Laphroaig Càirdeas 2021 Pedro Ximenez Casks

Found this in a local store for $100 and grabbed one. After I tried it, I bought 2 more at the same price. Fantastic bottle at $100 (early-2023 pricing). Nose: Dark, rich, malty brown sugar and spice. Smoked meats and light fireplace ash. Peat. Sherry notes, but not overtly strong. Seems older, richer, and more complex than other high-ABV Islays. Peat and smoke are less overt, allowing other subtle aromas. Flavor: Dark, rich, almost-burnt caramel and brown sugar sweetness, spice, oak, peat, smoke, smoked meats. Really don't get an overt sherry note, but sure it's contributing. Body: Thick, rich, and coating. Finish: Brown sugar, spice, lots of oak, caramel, peat, a little smoke, sherry notes, lingering ash, faintly medicinal in the background.

Aroma - Neat: At 58.9% ABV, it is quite nippy on the nose, but the PX Sherry still jumps out. Sweet brown sugar, dark dried fruits such as prune, currant, date and raisin and a gentle touch of hardwood smoke (Think the gentleness of smoked salmon, for instance.) Water Added : This scotch stood up to nearly 3 teaspoons of water before the nip of the ethanol was tamed. After this and a good 10 minutes left to breath and open up, I am picking up a wide array of smells, here. My first and perhaps most interesting impression is that the sweetness and smokiness is coming together in this sort of sweet and savory way that is akin to something like, BBQ dry rub, sweet pulled pork or perhaps bacon jam. To break this down further, I can smell green apple, marmalade, black tea, gentle hardwood smoke, subtle wine tannins and syrupy Demerara, Brown and dark candi sugars, I dare say in a rum-cakey sort of way. Taste - Neat: Again, very hot at cask strength, undiluted. Only the most basic and prominent points are able to be tasted through the heat; smoke and a Demerara sugar type sweetness. Water Added: First and foremost, this is damned nice. Probably one of the most interesting and just straight up tasty scotches I’ve ever had. I’ve always been a big fan of sweet and savory and so I always searched around trying to find this bottle. It delivers exactly what I hoped it would; bittersweet dark chocolate, Black tea, brown sugar, dates, raisin and a prominent but not stark, smoke. (Some Islays can get to that medicinal degree of smoke, but this is sophisticated and gentle, like a smoked meat). Final Thoughts - Probably has made its way into my top 5 scotches of all time. The sweetness of the PX Sherry mixed with the Islay smokiness comes together in this delicious way that I can only describe as Barbecue. Take a super smokey, rendered, fatty slice of brisket and top it with some sort of dark, dried fruit chutney / sauce and you’ve got an idea of this scotch. Absolutely stellar. Going to be hard to resist drinking this all right away!

Next up in my Laphroaig series, is a sample of the 2021 Caidreas PX that was generously provided by @ctbeck11 The nose starts with a mix of fig jam on toasted sourdough, tangy barbecue sauce on charred pork belly and leather bound books then light diesel fumes, mild ocean brine, dark chocolate mocha and toasted hazelnuts followed by prunes, cherries jubilee and orange creme brûlée that transitions to light ginger and polished mahogany with medium ethanol burn. The taste is a medium to full mouthfeel starting with chocolate ganache, grilled figs and tangy barbecue sauce on charred pork belly before a mild spice that quickly fades to toasted sourdough, espresso, mild ocean brine and freshly lit pipe tobacco followed by prunes, cherries jubilee and orange sorbet that transitions to light baking spices, leather bound books and polished mahogany with medium ethanol burn. The finish is long, starting with chocolate ganache over creamy sweet berries that fades to the background of pipe tobacco, smoky barbecued meats, light ocean brine, asphalt, leather bound books and polished mahogany. This is a smoky chocolate treat that I could see some find the PX cask overpowering but for me it strikes a very enjoyable balance with those rich chocolate and dark berries counterbalancing the savory smoked meats and mild ocean brine. At a price of around $90, I think it’s very reasonably priced and I’ll be on the lookout to pick one of these up if I stumble on one. Ratings for the series so far: 10-year cask strength batch 11- 3.75 10-year sherry oak finish- 4.0 Lore- 4.0 2019 Caidreas Triple Wood- 3.75 2020 Caidreas Port and Wine - 3.75 2021 Caidreas PX - 4.0