I haven't had this batch, but generally speaking, I've considered Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength their best Core Range bottling in addition to being one of the best Whisky Values going, even in 2022 where I can still find it for about $80.
When a whisky geek meets a German speaker - "So, do you speak German?" "Not really, just a couple of words..." "Like what?" "MIT FARBSTOFF!" Cheers from Germany!!!
Hi Geoff. I'm glad you managed to get a bottle of this. It's great to hear your thoughts and notes on it. Very strange that it's so expensive over there. Laphroaig should really make it their priority to have this available across the world. Forget the cringey #OpinionsWelcome stuff. Allowing everyone to buy a bottle of this is the best way to convert people. As you know, I do think #14 is one of the more anaemic batches... but it's still good for the price (over here). Thanks so much for the mention and kind words. Cheers 🥃
I'm with you in general about modern Laphroaig. Do I prefer the older, harder style? Yes. Is the newer, sweeter, more vanilla-tamed style still good? Also yes.
Thanks for shining a light on this Laphroaig, Geoff. Haven't had this batch, so no comments on that. I agree on Laphroaig getting sweeter the last years... and for me that wasn't not necessary, so to speak. Would I buy a bottle of this (and upcoming) bat h if I come across them? Maybe, but only if I'm able to taste them first. Slàinte mhath
First time I tried was on 2012 ,l actually had Laphroig 10 not cask strength ,when I smelled it it smelled like campfire that's the best way that I can describe the smell, when I tasted it it tasted like a campfire with a little bit of mint ,sea salt and the campfire lingered for a long time.. i hate Laphroig 10 because of my ignorance ,but later i came to know how classic it was and now it's one of my favourite
Glad you've turned around on Laphroaig, VImal. I'll admit they haven't always been a favourite of mine, but I have a couple of their expressions on the go right now and I'm really enjoying them!
Last year a friend found a Batch 9. My sample was fantastic. I assumed the earlier releases must have been a golden age for these and have been since lost to time and celebration. However, I found a Batch 12 recently and once blinded with the 9 the newer release seemed a more satisfying sip. So that gives me hope going forward once I'm ready to replace my bottle. Thanks for the review!
Yeah like you I only have limited experience with previous batches, so I'm happy to simply take it for what it is without any extra context. And for what it is... it's fantastic! Cheers! 🥃
Well reviewed, I completely agree, and I'm older than you. The older iterations were pretty savage and needed a lot of water to make them not take the enamel off your teeth. The last 2 batches (like the lagavulin 12yr's) are way more approachable, sweeter and smoother. I'm wondering if its older spirit ? I'm happy except for the caramel. Note : I just sent a message through my "friends of laphroaig" asking them to remove the caramel ... and plugged for a 46% 10 year non chill filtered, no colour added ... the more we plead and beg them to make a better dram .. the more likely we will get a result. Drop them a line, I do it every year.
Good call, Tom. I might just send them a message myself. Glad you're enjoying the newer stuff as well. I haven't tried enough of the old stuff to comment, although my limited experiences with it were also good. All in all I have a good feeling about the CS10 in general. Cheers!
pleased to see this in the 90s! got batches 12/13/14 (batch 11 is supposed to be amazing but too late on the bandwagon and refuse to pay anything more than 10% over rrp) on the go and it's the best yearly guaranteed value £70 I can think of - such a difference/so many layers compared to anemic standard bottle / not too many whiskies I say the 2 to 3 times price multiplier difference equals to 2 to 3 times quality/experience increase but this is one ! should probably get batch 15 on the way but the backlog is accumulating faster than my liver/wallet safety
Hah yeah I have to reign myself in from getting too excited and overspending, too! I'm sure the 15 will be fantastic, though. One I might pick up if I can get it for the right price. 🥃
Super nice review! Laphroaig 10 CS is my favorite (affordable) Laphroaig. Wouldn't go 90, but would surely be a solid 88 for me. I've been really curious on some older batches to compare how they evolved through time...
Yeah I'd love to try some of the older stuff. I've tried an earlier batch but I don't remember which one. Generally I'm told the older ones are better!
Great score. I enjoyed the L10 from early in my whisky journey, not so much now. Like you mentioned, I now find it a tad flat. I'd love to try the CS - I reckon it would do the job for me. Cheers Geoff.
apparently laphroaig is using more active cask for cask strength series. but i really want to see some spirit driven laphroaig expression, imagine if laphroaig releases 12yo like lagavulin 12 that only using refill cask. That gonna be fire.
I like very much that you are commenting the videos of Whisky-lock. Both of you are very accurate with your tastings and each of you have a personal style. Together with Ralfy and Roy, I am watching you four a lot. Continue with the great job.
High praise to be included in such a group! Obvs I'm a big Ralfy and Roy fan, but as far as smaller channels go, Whisky Lock is a personal favourite. Very knowledgeable and offers well-formulated opinions. An underrated gem of a channel!
A suggestion maybe: if you review a whisky with higher than 46ABV, you could present us two versions of it; one without water and another with a couple of drops. Many good whiskies, like Kilkerran cask strength heavily peated, have the tendency to present themselves very differently, in terms of adding water, or not. A comparison video but with only one whisky.
