Whisky: Laphroaig 21 Year (1998), SMWS 29.265 “Skippers and Kippers”

Country/Region: Scotland/Islay

ABV: 55.3%

Cask: 2nd Fill Bourbon Barrel

Age: 21 Years (Distilled 13 May 1998)

Nose: Asphalt, tar, burning pitch, tingling Szechuan peppercorns, crispy pork skin, an herbal maritime brine that verges on pickles, pine, salty maritime undercurrent throughout

Palate: Medium to full-bodied, oily and briny, tar and salty rubber harbor buoys, pencil shavings, lemon peel, meaty and oily, peppercorn, subtle cream and herbs, industrial and maritime throughout.

Finish: Long and tinging with salt, oily fish, and mellow burning herbal incense.

Score: 8+

Mental Image: Electrical Fire in the Beaver Dam

Narrative & Notes: Where was I? Watching a steampunk steamroller crushing Christmas trees or along the harbor watching a tugboat while eating a Cuban sandwich? Characteristically Laphroaig with plenty of fresh asphalt, tar, burning pitch, and pine, the aroma flirted with crispy meaty pork skin and tinned fish while a briny maritime undercurrent linked disparate images. The brine was sometimes herbal and occasionally struck me as pickle brine, especially when it merged with tingling Szechuan peppercorns and hints of star anise or vanilla. Medium to full-bodied, the mouthfeel was oily and briny with an initial saltwater wave that carried the palate toward tar, rusted chains, and salty rubber harbor buoys. Pencil shavings and graphite arrived with lemon peel gummies, crispy pork belly, oily Saba, and hints of Szechuan peppercorns. Occasionally creamy and herbal, the notion of pickle brine reprised on a largely maritime-industrial palate. The finish was long and tingling with maritime brine, oily fish, and a mellow burning herbal incense.

For quite a while, this was by far the most expensive bottle I scotch I had ever purchased. I bought it in a moment of madness years back. I am still unsure why I pulled the trigger, but after doing so, I decided it was the bottle I would set aside to open after defending my dissertation and finishing my Ph.D. I say all this because I am not unbiased with this bottle; I want to like it, love it even— it was pricy, and I opened it to mark a significant moment in my life.

I admit, I was hoping for something more subtle on the palate, more akin to some of the other twenty-something Laphroaig I have tried. This was a bruiser with an industrial and maritime intensity that caught me a little off guard. In that respect, it resembled a feisty younger Laphroaig more than it did its mature kin. Yet it was more complex than a brash youngster with richer, more developed flavors, a steady transition between layers of fruit, wood, and meat, maritime and slightly acrid industrial notes linking everything together, and a long finish. This may not have been the Laphroaig I expected, but I ended up very pleased with what I got.

Overall, a special occasion bottle worth celebrating with.