Laphroaig 20-year-old Double Cask, Limited Edition / 46.6% / 0.7l

Laphroaig has been the most popular single malt from the Islay region for years, with 3.9 million bottles sold in 2020, beating second-place Lagavulin by 1.4 million bottles.

The distillery produces malt itself, although its own malting house covers only 15% of demand, the remaining 85% is supplied by Port Ellen Maltings. The grain malted on site has a phenol concentration of up to 60 ppm, while malted in Port Ellen it is from 35 to 45 ppm. The distillery belongs to the Beam Suntory group and, working at full capacity, produces 3.3 million liters of distillate per year. The whisky presented here spent 18 years in hogshead barrels (American oak) and was then poured for another two years into small quarter casks. The edition consisted of 750 bottles and hit the market in 2010.

Nose : sea breeze, iodine, smoked seafood, lemon juice, vanilla cream, caramel, buttery croissant, damp gravel and sand, oak and peat smoke.

Palate : sweet and smoky, vanilla, salted caramel, toffee, white pepper, green olives in brine, smoked fish, lemon peel, salted peanuts, notes of leather and oak.

Finish : long, with notes of sea salt, vanilla, caramel, smoked seafood, peat smoke and oak tannins.