New Directions... Laphroaig Triple Wood

Not long ago I visited the whisky shop at Gatwick Airport on a trip out to the island of Guernsey in the English Channel. This was the first time I had visited a duty-free and paid close attention to the whisky sold. Of the various export-only whiskies one alone caught my eye, the Laphroaig Triple Wood. At the time I wrote it off as one to buy in the future when I didn't have a holiday budget to cling to. Little did I know that shortly afterwards the Laphroaig Triple Wood would be made available to the UK market and this was an opportunity I couldn't miss.

This dram is another triumph for this Islay distillery. It builds on the fantastic groundwork laid by the Laphroaig Quarter Cask. Like the Quarter Cask it undergoes aging in both Bourbon and nineteenth-century style quarter casks but then it benefits from additional ageing in sherry casks. The result is profound, what you get is a whisky undeniably Laphroaig but with an uncharacteristic fruitiness that lends this whisky a new direction that fails to disappoint. I may have to get another bottle of this bizarre malt.

Laphroaig Triple Wood
48% - No Age Statement
Nose: There is that clear Laphroaig medicinality that reminds me in this case of Karvol, the decongestant. This is followed by tropical fruits and a touch of cinnamon that I was not suspecting.
Palate: The palate was more remarkably Laphroaig although softer and more rounded with medium-body and that fruit presence recurring again.
Finish: Peaty, maritime and strong. Everything I could want from a Laphroaig.
Overall: Very impressive, this builds on the already fantastic Quarter Cask, the use of sherry casks just adds another dimension of complexity. Oh and I forgot to mention, great value too!

English Summer Rain - Snow Grouse

Our rather wet summer holiday
in the British Isles

There is something quintessentially British about commenting on the weather. It permeates all conversation. You can be discussing the ins and outs of post-modern thought and still get round to that awfully horrid twenty minutes of rain last Tuesday. Furthermore it is profoundly British to complain about the weather during the summer. We could have weeks of sunshine but it will be the downpour at the end that we remember. Unfortunately, I remember the good weather all too well. In fact I have a very accurate memory of sitting at work listening to the air conditioning stuttering to a wheezing halt as the task of cooling a room reaching solar temperatures became all too much for it as it had the temperature control equivalent of a cardiac arrest. As I sat there mopping a torrent of sweat from my scalding brow, I craved everything from water to an ice bath, and had I been aware of it, I would probably have begged for a chilled whisky. Except I know better and know that outside of a cocktail that would never work. Famous Grouse, of course, disagree. They have produced what they have, very originally, christened the Snow Grouse. The concept is a grain whisky that you chill before you serve. Despite being all too aware of the novelty value that this whisky would of course have, I was very cautious. Nevertheless I had to try it and wasn't completely disappointed. It offered a very spirity drink that was refreshing but I thought could have offered more. I would like to have seen some extreme louche effect from non-chill filtration and some more complexity and, although I think that it offered a new approach to whisky, I just feel that if Compass Box had done it I would be much more impressed.

Snow Grouse
40% - No Age Statement - Bottled by Famous Grouse
Nose: Medicinal here with notes of wet paint. I also got the TCP I never get but everyone else does from Laphroaig. Finally this smelled more of vodka than whisky.
Palate: Very creamy with a solvent edge.
Finish: Creamy again with sultanas and bananas.
Overall: A novelty most definitely but fun for it. Interesting but I wouldn't buy a bottle. Goes well with scones surprisingly.