I have batch 008 on order and have 13 & 15 which are fantastic, especially 15, never had 14, but I love Laphroaig even the ones I don’t like. 15+ years ago the 10 would burn the hair outa your nose.
Hey, what a coincidence! I just opened my bottle of this batch myself. Glad you enjoyed this. I think your palate got more fruit and sweet notes than I did; I agree most Laphroaigs are probably less medicinal than they once were, but I get the intense smoke and pungent tar notes in this one, balanced with subtle vanilla (more vanilla bean than vanilla ice cream) and slight bitterness from the oak- a bit of dark chocolate, cinnamon, and creme brûlée…or maybe even Cuban coffee. Not as sweet to my taste as, say, Ardbeg, and I find with the right amount of water one hits the perfect smoky well rounded balance. As it opens up, the more I settle into the sensation of sipping espresso from the top of a chimney. I’m admittedly a huge fan of this distillery, but I also readily admit not all their expressions are consistently great or worth the money, and even the classic 10 is a lot tamer (and pricier) than it once was. The Laphroaig OGs will tell you though: the cask strength 10 is the way to go for the classic Laphroaig experience. I give this a 90 as well! Now, if only we saw 15-18+ year expressions with more frequency, or affordability…
Thanks for the info! More active casks sounds about right! As for your last statement... 100% agree. This brand really does shine with a proper age statement, yet they seem extremely preoccupied with putting out NAS or 10 year olds. I miss the old 18. I've currently got a bottle of the 16 and the 25 on the go and they're both fantastic! 🥃
@@Gwhisky that 16 year limited release was one of the best whiskies I’ve had in recent memory. Sadly, long gone now. There are shops in my area where I can get a 25, but at $600 USD, let’s just say I’m holding off for now. Laphroaig actually does youthful malt pretty well, in my opinion, but in previous times 10 years was considered young, and these days it’s commonplace to see whisky bottled at less than 5. At least in the 15-18 year range you’d have the option of tasting the Laphroaig punch with a bit more complexity. I enjoyed the Lore, but to me the maturity of whatever aged distillate is in there is masked by the first fill sherry cask influence, which is not, to me, what Laphroaig does best.
I agree, Laphroaig does young whisky well. But for every good young NAS release they give us (QC is my favourite budget Laph), there are two or three lesser releases that simply don't work for me. Stuff like the Four Oak or the Select.. I wish the ratio of NAS to aged whisky was more balanced and more effort was diverted toward the quality aged stuff. I totally agree about the 16. Really impressive stuff! 🥃
@@Gwhisky totally agree with you. Quarter cask is solid. But the Select? What were they thinking? To my mind, at such a small price difference from the regular 10 year, it diminishes the reputation for quality. And wouldn’t entry level buyers be starting with the vaunted 10 anyway? Then again, both the 10 and the QC have been rising in price lately, but so is everything else…sigh.
It’s pretty hard for me to find as well. I can’t find it locally and the online sellers I use don’t currently have it in stock either. I also,noticed how Laphroaig has gotten sweeter. It doesn’t bother me as it does others. You can always just drink it neat to keep the punch rather than adding water. Thanks for the review.
Shame it's hard to get in your market. In most western markets it seems to be well-priced and quite available. Sounds like yours is the outlier, unfortunately. Like you, I don't mind the sweetness in modern Laphroaigs, but I know it's going to bother a lot of people. I can't say I have any complaints about this whisky. Cheers!
Hi Geoff, thanks for the review. Didn't get a chance yet to try the CS, however recently got a bottle of Select (was on sale) and I quite like the sweetness and finish it offers compared to the 10yo even though it doesn't pack as much peat. Would be curious to get your notes on the Select vs 10yo vs QC if you at some point get the chance to do a comparison. Hope you are passing a nice day, cheers :)
Hi Kushi. That's a great idea and something to consider if I ever happen to have all three of those bottles at the same time. Cheers and have a great day yourself!
My last quarter cask had the label off set, the cork was super hard to open and broke at some point. Good that I had saved an old Lagavulin cork that I could use. With that presentation I was off to a bad start and wasn't the biggest fan of the bottle either (not much depth IIRC). This looks interesting though, considering the value for money in Germany...
I can't say much about the cork or label on your QC, but as far as value and quality goes this is by far my favourite affordable Laphroaig. I like the QC but this stuff is next level.
Great review Geoff. I think batch 14 is decent enough but batches 11-13 are better. Re the added colour issue, I was interested in the official Laphroaig wording re batch 15 - “Once removed from the barrel after a decade, the spirit is barrier-filtered to remove unwanted char particles. Then, this cask strength single malt goes straight to the bottle.” Now unless I’m missing something this implies no added colour for batch 15, something that would certainly be a departure from previous batches.
To be honest I'm still a bit suspicious about batch 15. They do say non-chill filtered. It would be so easy to mention the lack of colour, if it's true. I'm sure you can tell from the liquid itself. Even in the video you can see how dark the batch 14 is. They were... generous with the colourant. I'm sure once we get our hands on our own bottles of 15 and give it a pour we'll find out pretty quickly.
