| Rich Howard | a bracing smack of peat smoke, tar, pine nuts, mushrooms, charred wood... after a few minutes, some strong medicinal notes, antiseptic, fresh gauze bandage, latex band-aid, deep earthy notes of charcoal, black dirt, a pile of wet leaves, chili powder, barbecued shrimp. the palate is quite strong, and very smoky, with honey-glazed ham, buttered pie crust, tangerine and lemon citrus, and rich, sweet caramel. water seems to make the nose even stronger and smokier, with even more charred wood. after a few minutes, some buttered pie crust here as well now, along with deeper notes of heavily baked vanilla custard and singed marshmallow, graham crackers, honey-glazed ham, roasted root vegetables, fresh mushrooms covered in dirt. the palate is still strongly smoky sweet, with spiced citrus, key lime pie, singed sweet cream and toasted graham cracker, and plenty of pine nuts, medicinal antiseptic notes and charred wood on the finish. summary: an exceptional sweet and smoky dram... i have a feeling you could take this on a long journey with time and water. [tasted blind for the 2011 Awards] |
| Oliver Klimek | Colour: Pale straw -
Nose: A burning hospital served with custard and sprinkled with gingerbread spices. -
Palate: Strong peat, lemon zest, liqourish, honey, ginger, cloves and hints of nutmeg. -
Finish: Very long and sweetly smoky. -
Overall: This is a quintesential Laphroaig, much cleaner and crisper than the original bottlings in a way. |
