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Wow, this is definitely the best Laphi I've ever had. The malt has convinced me from start to finish. The smell with the mix of fruit, creamy ripeness and a little sea/iodine is just great, but the taste is even more impressive. I'll probably try a Laphi 25 regularly because €400 for a bottle is just too much.

Quite peaty and herbal - really not bad

Delicious (partly tropical) fruits take center stage, underscored by Laphi peat. I like it very much. The strength is just right. Excellent from start to finish. 91-100 – Whisky heaven, best stuff

This 25-year-old has the typical salty-smoky character, but this is sufficiently rounded out and balanced by the bourbon fruitiness. Sticky and firm body.

Nose: restrained, mild smoke (hardly any of the phenolic-medicinal character typical of younger Laphroaig), very fruity (apple compote), a little dark chocolate. Taste: sweet, oily, an absolute fruit bomb (the apple compote transforms into a multifaceted fruit salad with tropical hints), a little phenolic smoke finally comes through, some menthol, a peculiar herbal note develops, bittersweet oak as a counterpoint – fantastic! Finish: long, spicy, delicate smoke, but the fruit notes also linger. Conclusion: As Laphroaig's ambassador for Germany, Mark Armin Giesler, revealed in the tasting video with Ben Lüning, this whisky is actually 27 years old. In direct comparison with the legendary 21-year-old Laphroaig (the 2015 Friends of Laphroaig bottling in a 350ml bottle at 48.4% ABV), it doesn't quite match the aroma, but is at least its equal (or even slightly superior) in terms of taste. Overall, the €369 was an excellent investment!

Tropical fruits, slight peat, pencil shavings, vanilla, toast, apples, pears, honey, Full bodied, sweet

A good whisky, but with 90.56 points it's highly overrated in my opinion.

Aroma：Pronounced；Palate：90/100; Aftertaste：Long.

Nose: sweet, smoke, pineapple, passion fruit, vanilla, spicy, oak, some malt (light culinary herbs are added after the first sip) •• Taste: spicy oak, smoke, sweet, light tropical fruits, malt, mineral notes •• Finish : medium to long, slightly fruity smoky oak remains. •• Conclusion: An elegant, partly creamy nose. The initial taste is dominated by oak and smoke, followed by sweet tropical notes. An exciting whisky.

Quick hit review. Online tasting 11/2024. There is only so much you can get out of a small sample, but boy, this is marvellous stuff. Whiffs of cigar smoke, iodine and brine reach my nose, followed by tobacco, lemon zest and medicinal notes. Savory, ashy and slightly herbal, the palate is picking up steam with citrus fruits, nutmeg and cinnamon. Three sips, and my wee sample is gone. Resin, marzipan and delicate peatiness linger in the sweet and zesty aftertaste. Yeah, this is more than good. RATING: 4.4/5.0 stars ≙ 90 pts → SUPERB [-]

Nose: Elegant, mature peat smoke with softened medicinal notes. Sea breeze, iodine, and light coastal brine balanced by honeyed malt, vanilla cream, dried tropical fruits, and polished oak. Subtle leather, old library wood, and a gentle citrus zest develop with time. Taste (Palate): Refined and layered rather than aggressive. Silky texture with integrated peat, soft ash, and maritime saltiness. Flavors of ripe mango, baked apple, toffee, and vanilla custard alongside seasoned oak, nutmeg, and light pepper spice. The smoke is restrained and complex, showing age and balance. Finish: Long, warming, and sophisticated. Lingering gentle peat smoke, dry oak tannin, and faint medicinal character. Notes of dark chocolate, citrus peel, and soft sea salt fade slowly, leaving a clean and mature coastal impression.

almond, vanilla, citrus, tobacco, band aids, iodine, herbs, balanced with a nice complexity, very nice

