Ledaig 10 Year

Im tasting this tonight after a while and my god this is GOOD. bold peatiness, some liquorice and some mild sweetness in the background, just the way I like it. slightly peppery in the end. Very similar to laphroag Quarter cask, which doesnt have this peppery ending and the laphroaig is more rounded as well. This is one of my most favs. if you like to keep sweetness to a minimum and love peat, this will be just up your alley.

Delicately peated. A delight.

Tonight's review is of a 2019(?) bottling of Tobermory's Ledaig 10 Yr Old single malt. ⠀ Distiller: Tobermory Mash Bill: 100% peated malted barley Oak Type: ex-bourbon Age: 10 yr Price Paid: $53 Background:  I was absolutely blown away after trying a 20yr old Alexander Murray bottling of Ledaig and knew I had to try more.  What better place to start than the base of their core offerings? This one is great and unique option for any peat/smoke lovers out there.   ⠀ ⠀ 🥃 Ledaig 10 Year - 46.3% ABV ⠀ Nose:  Earthy, peppery, salty.  Savory and umami, like pork and fried cabbage.  Shishito peppers.  More black pepper.  BBQ smoke.  The sweetness hides in the background and is a little floral and fruity among the malty notes. ⠀ Palate:  Salty bbq meats, funky peat, malty sweetness, black pepper, and a good bit of smoke. A little bit of oak astringency is masked by other funky and earthy notes. The smoke is very palpable and is distinctly Ledaig to me.  Its like a barbequed mix of Talisker and peated Jura rather than a highland or islay style. The palate rounds out with nice sweet bourbon barrel notes. This dram is much more powerful on the tongue than it is to the nose. The texture is pretty nice, but nothing particularly special. The finish is long and has a nice smoke and sweet combo that reminds me of a very peppery charred barbeque sauce crusted onto grilled chicken along with some general sweet bourbon cask notes. It also has some distinctive peat funk. Overall, very interesting dram that I enjoy a lot but I could understand people finding it polarizing.  There's lots of peaty spirit character here and the oak takes somewhat of a back seat but provides really nice rounded edges. Im a huge fan of Ledaig and have found myself becoming a bit of a collector when I can afford it.  What do you think of Ledaig? ⠀ Rating Range:  84 - 88/100

Smooth start, Smokey, salty. Laphroaig-esque