Tastes

Nose: ripe grapes/cherries. Burnt brisket, orange Bundt cake, Taste: strong burnt peat with rosemary and floral influences. Strong fruity finish of apples, peaches, star fruit and kiwi. Water immediately calms the beast and brings out all the hidden notes. Thick caramel toffee with ripe Asian pears and cherries with a honey vanilla syrup. Taste becomes same as the nose with the peat moving to the background and adding a deep chocolate finish.

Comparison with the 10 year old sherry finish TL;DR: They are very similar. No distinct difference in the general notes, but they are different in how they present. Nose: Burnt bacon, vanilla, cinnamon, light lemon and faint malt. Figs, raisins, and dates. The nose is definitely the more "laphroaig" nose. The classic characteristics of the 10 show up here strongly as well with the addition of the sherry scents. The 10 year old sherry is far more sweet, with the sweet cherry, date, and fig note overwhelming the base spirit. The 10 sherry is more also far more floral. Taste: Classic laphroaig of burnt bacon, rubber, and iodine. The rubber and iodine notes are extended longer into the finish. Light lemony malt and vanilla towards the finish with a slight hint of very sweetened cherries and dates with the honey floral sweetness to end things off. I would recommend the cairdeas more only because its cask strength and therefore lets you play with the proof a bit more.

Comparison with the 2021 Cairdeas PX TL;DR: They are very similar. No distinct difference in the general notes, but they are different in how they present. Nose: dense sweet honey and violets with date syrup. Vanilla and figs. The classic laphroaig backbone of bacon and peat with a hint of malt does show up on the edges of the taste. Though as it sits in the glass the sherry settles down a lot. The 2021 Cairdeas has the sherry notes in the background while letting the base spirit come front. Taste: Sherry explodes up front with dates and dense cherry. Quickly collapses into the base spirit notes of lemon, malt, and rubber. Slight vanilla sweetness on the finish. I would recommend the cairdeas more only because its cask strength and therefore lets you play with the proof a bit more.

Nose: light apple, peanut butter, very light hazelnut and a vague wisp of tobacco. Light cherry and peaches, vanilla frosting and burnt caramel. Taste: Dill and wintergreen with apple and cherry. Hazelnut and peanut with burnt caramel is present on the finish. Almost like a nut coated candy apple. Slight banana note also comes out after a while. The finish becomes stronger the more you sip. It's a bourbon with a slightly different finish. Not one to impress a seasoned drinker but would be good to introduce someone who has only had Jim Beam or Jack Daniels. Nothing offensive but nothing new or exciting.

Direct Review. Will do another as a comparison with the standard sherry release. Also have to say this is the most syrupy whiskey I've ever had. Nose: Laphroaig peat but its strength has been cut in half by bright cherry candy. Peaches and sharp lemon. Light caramel. Chocolate covered raisins. Extremely faint hint of tobacco. Peat takes over more as it sits. Taste: Laphroaig peat is taken over by intense stewed cherries, raisin, and chocolate ganache. Light lemon, herbal notes, dry tobacco and hay linger on the finish. Water tames it down but removes almost all the sherry notes except for a finish of cherry, raisin and tobacco. This is interesting as it presents oddly as a finished whiskey. The finishing doesn't intermingle on the taste, but is more like you sipped normal Laphroaig for a second, spit it out, sipped some fortified wine, then finished with a sip of Laphroaig. The high proof carries this one for sure.

Just as a random note; the bottle is actually terrible. It is completely black so you can't see how much is in it. The pour spout is too small and the geometry of the area around it makes it difficult to pour. Nose: caramel, apple, cinnamon, brown sugar. Worm wood / cardboard / hay. Light citrus comes after a while. Taste: sharp cinnamon and peaches with dense syrup collapses into nutmeg and cloves with light cherry and caramel. Water dramatically opens it up despite being 43%. Nose: Chocolate, toffee, and peaches with light citrus fruits and vanilla. Pancake malt almost gingerbread cookie. Taste: strong hay and malt followed by dense sweet fruits. Blueberries and strawberries with an intense peach and clove finish.

Batch 4 bottle 1105, 56.15% ABV Nose: tobacco, apricot, worn out book pages. Wintergreen, dill, light lemon, hint of chocolate covered espresso bean. light hint of apple. Taste: Intense apple and baking spices with a background of wintergreen mint, nutmeg, light cinnamon, dill and olive brine. Slight hint of orange on the finish. Water brings out sweet vanilla cream and light caramel.

Warehouse RN Barrel 7632 Nose: Cherries, orange, vanilla cream. Dark chocolate with light peanuts / hazelnuts. Taste: dense orange followed by the sweet cream and cherries. light chocolate and hazelnut. heavy lemon and floral / rye finish. Water just collapses everything and adds oak. One of the few whiskies that was hyped and not disappointed by. Definitely has a unique profile compared to other bourbons.

Nose: Spicy chestnut, burnt sandalwood, Fuji apples, starfruit, light pear. Slight hint of sherry / grape jam. Taste: Strong malt and grape with grassy hay / light herbal peat. Sweet vanilla and caramel middle with a fruity finish of grapefruit, orange, and starfruit.

Nose: cranberries, bitter orange / bergamot / earl grey tea. Light whisp of peat. Violets / bluebells. A bright note similar to strong mint or grapefruit zest. Maple syrup, vanilla, light caramel. Apricots. Taste: salty grape and apricot. Strong malty / yeasty finish with a bit of plum / citrus that eventually morphs into a sweet tobacco note. Middle is fruity and ginger. Asian pear and lime leaf with starfruit and a hint of lychee. I'm sure this will open up more with time as most Japanese whiskies do but honestly this doesn't match the hype especially at the crazy prices I've seen it at.