The characteristic peat smoke immediately unfolds on the nose, unmistakably Laphroaig, yet finely integrated and less overpowering than in young bottlings. The phenolic notes remain present, but they are complemented by elegant citrus freshness (lemon), sweet vanilla, seaweed, and a subtle oak note that signals maturity and depth. Black pepper lends the aromas a piquant tension, while the pineapple provides an exotic, almost tropical counterpoint—a hint at the complexity of this whisky. The full class of this bottling is evident on the palate. Despite the cask strength, the alcohol is superbly integrated—powerful but never overpowering. The texture is creamy and sweet, with a distinct malty core and pronounced oak spice, which, however, does not dominate. Grapefruit and pineapple provide freshness and fruit, the latter, in its grilled, ham-wrapped form, bringing remarkable depth and almost umami-like complexity. Salted caramel rounds out the flavor profile and reinforces the whisky's maritime origins. The finish is medium to long, developing with spice, a lovely sweetness, and light smoke, ending with a note of dry oak that recalls the years in the cask without becoming too bitter. The smoke lingers as a subtle memory. This 25-year-old Cask Strength bottling is proof that Laphroaig doesn't lose its identity even with age, but rather continues to evolve. The intensity of the young peat has aged gracefully—from sharp phenol to complex smoke, from raw power to controlled depth. The whisky offers a wonderful interplay of maritime influences, ripe fruit, woody spice, and sweet-salty contrasts that lend it a special culinary dimension.

I like that it still keeps it's very much Laphroaigian character (medicine cabinet, coastal), has the tropical notes I love in many old Laphroaigs, and seems to be filtered through seaweed, but just barely doesn't overdo it.

Damn, friends! This is simply delicious!

Aroma: a lot of sweetness - delicately honeyed, citrus in syrup, subdued smoke, as if perfumed, mineral - ash, lime, wet gravel... alcohol perfectly hidden... with time more chocolate notes with a bit of fruitiness - apples, dried apricots - 90 Taste: wow - beautifully composed, thick, even oily, consistent with the aroma... more fruit, delicate medicinal... maybe it's not mega complex but you feel that it is a "premium" whisky - 91 Finish: long, very pleasant, delicate, warming, mineral, marine, with a noticeable bitterness of cocoa and fruit pits and what I love, dried apricot - 91

Yellow. Nose: Soft, light smoke, acidity, sweetness, vanilla. Taste: Slightly dry, campfire smoke, sweetness, apple, vanilla, rounded and soft. Vault.

Beautiful whisky, tasty

Deep nose, light peat, leather, sweet and smoke. Peat, balance, delicate and subtle. Salty and pepper. Oh man, this is amazing whisky

Nose: Sweet, very little smoke, fruit, orange (no pineapple), a little glue. Palate: Sweetness, fruit, smoke (in that order), long wave, smoke perfectly integrated. Finish: very long. In summary: A very nice Laphroaig, at the age when I like these bottlings.

Bourbon's flavors are a great blend of peat and fruit, with pineapple, lychee, and rich Southeast Asian fruit notes. The peat isn't too strong, and there's a hint of Western medicine.

Leather, yogurt, ash, and a hint of fruit.

A poem by a Laphroaig, the 47.3% is perfect. Mild peat smoke and fruit notes in almost perfect harmony, wonderfully creamy and soft, and yet with a clear Laphroaig character. Grand Ouvert: That's it.

N: very fruity, dense and creamy, honey, lovely sweet, warm summer evening on the Mediterranean, more a touch salty than smoky. G: nice oiliness, salty again, fresh-fruity, light smoke, nice spice. A: a sweet, juicy lemon fruit, then again sea air, tannins, pepper, but then remains fresh. This sweet, fresh and sour kick is special the second you swallow it.

More elegant than a NAS. But not as complex as I expected. A bit bland.

The nose is ethereal, particularly dark and dirty. Greasy ash, sea salt, quite pronounced medicinal notes, chiseled iodine, kelp, and dried seaweed. Rubbed with lemon peel, it bursts with citrus, but it's also charcoal-like, cavernous, and dusty. The peat is very present. A touch of exotic fruits: pineapple, grapefruit, and banana. Dark chocolate, a hint of vanilla. On the palate, it's oily, honeyed, heavily peaty, but with a wonderful creaminess: lychees, almonds, and white peaches. Light mineral notes, limestone, a pinch of salt. A very long finish, not extremely strong, but expressive and herbaceous. Barley sugar, pencil lead, gypsum, coal fragments, cucumber, melon, earth, coffee, and tobacco. A dusting of cinnamon. I loved the nose, which is pure Laphroaig. No doubt the maturation solely in Bourbon casks brings out the distillery's character, and it's truly incredible. https://ilikesky2020.blogspot.com/2026/06/laphroaig-25-yo-cask-strength-2023.html

mine is gone

[September 2023] A Laphroaig from the glorious old times of this (once) fine distillery is a must try, despite the heavy price tag... ...and it is worth a try, no doubt. It is more straight (less complex) than earlier editions (before 2018), but it is both interesting to explore and enjoyable to sip - provided you own the deep pockets to buy such expensive bottles.

