroig and the first dram was a bit on the ugh side, but now that I've had a couple sips, it's getting tastier and tastier. I typically enjoy the lighter Speyside drams, but thought I'd grow my tastes and enjoy some of the Islay varieties. I'd definitely say this has a ton of flavour, and lingers pleasantly on the tongue. The nose is reminiscent to me of coal smoke, but that only reminds me of being back in Ireland. I definitely wouldn't recommend this to an uninitiated Scotch consumer, but for those of us that have tried the lighter Scotches and liked them, it's not a bad change.
Laphroiag 10 is 'My Scotch' - if I drink any other it's only because my green bottle is empty !! Strong, peaty, loaded with sea spray -it's not just a taste of scotch, it's a taste of Scotland ! If I'm not drinking Scotch I'm drinking Rye ! Primarily Whistlepig - Rye is to whiskey what Laphroiag is to Scotch - strong, powerful, complex favors.
