Laphroaig 10YO for Bonfanti Milano

Since 2007, Laphroaig Live has been to London, Islay, Kentucky, and Jerez. It is a live tasting event 'beamed globally' (pun) via www.laphroaig.com/live and this year, they jet off from Scotland to Sydney!

On 6 Oct, the distillery manager, John Campbell will open a very special bottle of Laphroaig. It is a 10 years old bottled in the 1970s for Italy's sole agent and importer, Bonfanti - Milano. This bottle for the Live Tasting was supplied by my dutch friend. I like the appearance of old bottles. For me, I also like to unscrew a bottle cap each time I pour the whisky into a glass.

The current 10 years old are matured in ex-bourbon barrels. But decades ago, they were aged in ex-sherry barrels too and I think there was no caramel colouring either. Hence the whiskies will taste significantly different. This evening I poured a dram of Bonfanti to do a preview tasting of the legendary Laphroaig.

Colour: Bullion gold.
Aroma: Orange peel. Peppermint. A breeze of sea-salt. Some poached pears in syrup. And Vicks vaporub!
Taste: Rose hips and hibiscus. Cinnamon sticks from Sumatra and lemongrass. Some hints of raw green chillies. Some iodine. Quite close to the discontinued Laphroaig 30 years old which were also matured in ex-sherry barrels. But this is so much better! Do the mambo italiano.
Rating: 94/100

Older style Laphroaig like this are just superb! Isn't it amazing that this whisky is only 10 years old. My dutch friend informed me that the whisky inside the Bonfanti is much older. The youngest is 10 years old. Laphroaig had much more old stock at the time. Hence the complexity and depth of this whisky. Sydney is in for a nice surprise!