(Tasted blind) NOSE: Tropical fruit, rich but mild smoke. Sweet summer flower honey, a hint of leather. (89-90p) TASTE: The arrival is sweet, with yellow tropical fruits. On the mid palate medium to medium rich body with a little oiliness. Fresh wood resin. A few drops of water makes it even fruitier. (90p) FINISH: Rich in smoke, together with dried tropical fruits. (89p) OVERALL: A smoked tropical fruit bomb. Total score 90 (89) points.

yep

This whisky is simply wonderful! With a little water and patience, it's possible to extract incredible flavors from this 25-year-old former bourbon. The peat does not deteriorate with age; it calms down, matures, and integrates harmoniously into the perfectly balanced ensemble of ex-bourbon barrel notes, honed by 25 years of aging in oak. Alcohol is not rebellious and does not attack; it is serene and resilient, like an experienced and wise adult.

Stunning old heavily peated whisky! Fruit bomb with very mellowed peat. The strong peat are well polished and perfectily combine with the young fruitness. It showcases what how an well aged peated whisky should be

Light golden color. Slight oiliness.

Best of the Best

Nose: A fruit basket, no, a trunk of a fruit station wagon. A potpourri of ripe fruits such as red apple, banana, quince, mango, papaya, lychee. The smoke is reduced to a minimum, more like a hint of still smoldering ashes from a fire, seaweed and old ship rope have been burned. Fruit and degraded smoky notes harmonize very well. Mouth: A smooth, gentle start and the whisky is immediately present. It feels creamy in the mouth and the fruit clearly comes through here too. Cream caramel candy and some honey. Accompanied by slightly stronger smoky notes and seaweed, which never come to the fore or take up too much space. Finish: Long, only slightly dry, vanilla and fruit finish, a hint of ash. 92/100 Conclusion: A lovely batch full of fruit with subtle notes of cultivated smoke. The class in the nose is held in the mouth without becoming watery.

I had the opportunity to try this 25 at the Laphroaig stand at Interwhisky, thank you Mark! ;-) Perfectly balanced and the smoke is optimally integrated. I had the great aromas of the bourbon cask on my palate and the campfire smoke on my nose. You can see how the smoke breaks down with age and turns into a flavor bomb. Simply a great whisky!

Tasted in 10/2025

Just amazing. 90p

Brief comparison between Laphroaig 25yo 47.3% (2023) WB:237201 and Laphroaig 30yo 45.8% (2024) WB:260789 They definitely differ in color. The 30-year-old is a good shade darker. Not surprising, of course, since the 30-year-old also had some sherry casks in it. The 25-year-old presents itself on the nose exactly as I imagine an old Laphi. Lovely fruitiness (mostly local fruit with a touch of the exotic), although not quite as pronounced as in some other bottlings. Add to that the refined, mellow smoke and the sea breeze. It all works really well. The 30-year-old presents itself quite differently. Thanks to the sherry casks, the fruit notes are naturally darker. Here, too, the smoke is relatively subtle, but darker and warmer. Fitting the overall character of the malt. This also works very well. On the palate, the 25-year-old is initially a bit sweeter, fruitier, and more exotic than on the nose. It then becomes more herbal. Additionally, the smoke increases towards the end and becomes more phenolic. The 30-year-old largely confirms the impressions from the nose. A beautiful balance between sweetness, fruit, moderate smoke, and spice. They're both really great. Choosing a true winner would almost be unfair. Personally, I usually prefer Laphis made from ex-bourbon, so for me the 25 has a slight edge.

Sea salt and iodine, sea cucumber, smoked mackerel, combined with yellow apples, machine oil, vanilla.

Although I don't like the style of Laphroaig, this is still an excellent wine with balance, elegance, complexity, smoothness and power.

A truly beautiful Laphroaig that maintains a high standard from start to finish: iodine, maritime notes, campfire smoke, tropical fruits, lime, vanilla, marjoram. Delicious. It delivers a full and refined array of aromas and is utterly convincing. 92/100 or 8/10

Very balanced, very rich.

A burst of tropical fruits—apple, banana, quince, mango, and papaya. Quite watery in texture on the palate. Very gentle peat throughout. Personally, this hits the sweet spot with the bourbon cask influence, subtle peat, and ABV.