@@Gwhisky I haven’t tried batch 15 as yet but I’m also suspicious re added colouring. The wording they use might be an example of the disconnect that can occur between the production folks and the marketing folks.
I'd love this bottle big fan of Laphroaig but this one is hard to come buy and its shit hot expensive soo enjoy this one mate there some different notes than usual. I have noticed the Laphroaig can get sweeter and loses some power as the bottle goes down. Slainte!!!
Hey Dan. Totally agree. I even mentioned in the video that a lot of Laphroaigs lose their punch after a while. I've had a lot of their stuff go flat on me after too much air. So far so good with this one, it's been about 5 months and it's still fantastic. Shame to hear it's expensive in your market, too. Same. It cost me less to order it in from the UK than pay the local price for it here. Cheers!
Laphroaig in Alberta here tends to be decently priced for the entry level product (10 year, Quarter Cask and Select) but you get into the more rare product and it quickly moves into Highway robbery.....or I guess I should say Highlay Rubbery. I decided to bite the bullet very recently (like 2 hours ago) and buy this batch for $143 CAD ($107 USD; 97 euro; 84 pounds) which is about a 20-30% premium. I can't get enough of Laphroaig so I was willing to pay the extra but as another reference point, Lore is going for 229 FREAKING dollars here. Hard No!! Great review GWhisky. Take care.
The only Laphroaig I have ever tasted is the Quarter Cask. It was at least a year before I got into whisky let alone heavily peated malts and the experience wasn't that good😀 I haven't had any since because in Bulgaria Laphroaig is outrageously overpiced. We're talking about 30-40% over the price of big UK or German online retailers. The Quarter Cask is roughly 55 euros for example. I haven't seen any of the limited releases or 10 cask strength, only the regular 40% 10 yo, Select and Quarter Cask. Plus some Travel Retail stuff here and there, again - brutally overpriced. The newest expression I have seen is the 10 sherry finish and it is priced at little over 100 euros on "special sale". Given all of the above it is no wonder I have only one Laphroaig in the stash - Lore. Bought it on Black Friday two years ago, it was apparently from alternative import and still it was steeply priced even on special sale. Cheers!
Fair enough. Laphroaig is random here in Taiwan. Sometimes very fairly priced, and then there are a few odd exceptions, like this one, that are way more than other markets. Glad I ordered this one in. If you ever do manage to see it at the regular UK price point, I'd recommend it highly. It's a huge step up from the Quarter Cask and it's the best value Laphroaig imo. Sadly that's not the case in either of our markets. Cheers!
Laphroaig Quarter cask was my first peated whisky. So it holds a special place for me. That said that was years ago when the tube had a picture of a tiny quarter cask barrel. I believe the juice has changed. Not as good anymore. Not as potent. Strangely enough I have never had the 10 yr old. Seems like a right of passage for many. Anyhow, I do have batch 6 cask strength ($80) Pretty solid. I add tiny drops of the 18 that I put in a sample bottle just for this. So it makes it a bit better. I do think I’ve moved on to other profiles of peat. The modern version of laphroaig QC is a bit of a letdown now and I will only buy either the Cask strength or QC- but not both. Right now I have the cask strength and a few of the 18 yr olds. Not looking to buy any current variations anytime soon.
Damn... haven't had the 18 in a long time. That stuff was fantastic! I've got the Cairdeas and the CS10 batch 14. I finished my last QC a while ago. I don't mind it, but then again I don't have a soft spot for Laphroaig. I totally see why a lot of people don't like the new direction the brand is taking, but personally I'm neutral. All I can say is that from a value and flavour standpoint I thoroughly enjoy the CS10. Cheers Salty!
@@Gwhisky I got lucky for once with those 18s. I’ve missed on quite a few bottles while trying to decide if I should buy. Those however I saw some of the green tube ones and bought 3 at $95. Then I spoted one white tube for $110 and bought that one. So I’ve only opened the white tube one and decanted the last bit into 3 sample bottles. I’ll add that it pays to be decisive when you see something special. I most recently missed out on Glendronach 21 for $120, instead purchased the 18 year old twice and now they’ve pushed the 21 over $300. The other time was the 2020 maiden release of Glenturret 12 sherry cask. Held in the cart for too long because I have two of the 2021. It sold out. So there’s something to be said in pulling the trigger on things you likely won’t see again or at least for some time. By which the bottle could have gone way up. Another was the Glenallachie cask strength for $75. Now it’s @ the $120 range IF you find it.
I'd like to see a video based on Taiwanese whisky for the European audience. So maybe top 5 to buy in Europe or the UK with consideration on price and availability.
Thanks for the review! I can't understand why Batch 13 can be bought from us in Israel for $129, and Batch 14 for $89?... I haven't bought any of them yet, but is Batch 13 really that much better? What do you say?
