Douglas Laing Old Particular Laphroaig 14yo - Feis Ile 2015 bottling

Picture: The Whisky Exchange

Feis Ile 2015 is well underway and Fred Laing and the Douglas Laing crew hosted a few whisky tastings on the magical island of Islay these past few days. To commemorate the Festival of Malts and Music they released a special Feis Ile whisky: a single cask Laphroaig bottled under the Old Particular label. Enough chitchat, let's have a look at it!

Identity Card Douglas Laing Old Particular Laphroaig 14yo 

• Independent bottling from Laphroaig Distillery, Port Ellen (Islay) 
• Douglas Laing Feis Ile 2015 bottling Old Particular single cask series 
• 14-year-old single malt Scotch whisky 
• Alcohol: 48.4 % ABV (reduced) 
• Distilled in February 2001, bottled in February 2015
• refill sherry butt DL 10694 | 636 bottles 

Heaven at 55°37'47.5896 N, 6°9'13.0716 W

Tasting notes 

Colour: A nice golden barley hue. Slow legs form on the side of the glass if you are patient. The liquid is pretty sticky and leaves small beads on the glass.

Nose: There is no need to stick your nose deep into the glass. A few seconds after pouring a glass, the room fills with a stunning (and very Laphroaig-like) perfume. The signature peat and tar are hard to be missed. A mixture of mashed raspberries and soft Haribo bears. Sweet eucalyptus and another Islay trademark fragrance: bandages and antiseptics. After a while, I'm getting more earthy aroma's like wet potting soil and heather. And there's a faint hint of dark chocolate and nuts. A few drops of water reveal some juicy blood oranges to me.

Taste: The mouthfeel is oily and warm. Toasted wood and bandages. Sweet red fruits and a slightly salt note of seaweed. Again those earthy flavours from the peat. Lemon preserved in salt. Water gives me an extra boost of peppery peat and a peach-like sweetness at the same time.

Finish: Salty lemons, smoke, eucalyptus and wood ash dominate the long aftertaste. It almost screams: more please!

Conclusion Wow! This is another top notch sherry cask from Laphroaig. I already had a sweet spot for the combination of refill sherry casks and the earthy peat flavours of Laphroaig and this one made things a little bit worse (or better). The sweetness pairs wonderful with the peat and slightly maritime flavours. A whisky that makes a geek smile and makes the girlfriend worry about her other halves sanity...

Price: £89 / €125 and up. Picture: The Whisky Exchange A sample (and a bunch of goodies) was provided by the kind folks of Douglas Laing. Thanks Jenny!

The  goodie box with an Old Particular nosing glass, the Laphroaig sample, some Big Peat peat cones and a Rock Oyster cocktail recipe booklet.