Laphroaig Càirdeas 2023 White Port & Madeira Casks

I waited more than a year after release of the 2022 to pick it up, but I bought this one the first day it showed up in stores locally. Don't know anything about white port, but I tend to enjoy madiera finished whiskies, so I was looking forward to this one. The nose shows a little more fruit than typical Laphroaig, but it's not leaping out. A little citrus, a little green apple. As it opens a bit of berry and cream. Some of the usual suspects show up like brine, slight medicinal iodine. The sour apple and citrus fruit seem to stand out most to me. The palate sees much of the same as the nose, but the peat shows up in a much bigger way. The brine and iodine lead the way, along with ashy smoke. The sweet vanilla that shows up in the 2022 Warehouse 1 is dialed back quite a bit, but it's in there too. There's a little meatiness, like smoked ham, which I usually associate more with Ardbeg than Laphroaig. The finish turns a little tannic before the smoke rides out on a medium to long finish. Seems to me that the finishing on this one is more understated, particularly compared to the 2021 with the heavy PX influence. I think fans of the general Laphroaig profile will find a lot to like here, but those looking for a heavy finish may be somewhat disappointed. I've kind of become a Laphroaig fanboy, so I enjoy it, but I think I actually prefer the 2022, which I almost didn't even buy.

Nose: honeysuckle, hay plum, camp fire, oysters Mouth: pear, green apple, lemon cake, peat Finish: grilled pear, honey, smoke, ocean Superb whisky

First impressions leaving me rather underwhelmed. Nose is fine, creamy and peppery with a hint of something grapey. Mid-palate is a little sweet, but nothing that suggests a strong Madeira influence. Finish is short with poor-quality, bitter tannins, like sucking wood. Disappointing, but we’ll see how it progresses. So far I like it less than the previous port and Madeira Cairdeas releases, and neither of them were my favorites in the series. I bought all the Cairdeas from 2013 through 2018 and then only samples until this year. On this evidence I should have stuck to the recent strategy, but I’ll give it a few more tries before reaching a definitive judgement.