Category: Distilleries L

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Longrow (Springbank) Red Pinot Noir, 11yo (2019)

Rating24.4/40
OriginScotland, Campbeltown,
DistilleryLongrow (Springbank)
OwnerJ&A Mitchell & Company
SeriesRed
EditionPinot Noir
StyleSingle Malt
PeatedYes
CaskPinot Noir
BottledJanuary 7th, 2019
Bottles9,000
Strength53.1% (106.2 Proof)

Another one in the long running series of red wine aged small batch releases of Springbank’s peated single malt, the Longrow. Always unique, often tasty and always highly anticipated, at least by yours truly, I’m glad to try another one of these peated pearls.

Nose: The nose is definitely “red”, whatever that descriptor means. Knowing there is wine involved makes those notes apparent but I’m curious if I would have detected them in a blind tasting. If I try to dismiss any preconceived notions from my mind, I end up with Haribo fruit gummy candies hanging out in a cigar lounge. Except nobody is actually smoking because they’re all busy eating cherry pies at the moment. There’s stuff I like and stuff I don’t like. This one’s a bit hard to nail down points-wise. (6.8/10)

Palate: Thick, goopy cherry-pie effluent and splinters of dark wood. And I wish all of it would come to life more. Not sure why this stuff is refusing to blow up. There’s a sizzling heat emerging after each sip that seems to burn off all of those rather nice flavors too quickly until the last of them evaporates the moment it goes down. It’s kind of a shame really. This palate is its own worst enemy. This is what it must feel like to have a child of great promise which proceeds to turn into a petty thief. (6.1/10)

Finish: A lonesome ghost of slightly bitter flavor and some residual warmth in the upper chest is all that’s left after everything else quickly evaporates. That and a mild sugary coating on the back of the tongue. Definitely a bit of a let down this one. I really expected more. (5.6/10)

Balance: I dunno… I usually really like the Longrow Red releases but this one is subpar on all fronts. Somehow, despite its relative strength, it seems to lack the substance to assert and maintain the nice flavors it hints at. You open a cage at the zoo but instead of a roaring lion you get a disinterested shabby looking racoon. A bit of a bummer. But luckily also a bit of an exception in the series. At least I hope it’s not a harbinger of future doom. (5.9/10)

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Lagavulin Offerman Edition, 11yo, 2019

Rating27.7/40
OriginScotland, Islay, South Shore
DistilleryLagavulin
OwnerDiageo
EditionOfferman Edition
StyleSingle Malt
PeatedYes
CaskRe-filled and re-juvenated American Oak Barrels
BottledAugust 2019
Strength46% (92 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase

According to the marketing blurb this whisky was created in partnership with Parks & Recreations’ Nick Offerman. What exactly that partnership involved is not entirely clear to me. Nor does it matter much. I’m always up for trying a new Lag when one pops up. Which, unfortunately, does not happen all that often.

Nose: Fresh peat brightly leaps out of a box of thin mints. This is one of the rare noses with what I can only describe as horizontal geometry. That’s how my brain experiences it anyways. It seems to be wide rather than tall and slices into my head right through my sinuses. I like peat a lot but this feels almost a little… green? Is there such a thing as unripe peat? (6.9/10)

Palate: Again with this green quality of the peat. I like the sparkly brightness of it, but it lacks the depth and heaviness I most appreciate in my favorite peaty malts. And this one wears itself out quickly on my tongue. It sort of shrinks and vanishes there towards the center leaving next to nothing behind other than a mild burn. (5.9/10)

Finish: The very moment the whisky goes down it releases a voluminous cloud of peat smoke that finally no longer contains that green unripe element of itself. However, that cloud is also really just an overblown puff of bright smoke and quickly fades into seeming emptiness. After a few more moments, when things have calmed down, I suddenly discover a much quieter and richer, dark peat smoke that’s quietly accumulated deep down in my chest, accompanied by a little bit of mellow heat. Hey, that’s actually rather nice! (8.0/10)

Balance: The reward here is in the very distant last part of the finish. I really could do without those bright, young, unripe and green elements up front. And I’m not sure the finish of the finish is truly worth the effort given that I could just drink some Lag 16 or 12 cask strength or one of the Distiller’s Editions which I think are much, much more rewarding overall. (6.9/10)

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Laphroaig Cask Strength Batch 010, 10yo

Rating34/40
OriginScotland, Islay, South Shore
DistilleryLaphroaig
OwnerSuntory Holdings via Beam Suntory
SeriesCask Strength
EditionBatch 010
StyleSingle Malt
PeatedYes
BottledJanuary 2018
Strength58% (116 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase
Wine SearcherWine Searcher

Laphroaig’s 10th annual batch of their cask strength 10 year old single malt promising power and copious amounts of that iconic funky peat the Islay distillery has become known and loved for.

