A tea-spooned malt from Laphroaig distillery (Williamson is not a distillery, it’s a cover name). Distilled: 04.11.2010, bottled: 30.06.2022 & with an outrun of 223 bottles. CS at 53.8%, NCF & NC.
Appearance: Light gold/sun-bleached straw. A thin micro-beaded swirl line forms immediately. The beads quickly morph into teardrops and longer medium trails. A decent viscosity judging by the film on the inside of the glass.
Nose: Obvious ABV. Smoke and citrus are immediately evident. School glue (was it Marvin or something like that? The one with the brush). There is some lighter buttered well-done toast, but also an odd odour that I can’t place, a bit like lime pickle? The smoke is more ashy than a BBQ or bonfire smoke, with more carbon. Ah, that smell is those fabric plasters, not the usual bandaid aroma.
Palate: The ABV is still very much evident. A lovely mouthfeel, not massively viscous, but silky and buttery. The smoke and fabric plaster aromas are still there, consistent from the nose. I still get a citrus zing, but it’s now masked with black pepper. After a few sips, the sweetness starts to come through and overtake the spicy side. It’s improving.
Finish: The finish is a sweeter smoke than the nose or palate first revealed. There are also tropical notes and subtle pepper. It’s quite a long finish too.
Overall: It’s growing on me and I’d love to see how a bottle evolves, my reservation is the £117 to find out.