Tasting is believing. These are both under $85 by me in NY area. I'm fighting the compulsion. I gassed my first bottle, Batch 11 never opened 12 or 13 and then I found a 10. I bought another 13 when 14 hit the shelf and opened that. It's really good. I was following the negative reviews and planning to pass on 14, until today. I'm collecting for my kids. You have to start somewhere and I started with 11. My liver will never filter all the whisky I have but a collection is worth more if it's complete. Right? I was drinking a Kilchoman 9 year cask strength last night and it's ashtray peat. One good fresh cigarette and your licking the tray clean. With work and a lot of familiarity, it's a mildly complex whisky, totally lacking any sweetness. So I miss that. It's clean and strong and perfect but maybe a 89, and $40 more than Laph10 CS. The only problem I have with steady collecting of$100 bottles I never get to spend big money. Like on a Laphroaig 25 to see what that's all about. Age does matter but with availability of this every year it's hard to argue with. If I had just one peated cask strength I'm good. But then they come up with Cairdeas too....... The batch variation is fascinating because the subtleties are there but the maturation is the same.
I had the 13th batch and knew i had to get a second bottle, so delicious. I can understand why Laphroig fans would be wary of it becoming sweeter, its one of very few savory whisky experiences and it would be a shame to lose that.
Yeah it makes sense. But at the same time I can't complain about any of the notes in the 14, even though it's on the sweet side by Laphroaig standards. Cheers.
Have not been able to locate this one yet...but it's super frustrating that they continue to use E150. The further down the whisky journey you go the more attuned you become to tasting it. I pick it up now immediately and it degrades the whisky...unless done in very low volumes. For JW Black et all- fine. That is catering to a market not, yet, concerned with taste- but rather the name, aesthetic and "smoothness." They'll throw ice in it and be happy. No slag, that's where most of us started. But this whisky is aimed right for the experienced whisky drinker, for the most part, and that group does not care about coloring. In fact, many times i'm impressed by a very light whisky. Conversly when a whisky is darker due to age or cask finish that is an area for exploration and interest as we enjoy the said whiskys.
I agree with everything you said. Silly to add colour. So close to being natural. Not only that, it makes no sense to add colourant to your whisky when the bottle's green and your customers won't even see the liquid until they take it home.
I'm trying to look away, but that orange fake tan is staring me right in the eye like the eye of Sauron. Can they at least try to not make it look fake if they have to add caramel?
To be honest, Laphroaig blew it for me. I was a huge fan 10years ago. I had lots of bottles including the 18, the 10 and the 10 cs. Back then the quality of the 10 and 10 cs was pretty close together, as well as the price. Nowadays the normal 10s quality deteriorated pretty badly, and the 10cs got very expensive. Regardless of quality I am not willing to pay so much for it. I they find enough people that pay those ridiculous prices, then there is no incentive to raise the quality of the normal 10 anymore. Shame
Laphroaig 10 cask strength is still great value for money. Especially when compared to other cask strength Islay whiskys, both NAS and AS. Ardbeg Corryvreckan is NAS and more expensive. Uigeadail is NAS and the same price. Lagavulin 12 CS is twice the price.
@@FEWGEE1 Well logically I get your point. But it's kind of an emotionally driven principle. I don't see the justification in prize climb and in comparison to the standard expression. That's why i never would buy the Laga CS, although i loved it years ago. The Ardbeg NASs i get cheaper (where I'm based) and the increased price compared to the 10 is stable and reasonable. Cheers
I haven't had this batch, but generally speaking, I've considered Laphroaig 10 Cask Strength their best Core Range bottling in addition to being one of the best Whisky Values going, even in 2022 where I can still find it for about $80.
Yeah the value for this one is pretty off the charts in most markets. Amazing bang for buck!
When a whisky geek meets a German speaker -
"So, do you speak German?"
"Not really, just a couple of words..."
"Like what?"
"MIT FARBSTOFF!"
Cheers from Germany!!!
Hah 100% me!
Have half a bottle of batch 13 left. Love it.
Great! 🥃
Hi Geoff. I'm glad you managed to get a bottle of this. It's great to hear your thoughts and notes on it. Very strange that it's so expensive over there. Laphroaig should really make it their priority to have this available across the world. Forget the cringey #OpinionsWelcome stuff. Allowing everyone to buy a bottle of this is the best way to convert people. As you know, I do think #14 is one of the more anaemic batches... but it's still good for the price (over here). Thanks so much for the mention and kind words. Cheers 🥃
Good point. This is totally the whisky that would convert someone into liking this brand. Worked on me! 🥃
I'm with you in general about modern Laphroaig. Do I prefer the older, harder style? Yes. Is the newer, sweeter, more vanilla-tamed style still good? Also yes.
Thanks for shining a light on this Laphroaig, Geoff.
Haven't had this batch, so no comments on that. I agree on Laphroaig getting sweeter the last years... and for me that wasn't not necessary, so to speak. Would I buy a bottle of this (and upcoming) bat h if I come across them? Maybe, but only if I'm able to taste them first.
Slàinte mhath
Fair enough. I'm personally really impressed. This is a whisky I'd buy if I came across any of the batches if the price was right. Cheers!
First time I tried was on 2012 ,l actually had Laphroig 10 not cask strength ,when I smelled it it smelled like campfire that's the best way that I can describe the smell, when I tasted it it tasted like a campfire with a little bit of mint ,sea salt and the campfire lingered for a long time..
i hate Laphroig 10 because of my ignorance ,but later i came to know how classic it was and now it's one of my favourite
Glad you've turned around on Laphroaig, VImal. I'll admit they haven't always been a favourite of mine, but I have a couple of their expressions on the go right now and I'm really enjoying them!