Nose: The darkly roasted skin of a chicken that was marinated in cola and spices. But where is the peat? There are thin hints of it behind everything else. This is atypical but nevertheless good. (8.5/10)

Palate: The baked crust of a smoked cheesecake without the actual cheese cake filling. Salty on the surface of the tongue but smokey and sweet everywhere else. (8/10)

Finish: All the flavors tended to spread low and wide in my mouth before things are heating up right at the edge of the throat. After a while the more smokey components finally descent into my chest and shortly thereafter the hot spot expands downwards as well. A sweet savoriness like the flavor of traditional ratatouille coats my entire mouth. (9/10)

Balance: A bit disjointed at first but it all comes together eventually as all the glory contained in this whisky slowly unfolds and properly re-assembles itself on the finish. Give this one time and you will be rewarded! (8.5/10)

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Longmorn, Old Malt Cask K&L Exclusive, 14yo, 2003/2018

Rating34.5/40
OriginScotland, Speyside, Lossie
DistilleryLongmorn
OwnerPernod Ricard via Chivas Brothers
DistilledNovember 2003
BottlerDouglas Laing & Co.
SeriesOld Malt Cask
StyleSingle Barrel Single Malt
CaskRefill Barrel HL15146
BottledJune 2018
Bottles243
Strength54.9% (109.8 Proof)
RetailerK&L Wine Merchants

A K&L exclusive single barrel cask strength bottling of a delicious single malt distilled at one of the lesser known hidden treasures among the numerous Speyside distilleries.

Nose: Every so often I encounter a whisky where I have an absurdly hard time identifying specific notes. There’s stuff. And also a few things. Mostly stuff though. Both are good. Hah! Finally! A faint note I can put a name on that seems to permeate both the stuff and also the things. It’s cola. Oh and then some old furniture that was rubbed with cola. Anyway, it’s somewhat static but I like it. A drop of water flattens the nose beyond recovery. (8/10)

Palate: Ah, much more going on here. A big bold hit, at first spatially contained but continuously inflated with each subsequent sip. I still can’t really name specific notes here. Very, very nice though. Oddly enough a drop of water converts this from water of life to oil slick of life. I like that. Too bad adding water ruins the nose. (8.5/10)

Finish: Deep and warm. I just love a whisky that fills my chest cavity with flavor and heat. Apparently I have olfactory receptors buried in my lungs. I still can’t name notes though. Maybe my brain has finally short-circuited. Luckily I’m still capable of immensely enjoying this. Water dials back the warmth which makes me sad. (9/10)

Balance: Somehow this whisky defeated my ability to name flavors. But it is great. Seriously. I really liked the palate with water but the cost in terms of losing the nose and the warmth of the finish is just too high as far as I’m concerned. Don’t put water into this. Unless you want to know sadness and regret. (9/10)

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Lagavulin GoT Collection House Lannister – Hear Me Roar!, 9yo, 2018

Lagavulin Game of Thrones House Lannister, 9yo., close-up
Rating32.5/40
OriginScotland, Islay, South Shore
DistilleryLagavulin
OwnerDiageo
SeriesGame of Thrones Collection
EditionHouse Lannister – Hear Me Roar!
StyleSingle Malt
PeatedYes.
Bottled2018
Strength46% (92 Proof)
WhiskybaseWhiskybase
Wine SearcherWinesearcher

Nose: Grape skin bubbles sparkle as they float up into my nostrils and release flowery peat puffs as they pop . Sweet and sour. Quite nice. (7.5/10)

Palate: Not a lot of complexity really. Rather a homogeneous wide and opaque wave on an otherwise dark and quiet pond. Could be more vertically expansive. It barely reaches the roof of my mouth even on its tippy-toes. But, again, quite nice. (8/10)

Finish: Warm. The theme of simplicity and homogeneity continues. The whisky plumbs the depths of my chest about half way before reeling it back in. But right in the back of the throat there are long lasting embers that alight pleasantly on every breath. (8.5/10)

Balance: The nose promises a complexity that the palate and finish just can’t deliver. However, they make up for that inability with comforting hugs and cozy warmth. So who am I to complain. One of the best of the GoT series in my opinion. (8.5/10)