Laphroaig 13 Year old Hart Brothers

Laphroaig distillery (the name means "the beautiful hollow by the broad bay") was established in 1815, by Alex and Donald Johnston. It was sold to Long John International in the 1960ies and subsequently became part of Allied Domecq. Today the distillery is owned by the American spirits company Beam Inc. This 13yo was bottled by Hart Brothers in October 2011 at an ABV of 46.0%.

The nose is rich and phenolic, with the iodine hitting you up-front and the peat smoke making an appearance only later on. I also got hints of vanilla and caramel although there are less sweet and fruity notes than for example in the standard 10yo. As usual there is more smoke with the addition of water.

The palate is full-bodied and smooth. The smoke is there from the beginning but develops more and more and becomes very prominent at the end of the palate, together with brine, seaweed and a pronounced pepperiness. With water the palate loses much in volume.

The finish is long and pleasantly lingering, with smoke and brine developing towards the end.

A very likeable Laphroaig although for my personal taste the iodine is too dominant in the nose and almost cancels the smoke out. On the other hand I am impressed with the body and character of the palate as well as with the nicely long finish: clearly 46% was the right ABV to bottle this Laphroaig at and I would recommend to drink this straight rather than wet.

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