I find my batches 12, 13 and 14 pretty similar but prefer Batch 12. I know want to do a blind between neat LCS and with a little water.
Last year a friend found a Batch 9. My sample was fantastic. I assumed the earlier releases must have been a golden age for these and have been since lost to time and celebration. However, I found a Batch 12 recently and once blinded with the 9 the newer release seemed a more satisfying sip. So that gives me hope going forward once I'm ready to replace my bottle.
Thanks for the review!
Yeah like you I only have limited experience with previous batches, so I'm happy to simply take it for what it is without any extra context. And for what it is... it's fantastic! Cheers! 🥃
I have a bottle of the 12 coming soon hopefully it delivers the goods.
Well reviewed, I completely agree, and I'm older than you. The older iterations were pretty savage and needed a lot of water to make them not take the enamel off your teeth. The last 2 batches (like the lagavulin 12yr's) are way more approachable, sweeter and smoother. I'm wondering if its older spirit ? I'm happy except for the caramel. Note : I just sent a message through my "friends of laphroaig" asking them to remove the caramel ... and plugged for a 46% 10 year non chill filtered, no colour added ... the more we plead and beg them to make a better dram .. the more likely we will get a result. Drop them a line, I do it every year.
Good call, Tom. I might just send them a message myself. Glad you're enjoying the newer stuff as well. I haven't tried enough of the old stuff to comment, although my limited experiences with it were also good. All in all I have a good feeling about the CS10 in general. Cheers!
pleased to see this in the 90s! got batches 12/13/14 (batch 11 is supposed to be amazing but too late on the bandwagon and refuse to pay anything more than 10% over rrp) on the go and it's the best yearly guaranteed value £70 I can think of - such a difference/so many layers compared to anemic standard bottle / not too many whiskies I say the 2 to 3 times price multiplier difference equals to 2 to 3 times quality/experience increase but this is one ! should probably get batch 15 on the way but the backlog is accumulating faster than my liver/wallet safety
Hah yeah I have to reign myself in from getting too excited and overspending, too! I'm sure the 15 will be fantastic, though. One I might pick up if I can get it for the right price. 🥃
Super nice review!
Laphroaig 10 CS is my favorite (affordable) Laphroaig. Wouldn't go 90, but would surely be a solid 88 for me.
I've been really curious on some older batches to compare how they evolved through time...
Yeah I'd love to try some of the older stuff. I've tried an earlier batch but I don't remember which one. Generally I'm told the older ones are better!
Great score. I enjoyed the L10 from early in my whisky journey, not so much now. Like you mentioned, I now find it a tad flat. I'd love to try the CS - I reckon it would do the job for me. Cheers Geoff.
Fantastic stuff. I'm sure you'd love it. Best value Laph imo! 🥃
I bought Kilchoman Machir Bay due to your review. I love it! Thank you!
Very glad to hear you're enjoying it, Rick! Cheers! 🥃
apparently laphroaig is using more active cask for cask strength series. but i really want to see some spirit driven laphroaig expression, imagine if laphroaig releases 12yo like lagavulin 12 that only using refill cask. That gonna be fire.
Yeah I'd be interested to try a Laphroaig with limited cask influence. Could be epic! 🥃
Great review Geoff, well done!
Thanks Hans! 🥃
I like very much that you are commenting the videos of Whisky-lock. Both of you are very accurate with your tastings and each of you have a personal style. Together with Ralfy and Roy, I am watching you four a lot. Continue with the great job.
High praise to be included in such a group! Obvs I'm a big Ralfy and Roy fan, but as far as smaller channels go, Whisky Lock is a personal favourite. Very knowledgeable and offers well-formulated opinions. An underrated gem of a channel!
A suggestion maybe: if you review a whisky with higher than 46ABV, you could present us two versions of it; one without water and another with a couple of drops. Many good whiskies, like Kilkerran cask strength heavily peated, have the tendency to present themselves very differently, in terms of adding water, or not. A comparison video but with only one whisky.
Thanks Charis 😎
"This one has a green line on it. I guess that is exciting"🤣 Love it. Subscribed!
Hah thanks Jeff. Welcome! 🥃
You may have convinced me. I've been trying to pass on it but I should keep the collection going. Cairdeas is getting expensive here unfortunately.
The Cairdeas is good stuff, but this was cheaper, and personally, I like it more. Excellent bang-for-buck.
I have batch 008 on order and have 13 & 15 which are fantastic, especially 15, never had 14, but I love Laphroaig even the ones I don’t like. 15+ years ago the 10 would burn the hair outa your nose.
Hey, what a coincidence! I just opened my bottle of this batch myself.
