Laphroaig 21 Review – Small Bottle Packing a Big Punch

With this one, the title of the post actually says it all, small bottle – big punch! Another bottle presented in a 350 milliliters, presumably to keep the price at £100, which would have been the high end of 21 year old full size bottles just a few years back.  This expression is a stunner, and if you’re a friend of Laphroaig and are in a location they ship to, you might want to get a bottle.

 

Photo Credit: abbeywhisky.com

Photo Credit: abbeywhisky.com

Laphroaig 21, Friends of Laphroaig Limited Edition, First Fill Ex Bourbon Casks (48.8% ABV)

Appearance: Gold, very slow legs with a lot of residue droplets.

Nose: Maritime peat with a lot of iodine, fresh fruity notes of star fruit, green apple and a hint of banana, fresh hay, light spice, honey and vanilla appear after a few minutes in the glass, with a whiff of sourness. The nose is so fresh and clean.

Palate: WOW, those first fill bourbon casks are really cracking. White pepper and grapefruit pulp, poached pears from the can, pine nuts and a fleeting hint of a bourbon like sweetness, that’s just beyond actually grasping.

Linger: Bitter citrus fills the mouth, almost no peat and fast disappearing spice in the linger. Glorious grapefruit that just lingers on and on and on.

Conclusion

Easily my favorite current Laphroaig (maybe on par with the 1998 indie sherry casks filled on 22 September 1998). Yes, even better, indeed, than the 32 year old.

2 comments on “Laphroaig 21 Review – Small Bottle Packing a Big Punch
  1. Bob Clinton says:

    I will have to see if I can get some of this. FoL doesn’t ship to the US, but I might know someone in the UK who can get it.

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