Well Laphroaig hasn't traditionally been "my brand," so I'll admit it does take a lot for them to impress me. This is a fine whisky, although I'm not convinced by the price. Cheers Michael.
Very nice review. What I learned from former of these releases is that they are barrier filtered only. I like the kind of humor you bring into the reviews lately!!
Haven't seen it yet in my local whisky retailer here in Scotland but it can be purchased directly from Laphroaig for £92 excluding postage. I'm currently working my way up the range and recently had the Select, 10 and quarter cask.... Lore next before spending on the Càirdeas, I'm thinking 🥃👍
Odd. That's actually quite pricey. More than I paid to bring my bottle in from the UK. For what it's worth, I prefer both the Lore and the Cask Strength, both of which are cheaper. Cheers Steven.
Islay was an ally example of scotch for me and it mad a very favorable impression. This brand is so well liked by many that when given the chance I went with a bottle of An Oa. Not good, not bad, just different, and nothing like the first Islay I tried. The brand just has an odd flavor that is not for everyone. Luckily there are 100s of other options out there these days to satisfy the itch. Always enjoy your reviews, Geoff.
Thanks, buddy. I think a lot of people have a brand (or two) that just doesn't hit them like it does others. I definitely don't dislike Laphroaig, they make fantastic whisky, but it's never been my go-to and I don't usually find myself as enamoured with it as others are. Cheers buddy!
I am enjoying this one. I understand why they usually go whacky for Cairdeas releases but I think for the hardcore Laphroaig fans, some cherry picked bourbon casks at a slightly elevated ABV is exactly what we need. As good as it is though, it's not in the same league as the similarly specced 2015 Cairdeas. And I think the difference there is mainly changes to the Laphroaig house style over recent years. Not trying to rub it in... but Cairdeas is actually reasonably available in the UK. It looks like I can still buy this on their website, along with the 2021 and 2020 Cairdeas releases. It doesn't sell out immediately like Ardbeg Committee Releases. I think they make larger batches of this stuff than they'd like us to think. Although you're right that the price is high and creeps up year by year. Not very 'friendly'...
Yeah I watched your review on this one as well as the comparisons you did with the 2015 release and the CS10 batch 14. I'm currently working on a bottle of the CS10 b14, and I tend to prefer the it to the Cairdeas. Cheaper and a bit more fun imo, although I'll admit the Cairdeas will appeal more to serious Laphroaig fans. Definitely one for the "purists." It has more going on, but on a visceral level the balls-to-the wall CS10 does more for me. Cheers!
My typical experience is that I enjoy the Laphroaig cask strength 10 batches more than the expressions in the Lore/Cairdeas ranges, but I’m sorry to say I’d probably still splurge on this one if I came across it in a shop.
I've heard good things about the PX release. I do like this one, and I think it will suit Laphroaig purists, but I'm happy to stick to the Cask Strength or even the QC as a better value buy. Cheers!
I bought a bottle of this when I was there in May, but I don't actually remember if I tried it on the day 😬 This is going to sit on my shelf for a while as part of a collection, so interesting to hear what it's like. What I've found very interesting is the quarter cask seems to be a real insiders favourite. When I've asked staff at other distilleries what they like to drink other than their own, Laphroaig and particularly the quarter cask comes up again and again.
So having only a closed bottle is not a bad thing? I only opened batch 13 after a bought a second one. Damn good. I would like to know how many open cask strength peated bottles is an acceptable number for one guy.
@@jackthepickledhound In ideal world I'd get every bottle to drink now but unless I want to ruin my liver that's not on the cards unfortunately 😁 I like to collect as well as drink it. Maybe one day I'll sell it, or more likely I'll have stocks of cask strength high quality whisky to drink in 20 years that won't cost the earth.
@@Gwhisky i can understand why you enjoy it. My first thought upon tasting was "This is a Laphroaig??" Which is commendable as they didn't deliver the expected.
Great video! Just cracked mine, so these are my very first impressions. Very similar to 10 year CS, Batch 15 but more mild in overall flavor. However, I find it peatier/smokies than batch 15. It's good, but I don't think it's anything super special thus far.
This just made it to my stores, and…hate to say it, but I love it. NCF, natural color, briny punchy smoky distinctive Laphroaig as I like it. And it’s priced nearly equal to the CS10 where I am. (Currently batch 14 where I am, and I’ve yet to do a back to back tasting but…) This Cairdeas really delivers. The pain is that these releases are infrequent and pricier than core range when this cask quality and expressiveness is probably what Laphroaig should always be. 89-90 for me based just on initial neck pour.
