Laphroaig 25 Year Cask Strength (2020 Edition)

Light gold. Intense aroma immediately - starts open, full of pleasant smoke. No doubt this is an Islay, from one of the big 3. It opens into an even ashier smoke. Strong, intense +! That smoke does dissipate after about 5 minutes. Then magic begins. New aromas appear. Some orange, and chocolate in the back. Some leather. Complex. Definitely a smell of toasty cereal. There is barley in this! A bit longer, and straw mixes with the cereal. Smoke now integrated. After about 15 minutes it is balanced and sweet, with smoke, cereal, and vanilla mingling. Some fruit is present too, can’t quite identify it. Give it longer and more chocolate. Definitely orange in the midst of it all. On palette, first you get the Islay smoke, but it is so much more balanced then younger vintages. As with the nose, it mingles with cereal at the front, and evaporates leaving distinct orange. Salty - you can taste the ocean air. Not super long, which was a surprise. Like champagne bubbles, it evaporates and salty cereal remains. Really opens over time and then the flavors continue to evolve. Pour one big dram, and sit with it for 2 hours at least! The contrast on the palette is fascinating, between a smoke and ash and chocolate, contrasted with the light fruit and savory notes of sea salt, iodine, and campfire. Tremendous balance, with ash, grain, and vanilla on the nose, and on palette you get chocolate and salt mixing in with fruit, finishing surprisingly clean. Smoke, barley, wood and ocean and perfect harmony.