Glad you enjoyed this. I think your palate got more fruit and sweet notes than I did; I agree most Laphroaigs are probably less medicinal than they once were, but I get the intense smoke and pungent tar notes in this one, balanced with subtle vanilla (more vanilla bean than vanilla ice cream) and slight bitterness from the oak- a bit of dark chocolate, cinnamon, and creme brûlée…or maybe even Cuban coffee. Not as sweet to my taste as, say, Ardbeg, and I find with the right amount of water one hits the perfect smoky well rounded balance. As it opens up, the more I settle into the sensation of sipping espresso from the top of a chimney.
I’m admittedly a huge fan of this distillery, but I also readily admit not all their expressions are consistently great or worth the money, and even the classic 10 is a lot tamer (and pricier) than it once was. The Laphroaig OGs will tell you though: the cask strength 10 is the way to go for the classic Laphroaig experience. I give this a 90 as well!
Now, if only we saw 15-18+ year expressions with more frequency, or affordability…
Thanks for the info! More active casks sounds about right!
As for your last statement... 100% agree. This brand really does shine with a proper age statement, yet they seem extremely preoccupied with putting out NAS or 10 year olds. I miss the old 18. I've currently got a bottle of the 16 and the 25 on the go and they're both fantastic! 🥃
@@Gwhisky that 16 year limited release was one of the best whiskies I’ve had in recent memory. Sadly, long gone now.
There are shops in my area where I can get a 25, but at $600 USD, let’s just say I’m holding off for now.
Laphroaig actually does youthful malt pretty well, in my opinion, but in previous times 10 years was considered young, and these days it’s commonplace to see whisky bottled at less than 5. At least in the 15-18 year range you’d have the option of tasting the Laphroaig punch with a bit more complexity. I enjoyed the Lore, but to me the maturity of whatever aged distillate is in there is masked by the first fill sherry cask influence, which is not, to me, what Laphroaig does best.
I agree, Laphroaig does young whisky well. But for every good young NAS release they give us (QC is my favourite budget Laph), there are two or three lesser releases that simply don't work for me. Stuff like the Four Oak or the Select.. I wish the ratio of NAS to aged whisky was more balanced and more effort was diverted toward the quality aged stuff. I totally agree about the 16. Really impressive stuff! 🥃
@@Gwhisky totally agree with you. Quarter cask is solid.
But the Select? What were they thinking? To my mind, at such a small price difference from the regular 10 year, it diminishes the reputation for quality. And wouldn’t entry level buyers be starting with the vaunted 10 anyway? Then again, both the 10 and the QC have been rising in price lately, but so is everything else…sigh.
I’m not even a peat head. But I’ll buy this anytime I see it near retail price. Unbeatable quality and value
Agree. Off-the-charts value if you're in the west!
It’s pretty hard for me to find as well. I can’t find it locally and the online sellers I use don’t currently have it in stock either. I also,noticed how Laphroaig has gotten sweeter. It doesn’t bother me as it does others. You can always just drink it neat to keep the punch rather than adding water. Thanks for the review.
Shame it's hard to get in your market. In most western markets it seems to be well-priced and quite available. Sounds like yours is the outlier, unfortunately. Like you, I don't mind the sweetness in modern Laphroaigs, but I know it's going to bother a lot of people. I can't say I have any complaints about this whisky. Cheers!
Hi Geoff, thanks for the review. Didn't get a chance yet to try the CS, however recently got a bottle of Select (was on sale) and I quite like the sweetness and finish it offers compared to the 10yo even though it doesn't pack as much peat. Would be curious to get your notes on the Select vs 10yo vs QC if you at some point get the chance to do a comparison.
Hope you are passing a nice day, cheers :)
Hi Kushi. That's a great idea and something to consider if I ever happen to have all three of those bottles at the same time. Cheers and have a great day yourself!
Nice review. I will grab a bottle of this to try. Nice personal age statement. Funny. 😂
Hah! Thanks for watching, Dave. 🥃
My last quarter cask had the label off set, the cork was super hard to open and broke at some point. Good that I had saved an old Lagavulin cork that I could use. With that presentation I was off to a bad start and wasn't the biggest fan of the bottle either (not much depth IIRC).
This looks interesting though, considering the value for money in Germany...
I can't say much about the cork or label on your QC, but as far as value and quality goes this is by far my favourite affordable Laphroaig. I like the QC but this stuff is next level.
Great review Geoff. I think batch 14 is decent enough but batches 11-13 are better.
Re the added colour issue, I was interested in the official Laphroaig wording re batch 15 - “Once removed from the barrel after a decade, the spirit is barrier-filtered to remove unwanted char particles. Then, this cask strength single malt goes straight to the bottle.”
Now unless I’m missing something this implies no added colour for batch 15, something that would certainly be a departure from previous batches.
To be honest I'm still a bit suspicious about batch 15. They do say non-chill filtered. It would be so easy to mention the lack of colour, if it's true. I'm sure you can tell from the liquid itself. Even in the video you can see how dark the batch 14 is. They were... generous with the colourant. I'm sure once we get our hands on our own bottles of 15 and give it a pour we'll find out pretty quickly.
@@Gwhisky I haven’t tried batch 15 as yet but I’m also suspicious re added colouring. The wording they use might be an example of the disconnect that can occur between the production folks and the marketing folks.
