Ah, where do I begin with this white whale of a whisky? I’ve been a fan of Laphroaig for about 3 years now (I’ve only been regularly drinking scotch for about 3.5 years). I had to force myself to drink through my first bottle of Laphroaig (Triple Wood, btw), but since then I have been a huge fan of smoky, peaty whisky. I stumbled across this Cairdeas Port Wood at my local, high end whisky bar 2.5 years ago and the owner/bartender offered me a pour. All I could say afterwards was WOW, HOW DO I GET MY HANDS ON MORE OF THIS? Flash forward 2 years and I’ve finally landed 4 bottles through friends and European auctions- not to mention spent over $1000 to acquire those 4 bottles. When I see something I want.... This Cairdeas is from the 2013 Feis Isle festival. It was finished for an undisclosed amount of time in Portuguese wine casks and offered to attending guests. This particular batch is ruby red and makes lots of tiny, oily legs in the Glencairn. After a spin tiny water droplets form and quickly run down the oily sides. It’s bottled at a robust 51.3% ABV and is NCF’d with no added color. The nose is Laphroaig smoke with a side of salty, young spirit that releases a rich, grape sweetness that’s riddled with orange peel and almost no barrel influence. The palate is initially heavy on the smoke and campfire, slightly harsh but still surprisingly oily. The sweetness hangs back as though it’s waiting to be announced before entering the room, but when it does, boy does it come on strong. It’s thick and surprisingly delicate as it forces the astringency off the side of the stage and just settles in and puts on a good show. Excellent port notes dance around on the tongue beginning at mid sip and continue until you wash them away. The finish is medium length and (thankfully) smooth. More dark berries hang around leaving you feeling all warm and cozy. If there’s more in the Glencairn it’ll coerce you into going in for more. I had this ranked at Number 1 on my favorite whisky list for months and months. Sadly, I don’t think I can keep it there because I’ve so many great whiskies at this point, but I refuse to let it slip out of my Top 5. It’s still so damn good. 4.5 stars, maybe 4.75 when I’m feeling nostalgic about trying this back in 2016. I highly recommend trying to find a pour or a bottle. You won’t be disappointed. Cheers and thanks for reading this all the way through.