A beautifully balanced Laphroaig
Interesting how I came by this bottle. A staff member of mine lives on a duty-free island nearby and asked if I wanted him to bring me some cheap whisky on his recent trip to my city. Of course I did, so I asked for a bottle of Laphroaig Quarter Cask -- even told him where to get it and what the price there was. So naturally he showed up (quite proudly, I might add) with the QA Cask. Attention to detail clearly isn't his strong suit, but I told him it was okay; I've never met a Laphroaig I didn't like (though if I'm being brutally honest, I would never buy the Select Cask bottling again). So after pondering my way through two drams of the QA, being very hesitant about it given the mixed reviews, my opinion is that it's a pretty solid offering, though not on par with the Quarter Cask and PX Cask bottlings, which are my two favourites in Laphroaig's NAS line-up. However, it stands up well enough on its own.
The QA Cask doesn't have the smoky peat bomb nose of the Quarter Cask, though it still has just enough peat, iodine, and subtle marine character to let you know its pedigree. The viscosity of this whisky, both in the glass and in the mouth, is fantastic and probably the single stand-out characteristic of this expression that captured my immediate attention. Really liked the mouthfeel of it when drinking it neat. A lovely, oily whisky, with a earthy sweetness, and a round, well-balanced bit of peatiness. More peat than something like a Highland Park 12, which is delicate and subtle, but less than the QC or Lagavulin 16. This is just a nice, easy-drinking (yet suitably complex) Islay that ticks all the boxes. Sweetness from the ex-bourbon barrels, smokiness from the peated malting, iodine from the coastal Islay location, and vanilla from the new American oak. Those vanilla notes are certainly present, both on the nose and in the mouth, but they're not quite as pronounced as some of the write-ups you see would lead you to believe. It seems to me that this expression was made with the aim of being balanced and nuanced. Everything about this whisky just whispers -- nothing shouts.
The QA Cask is chill-filtered and bottled at 40% ABV, both of which are slightly disappointing, but neither of which is a deal-breaker. Indeed, the fact that the whisky achieves such a stupendous viscosity despite those two stats is a testament to the distilling brilliance at work here. Nevertheless, I would be quite keen to sample this expression with no chill filtration and a tick more strength, perhaps 43%. Still a very nice whisky, and fits well within the Laphroaig family. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this one, and would not be upset if someone mistakenly showed up with this bottle for me once again.
Chad
, Malaysia
7 years ago