The whisky fans in the audience may already be aware of a momentous occasion that ticking by on the calendar this year.
Yes, gentle reader, the famed Laphroaig distillery opened its doors exactly two centuries ago, and the Scots would say, they are feeling right bonnie braw about the whole thing.
Located on the tiny rocky outcropping of Islay off the west coast of Scotland, Laphroaig (pronounced like le-froyg) was opened by the brothers Donald and Alexander Johnston, a branch of the Clan Donald.
With the ongoing consolidation of the drinks industry, it is not surprising that the family-owned Laphroaig distiller got snapped up by a conglomerate. While the distillery stayed in the family for 140 years, it was eventually acquired, and is now owned by the Jim Beam people, which is in turn owned by the Suntory Whiskey conglomerate from Japan.
Luckily, Suntory is content to have Laphroaig continue to do what they have always done, so long as the profits keep flowing to Osaka. This is a common strategy for the giant booze barons, who tend to own dozens or hundreds of unique brands, each with their own history and geography.
The wee island of Islay weighs in at just over 600 square kilometers, making it about a quarter the size of PEI. Despite its diminutive size, Islay (pronounced like Eye-la) punches above its weight in the world of whisky.
In addition to Laphroaig, the island of Islay is home to a total of eight whisky distilleries, including the likes of Ardbeg, Bowmore, Bruichladdich, and Lagavulin.
Pretty much the entire island is a peat bog, so you will find it unsurprising that the barley is roasted over peat fires during the malting process, which imparts the infamous peaty personality into the whisky, which consumers tend to either love or hate, with very little middle ground.
Novice drinkers of Scotch Whisky tend to shy away from the harshly peated single malts that the Islay region is known for, but the Whisky snobs like your humble narrator just can’t get enough of it!
Even among the heavily peated whiskies, Laphroaig is considered to be one of most strongly flavoured, making it revered by the peat-head whisky snobs of the world, and equally reviled by those who find peated whiskies to be reminiscent of drinking diesel fuel.
The most common Laphroaig whiskies are aged in oak barrels for 10 years before bottling, but a special 15 year bottling has been released to celebrate the Laphroaig bicentennial. This commemorative bottle will set you back around $110, and can be found where fine whiskies are sold.
If you need a higher recommendation, the Laphroaig 15 Year is the only whisky to carry the Royal Warrant of Price Charles, who bestowed that honour during a visit back in 1994, so not only is it a fan favourite, but it can truly be called the whisky of royalty.
As luck would have it, your intrepid liquor reporter just happened to have a bottle of the Laphroaig 15 Year nestled on a dusty shelf in my basement booze dungeon, so I pulled it out while penning this column.
The flavour of Laphroaig is definitely an acquired taste, and is definitely not for the faint of heart, or for consumers of lesser whiskies like Johnnie Walker Red.
Yes, yes, I know that Johnnie Walker Red Label is the world’s best-selling Scotch Whisky, but it is so popular because it aims at the lowest common denominator in the boozing public. Think of Johnnie Walker Red as the Budweiser of the whisky world; very popular, but intentionally has a mild flavour.
Laphroaig eats lesser whiskies for breakfast, and you can tell with the first sip, with a smoky flavour and a strong aroma of kerosene. Once you get past the harsh overtones, you will find a complex bouquet of vanilla imparted by the long aging in oak, and hints of rich fruit coming from barrels previously used for Sherry. The finish is drawn out, with plenty of smoked honey aromas from the burning peat, and just a touch of brine imparted from the sea air that blows through the aging warehouses.
So, if you do not fear the peat, go out and get yourself a Laphroaig at your local booze merchant!