Love the humor in this one. In my area these just got in but it is $120 USD before tax. 3-4 years ago these used to be $83. I liked them them at that price point but now at $120+ I’ll pass. It does sound interesting that the medicine notes were tuned down.
I can’t find it here in Florida. I can’t find it on my favorite online stores either. Based on your review (and the challenge of hunting this down), I will stick with the QC. I like the Lore too but it’s become hard to find and mighty pricey as well. I like Laphroaig but not enough to go on massive hunting expeditions to find them. The QC is always available and reasonably priced. I may look into the PX. It’s available online and it’s at a good price point.
I think the QC and Lore are better deals when it comes to value. Where I live the Lore is still reasonably priced, but I wouldn't be surprised if it shoots up in price soon. Like you, I'm not the biggest Laphroaig fan in the world. Cheers Alan.
I remember buying a Cardeas at SAQ for around 100$ like 7 years ago, which is fairly priced. Boy did things change, IF they can get it it's probably going to be north of 150$.
Go Team Cairdeas!! Thanks for the review. This is getting up to $100 where the 10CS is about $85. Yes it's a lot of money but it's not a Committee Release. If you want value Ardbeg10 is the king. Laph10@43% or40% is a one & done. And then there's Ledaig and everything else. I feel compelled to collect the Cairdeas and the 10 CS releases. Damn Whiskytube! But, they are consistently more interesting and priced better than other peated CS bottles. I'm sure people go for independent Caol Ilas, but IMHO each different Laphroaig presents with some decent and worthwhile nuance. Actually, it's pretty amazing that the 10's are all a bit different. The color and NCF thing is quite disheartening but so is a $350 indie 12 year old Laphroaig. As my budget changes I don't know what the future holds but as long as the 10 cask strength is under $100 my grandkids will have a lifetime supply.
I don't have access to either the Cairdeas or the CS for a good price here, so I have very limited experience with them. This was my first Cairdeas, and I like it, but I'll admit I wasn't blown away. I've had a couple of the CS expressions, and they've both been fantastic. I'm working on a bottle of batch 14 at the moment, and even though it isn't considered one of the better ones, I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Laphroaig CS is a gem!
@@Gwhisky it's a gem at the right price. I've been buying a few indie bottles that were 115-$140. Around 11 years old. It's really important to keep a perspective, it's just whisky, but it's my favorite thing to spend $$ on. I didn't like to spend $95 on last year's but this year's at $99 was acceptable???? I'm trying to get back to the reality of a real budget. I find myself snubbing 12 year olds. Until I came across the Glenturret. It was half the price of the 15 so I did good. 46% instead of 53% but I saved enough to buy the new ECBP. And the journey continues. Next year's Cairdeas will be $125 is my guess, and that's the same as my only Ardbeg special release. Blaaack 46%
@@steveno7058 imagine this core range: Select 43%. $44 Quarter Cask 46%. $55 Triple wood 48%. $60 10 year. 50%. $70 Then they could play games with the Cairdeas. I'm not a huge fan of the 10year sherry,
In Nova Scotia Canada, this one goes for $145.00. I wasn’t planning on buying it, especially when previous versions were 750ml and this one now 700ml……but I caved in. It’s a salty bugger, but I’m pleased with it overall.
Fish nets is that off a beach or the thighs of a dusky maiden ? Love the cask strength, Lore and the quarter cask. So at the moment and the way prices are rising, sad to say I'm sticking with drams that I feel are value and within my budget. But as Whisky Lock would say " it's not 40% piss ;-)
Hah. Yeah I totally agree, the Lore, the QC, and the Cask Strength are all whiskies I'd turn to before this one. While it's good, and certainly better than the QC, I don't like it as much as the Lore or the Cask Strength, and it can't compare to the value we get with the CS. Oh, and dusky maiden fishnets, obvs. 😉
I have some different thoughts about price/value. I use to think the same, consider the 2x, 3x price of a bottle and how better experience I can get. But then I found the basic product have became worse. These companies changed the stuff even without changing the label. So I think of inflation. After that consideration it is impossible to have these 10/12yo same price and same quality like a decade ago. Now I value whiskies by how can I find a substitute/replacement for a better price, or a same price with greater experience.
That's a good approach. I tend to agree. A lot of our favourite brands aren't where they were a decade ago. We have to look at what's available now and what the current prices are and then compare things accordingly. Well said!
