Laphroaig 10 Year Old Cask Strength Batch 009

February 2017 saw the release of the 9th batch of this 10 years old Laffie at cask strength. It has been a few years since I last tried one. Let’s rectify this with this 9th batch, which I scored during my visit to the distillery in September 2017.

Sturdy nose on ashes, tar, medicinal and farmy notes and loads of peat. It takes a bit of patience to discover any sweetness here, as the classic Laffie traits demand all your attention. But once you get past those, you’ll find baked apples, banana and a little bit of Italian espresso as well as a fat slice of smoked ham. Wonderful!

It is almost creamy and very sweet on the palate. Surprinsly so, in fact. Roasted ham, honey, caramel, banana, apples and vanille come first before the peat – that really offers a salty edge and a lot of smoke – has a chance to rear its head. Mildly drying. Quite spicy too. Think pepper, salt and cloves. Absolutely wonderful and does not need water.

The finish is very long, smoky and salty with a sweet undertone. At the death I get another surge of iodine and charcoal.

What a delicious winter whisky. This makes my insides warm.

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