Laphroaig Càirdeas 2016 Madeira Cask

Amazing color... pale rosy amber with a silvery green hue. Forms a beautiful Scotch mist with a full teaspoon of water. Nose: Rich warming peat, signature "band-aid", old leather, butterscotch and dark chocolate covered walnuts. Little whiffs of raspberry. Palate: Spicy sherry arrival along with a touch of sulphur, smoky charcoal sweetness and dry orange peel follow into the long drying salted-caramel finish. Glad I nabbed a fifth, can't wait to see next year's bottling! Dry glass: oven-roasted sweet potato.

I'll make this brief. Imagine the saltiest trail mix you have ever had, left over a campfire for the duration of, let's say, half a week. This is what you get. Salt and smoke on the nose, followed by some nuttiness (pecans?), with dried cherries and plums presented themselves on the palate, with a (considering this being a Laphroaig) subdued presence of peat coating the sides of you tongue. The oak shows more prominence on the back-palate, and the finish, where the salt takes back over and the fruit comes back in as the smoke exits. Actually, that wasn't exactly brief at all... Dammit.