Product description
Fred Laing's XOP series debuted in 2014, a dozen or so months after the division of Douglas Laing & Co.'s assets between the two Laing brothers.
XOP stands for Xtra Old Particular and refers to the finest single malt and single grain casks from the family’s stockpile. The Bunnahabhain 30 year old presented here is one of the gems of the XOP collection. Distilled in November 1990, the whisky spent over three decades in a refill hogshead cask (DL 14565). Bottled in December 2020 at cask strength (40.4% abv) and without chill filtration in an edition limited to 262 bottles. The Bunnahabhain Distillery, based on the Isle of Islay, was founded in 1881. Since 2003, it has been owned by Burn Stewart Distillers, whose assets were acquired 10 years later by the South African group Distell. The latter was purchased by Heineken for €2.2 billion in late 2021. (Official tasting note.)
Aroma: a surprisingly fruity opening, a combination of pear drops, lemon sorbet and lime.
Taste: on the palate, the sweetness of citrus fruits, a pinch of sea salt and honey-baked ham.
Finish: Islay breath, sea breeze and salt, burnt leather, roasted barley and warming ginger.