@@langtoun8235 Sadly, 15 is also colored... "Mit Farbstoff" on the back
I'd love this bottle big fan of Laphroaig but this one is hard to come buy and its shit hot expensive soo enjoy this one mate there some different notes than usual. I have noticed the Laphroaig can get sweeter and loses some power as the bottle goes down. Slainte!!!
Hey Dan. Totally agree. I even mentioned in the video that a lot of Laphroaigs lose their punch after a while. I've had a lot of their stuff go flat on me after too much air. So far so good with this one, it's been about 5 months and it's still fantastic. Shame to hear it's expensive in your market, too. Same. It cost me less to order it in from the UK than pay the local price for it here. Cheers!
Laphroaig in Alberta here tends to be decently priced for the entry level product (10 year, Quarter Cask and Select) but you get into the more rare product and it quickly moves into Highway robbery.....or I guess I should say Highlay Rubbery. I decided to bite the bullet very recently (like 2 hours ago) and buy this batch for $143 CAD ($107 USD; 97 euro; 84 pounds) which is about a 20-30% premium. I can't get enough of Laphroaig so I was willing to pay the extra but as another reference point, Lore is going for 229 FREAKING dollars here. Hard No!! Great review GWhisky. Take care.
Daaaaamn... CAD$230 for LORE??? Less than HALF THAT in my market. What are they thinking?
The only Laphroaig I have ever tasted is the Quarter Cask. It was at least a year before I got into whisky let alone heavily peated malts and the experience wasn't that good😀 I haven't had any since because in Bulgaria Laphroaig is outrageously overpiced. We're talking about 30-40% over the price of big UK or German online retailers. The Quarter Cask is roughly 55 euros for example. I haven't seen any of the limited releases or 10 cask strength, only the regular 40% 10 yo, Select and Quarter Cask. Plus some Travel Retail stuff here and there, again - brutally overpriced. The newest expression I have seen is the 10 sherry finish and it is priced at little over 100 euros on "special sale". Given all of the above it is no wonder I have only one Laphroaig in the stash - Lore. Bought it on Black Friday two years ago, it was apparently from alternative import and still it was steeply priced even on special sale.
Cheers!
Fair enough. Laphroaig is random here in Taiwan. Sometimes very fairly priced, and then there are a few odd exceptions, like this one, that are way more than other markets. Glad I ordered this one in. If you ever do manage to see it at the regular UK price point, I'd recommend it highly. It's a huge step up from the Quarter Cask and it's the best value Laphroaig imo. Sadly that's not the case in either of our markets. Cheers!
Great video, tried the 1,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 and the best one is batch 7, have to get the 13 and 14
How did you like batch 10 and 11?
@@steveno7058 10, 11 is regular good, the 2 ones that i think is a little better is 7 and 9.
Had the opportunity to compare 5-12 in one session😋
@@primewhisky cool thanks
Laphroaig Quarter cask was my first peated whisky. So it holds a special place for me. That said that was years ago when the tube had a picture of a tiny quarter cask barrel. I believe the juice has changed. Not as good anymore. Not as potent. Strangely enough I have never had the 10 yr old. Seems like a right of passage for many. Anyhow, I do have batch 6 cask strength ($80) Pretty solid. I add tiny drops of the 18 that I put in a sample bottle just for this. So it makes it a bit better. I do think I’ve moved on to other profiles of peat. The modern version of laphroaig QC is a bit of a letdown now and I will only buy either the Cask strength or QC- but not both. Right now I have the cask strength and a few of the 18 yr olds. Not looking to buy any current variations anytime soon.
Damn... haven't had the 18 in a long time. That stuff was fantastic!
I've got the Cairdeas and the CS10 batch 14. I finished my last QC a while ago. I don't mind it, but then again I don't have a soft spot for Laphroaig. I totally see why a lot of people don't like the new direction the brand is taking, but personally I'm neutral. All I can say is that from a value and flavour standpoint I thoroughly enjoy the CS10. Cheers Salty!
@@Gwhisky I got lucky for once with those 18s. I’ve missed on quite a few bottles while trying to decide if I should buy. Those however I saw some of the green tube ones and bought 3 at $95. Then I spoted one white tube for $110 and bought that one. So I’ve only opened the white tube one and decanted the last bit into 3 sample bottles.
I’ll add that it pays to be decisive when you see something special. I most recently missed out on Glendronach 21 for $120, instead purchased the 18 year old twice and now they’ve pushed the 21 over $300. The other time was the 2020 maiden release of Glenturret 12 sherry cask. Held in the cart for too long because I have two of the 2021. It sold out. So there’s something to be said in pulling the trigger on things you likely won’t see again or at least for some time. By which the bottle could have gone way up. Another was the Glenallachie cask strength for $75. Now it’s @ the $120 range IF you find it.
Batch 15 just appeared today at Master of Malt...
Awesome! 🥃
Had a chance to try the newest Highland Park Cask Strength No. 3?
No I haven't. Apparently it's smokier?
And more sherried!
I'd like to see a video based on Taiwanese whisky for the European audience. So maybe top 5 to buy in Europe or the UK with consideration on price and availability.