Try medicinality, it might be easier than medicinalitiness. For laphroiaginess perhaps just froiginess would be helpful. And keep up mashing up words, it is adds amusingness to your otherwise serious gwhisky gheekdom. Good review Geoff, with excellent idiosyncratic Geoffiness!
I'd agree with your rating here, definitely enjoyed it but as my very first Laphroaig my father and I just kinda said, wow that's smooth and good but that's it? No complexity, just salty seaweed. Definitely enjoyed, but not worth the $110 I spent on it
Well Laphroaig is a beautiful whisky, but it can come off as "a lot of one thing." I like it, but it doesn't appeal to me as much as it does most other whisky nerds. I liked the Cairdeas, but I'm not convinced it's good value. Cheers!
This is 100% Laphroaig but was somewhat of a disappointment. Maybe the hype caused the letdown but the price tag certainly demanded high expectations. I didn't experience a peat fest and preferred the 10 over this.
Yeah I preferred the 10 CS myself. It's a great whisky and I see why it appeals to enthusiasts more than the 10. But I like the 10 more on a visceral level. Delicious stuff. 🥃
I can't imagine a way, "following the science", that salt from the sea could find its way into a cask unless that cask was actually sprayed or splashed with seawater; and I don't think that's happening, so... The Power of Suggestion? The Cask Strength 10 must be pretty damn similar to this ✌️
Dunno about that. I'm sure you've stood by the sea. The air is quite different from inland areas, cities, etc. That's precisely the air that's interacting with the whisky. I know that salt itself doesn't evaporate, but the composition of the air is certainly different in coastal areas. I'm not saying the power of suggestion doesn't play a role, but I think there's more to it than that. I've done a side-by-side with the Cask Strength. In my opinion the CS is better. Cheers buddy!
@@Gwhisky I live on an island about 100 yards from the Atlantic Ocean and most days I don't even know it's there. So I hear what you're saying, but I remain convinced it's marketing mumbojumbo ✌️
But how does your hot gf find the nose vs. palate? Seriously tho', how would you compare it to CS? Have you tried Lore? Probably cheaper than this in your market, and for me a step up from QC and 10 YO ( I've yet to tipple the CS). Lore is closer to Port Charlotte 10 in character - recommended. Still, the oceaniness, medicinality, and Laphroaigacity of this sounds intriguing.
I've compared it the the CS, and I prefer the CS. I seem to recall liking the Lore slightly more than this one, too, although the Cask Strength remains my favourite. I'll be reviewing the batch 14 relatively soon.. I believe I scored the Lore 87.
I haven't seen any Laphroaig Cairdeas in Bulgaria. Nor 10 yo cask strength. The most "premium" Laphroaig available in Bulgaria is Lore. And 10 yo sherry cask at a single retailer. Blatantly overpriced like everything else from Laphroaig. It is either the importer being unable to get better price or being plain greedy. I haven't opened my bottle of Lore but have very bad memories from tasting Quarter Cask back in the day. I wasn't into whisky back then but until I confirm wether I like Laphroaig or not I'm going to spend my money elsewhere. As for the Cairdeas I smell marketing inflated, FOMO driven BS. As I said I had never seen any Cairdeas but I highly doubt anybody can talk me into paying that money for a bottle of NAS Islay malt. Cheers
It sounds like you get the same official bottlings that we have here. I don't usually have access to the Cairdeas, and if I find a Cask Strength it's overpriced, as it's not "officially" meant to be here. The Lore is quite nice, imo one of the better Laphroaigs. The Cask Strength is the one to look out for if you can get it for a good deal, which you can in much of Europe. Cairdeas... I wouldn't call it BS, but I do think it's overpriced. And while I think it's going to appeal to the Laphroaig purists, I don't like it enough to seek out a second bottle or recommend it based on value. Cheers!
@@Gwhisky 10 yo 40%, Select and Quarter Cask are the readily available expressions here. Lore can be found here and there but from altermative import as it seems. I have seen also Three Wood, Four Wood, PX cask. As I said, all overpriced. By BS I mean that I don't believe the hype about Cairdeas. Albeit very well put together it is just another NAS Islay malt, bottled at cask strength, but made up to be "rare and limited" and therefore overpriced AF. Cheers!
I do not allow gf's around my single malts.....and usually do not drink them around them....so, I can enjoy my whisky...without facebook racket in the room... They can drink my bourbons...
@@Gwhiskyyes...I have Jim Beam 12 signature...and some other good choices...they want with coke anyway. Trying to explain what a single malt ..integrity as well is rather difficult... Way over their heads...