REVIEW #1: 7/20/2015
LAPHROAIG TRIPLE WOOD
Distiller: D. Johnston & Co., Laphroaig Distillery
Age: NAS
ABV: 48%
Bottling: N/A
Price: $65
EYE
Clear yellowish-carmel
NOSE
Nutty. Carmel. Peat. Followed by smoked honey and citrus peel. There is a lot of depth here. Iodine and seaweed/sea salt linger in the background. This is a fun one to smell. I like the nose the best.
TASTE
Smooth. I’d love to try this at cask strength to see if it had more of a bite. Smokey peat and nutty carmel drape the palate. Fairly viscus. Notes of wood and just a slight hint of sherry sweetness on the back-end. A very small amount of iodine and seaweed throughout. A decent taste.
FINISH
Medium-long. Sweet. Lots of carmel.
VALUE
I feel like this one is slightly over-priced. It is unique. It is out of the normal line of Scotches. However, with the nice nose and decently balanced palate, if this was priced in the $50-55 range it would jump up quite a bit on my rating scale and may even beat out the 10 year. Sadly it does not.
CONSENSUS
Balanced well. Not as much depth as I would like (think 10 year Laphroaig). The nose and the initial palate are the highlights. A little to expensive for what you get.
RATING
88/100 (A Solid Tipple)
REVIEW #2: 8/7/2015
DALWHINNIE 15
Distiller: Dalwhinnie
Owner: Diageo
Age: 15 Years Old
ABV: 43%
Barrel: Re-Fill Bourbon
Bottling: N/A
Price: $60*
EYE
Straw. Chardonnay.
NOSE
Very light. Honey and pears. Lots of sweet malt. Some florals (heather). A slight soapiness. This might be the florals. It just reminded me of some type of soap I have used before. It wasn’t a bad thing. In the back I get some golden raisins and lemon. The nose was okay but was not the highlight of this tipple for me.
TASTE
This is where this one shines. It enters smoothly. Then, it slowly warms. It is not hot. Just pleasantly warms the palate. It is like wrapping up in a blanket on a crisp fall day. Love it! Other than that the flavors follow the nose. Lots of sweet malt. Citrus. Golden raisins. And then, mid-palate and out of left-field, mint. A very pleasant mint. Bitter herbs linger around the perimeter of the palate.
FINISH
Medium. Sweet malt. Honey. Pleasent but not awesome.
VALUE
I cannot justify talking too much about value since my experience comes from a free sample. But, I think it would be slightly over-priced at $60. And, considering in some places it can run upwards of $70, it can be even more over-priced. However, if I ever find a bottle between $50-55, I am picking it up without a second thought.
CONSENSUS
This is a pretty good dram. The nose and finish are nothing to write home about, but the experience on the palate is pleasent leaning toward wonderful. I really enjoyed this one. The warming sensation was second to very few and the suprise mint was cool. It is a good entry-level Scotch. I probably should have started here instead of with Laphroaig.
RATING
84/100 (A Solid Tipple)
*Disclosure: This sample was sent to me by Josh over at A Dram Good Drink (check out his review of this tipple here). Thank you for the sample, Josh!
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