I don't have that many Taiwanese whiskies on hand right now, but I'm sure I will down the line. It's a great idea for a future video! Cheers Lee!
Thanks for the review!
I can't understand why Batch 13 can be bought from us in Israel for $129, and Batch 14 for $89?...
I haven't bought any of them yet, but is Batch 13 really that much better? What do you say?
13 and 14 at the same price where I'm from but at $106. I have to say I'm curious if the 13 is better as well
@@m.andre824
Very interesting...
Older releases always cost more than newer releases as there is less of them available on the market
@@jameseverett9035
For a whopping $40?..
Tasting is believing. These are both under $85 by me in NY area. I'm fighting the compulsion.
I gassed my first bottle, Batch 11 never opened 12 or 13 and then I found a 10. I bought another 13 when 14 hit the shelf and opened that. It's really good. I was following the negative reviews and planning to pass on 14, until today.
I'm collecting for my kids. You have to start somewhere and I started with 11. My liver will never filter all the whisky I have but a collection is worth more if it's complete. Right?
I was drinking a Kilchoman 9 year cask strength last night and it's ashtray peat. One good fresh cigarette and your licking the tray clean. With work and a lot of familiarity, it's a mildly complex whisky, totally lacking any sweetness. So I miss that. It's clean and strong and perfect but maybe a 89, and $40 more than Laph10 CS.
The only problem I have with steady collecting of$100 bottles I never get to spend big money. Like on a Laphroaig 25 to see what that's all about. Age does matter but with availability of this every year it's hard to argue with. If I had just one peated cask strength I'm good. But then they come up with Cairdeas too.......
The batch variation is fascinating because the subtleties are there but the maturation is the same.
Sounds like a good value for $100!
Worth it imo. Great stuff! 🥃
C'è una nota di cenere di sigaro secca o di posacenere di sigaro secco qui, come nei normali 10?
hey handsome, have you tried Laphroaig's new Sherry cask 10? It's a legend
I've tried it but I don't have a bottle. It's delicious, though! Sadly overpriced here. Hopefully I can get a bottle of my own to review eventually. 🥃
@@Gwhisky hope you're in luck!
I had the 13th batch and knew i had to get a second bottle, so delicious. I can understand why Laphroig fans would be wary of it becoming sweeter, its one of very few savory whisky experiences and it would be a shame to lose that.
Yeah it makes sense. But at the same time I can't complain about any of the notes in the 14, even though it's on the sweet side by Laphroaig standards. Cheers.
Sounds great,but it sure aint cheap!
Is there a way to tell what batch a bottle is?
it tells you on the tube and bottle. Batch 14 June 2021
Batch 15 just dropped
Ill grab it if I get the chance. I'm curious to explore more batches now. 🥃
How overpriced? In Australia they want $300 which is pretty crazy, love the stuff but not at that price.
Jeeeeez. Ok, you win. Wtf Australia?
Have not been able to locate this one yet...but it's super frustrating that they continue to use E150. The further down the whisky journey you go the more attuned you become to tasting it. I pick it up now immediately and it degrades the whisky...unless done in very low volumes. For JW Black et all- fine. That is catering to a market not, yet, concerned with taste- but rather the name, aesthetic and "smoothness." They'll throw ice in it and be happy. No slag, that's where most of us started. But this whisky is aimed right for the experienced whisky drinker, for the most part, and that group does not care about coloring. In fact, many times i'm impressed by a very light whisky. Conversly when a whisky is darker due to age or cask finish that is an area for exploration and interest as we enjoy the said whiskys.
I agree with everything you said. Silly to add colour. So close to being natural. Not only that, it makes no sense to add colourant to your whisky when the bottle's green and your customers won't even see the liquid until they take it home.
I rated the same as you
Awesome!
I'm trying to look away, but that orange fake tan is staring me right in the eye like the eye of Sauron. Can they at least try to not make it look fake if they have to add caramel?
Lol yeah the white backdrop of the sleeve just makes it more obvious. Not exactly subtle...
To be honest, Laphroaig blew it for me. I was a huge fan 10years ago. I had lots of bottles including the 18, the 10 and the 10 cs. Back then the quality of the 10 and 10 cs was pretty close together, as well as the price. Nowadays the normal 10s quality deteriorated pretty badly, and the 10cs got very expensive. Regardless of quality I am not willing to pay so much for it. I they find enough people that pay those ridiculous prices, then there is no incentive to raise the quality of the normal 10 anymore. Shame
Laphroaig 10 cask strength is still great value for money. Especially when compared to other cask strength Islay whiskys, both NAS and AS.
Ardbeg Corryvreckan is NAS and more expensive. Uigeadail is NAS and the same price. Lagavulin 12 CS is twice the price.
@@FEWGEE1 Well logically I get your point. But it's kind of an emotionally driven principle. I don't see the justification in prize climb and in comparison to the standard expression. That's why i never would buy the Laga CS, although i loved it years ago. The Ardbeg NASs i get cheaper (where I'm based) and the increased price compared to the 10 is stable and reasonable. Cheers
Malt activist considers the 13 better.
Haven't had it myself, but MA really knows his stuff! 🥃
Poo poo🤣🤣🤣
😂