Review #127: Sovereign Laphroaig Single Cask Whisky Review

The Sovereign is a sub-brand of the venerable Hunter Liang. I think they originally set it up to start bottling single grain whiskies, but then expanded it to use for some older single malts as well. We tried a few of their single grain line, and I found it best summed up that age and price don’t make a whisky great. If you’re going to age something for 3, 4, or 5 decades, losing a few percent every year, and sell it at the end for several hundred (or thousand) dollars, do yourself a favor and start with malt instead of grain whisky!

Anywho, we’re hear today to talk about Laphroaig which is of course a single malt whisky. This one was aged for 20 years in a refill hogshead, and bottled at cask strength (52.5%) with natural color, and no chill filtration (hats off fine gentlemen).


Sovereign Laphroaig Single Cask Whisky Review
  • Score - 8/10
    8/10
Overall
8/10
8/10

Tasting Notes

Nose: Lots of bourbon notes, vanilla, oak, salt spray, iodine and peat.

Palate: Really punchy from the start, oak, caramel, lots of smoke here, but it’s subdued and muted. Lemon juice and citrus at the end of the palate. 

Finish: relatively short finish.

Quick overview of our scoring system


Additional Information

  • ABV: 52.5%
  • Non chill filtered
  • Natural color.
  • Distilled October 1997, bottled May 2018.

About Laphroaig

  • Originally established in 1815, but there was illicit distilling onsite before.
  • Laphroaig is famous (and some say infamous) for their seaweed, hospital-on-fire, hyper-iodine flavors.
  • Laphroaig is as much defined by the place as any French wine; the distillery sits meters away from sea, and the iodine rich seaweed coats the narrow beach adjoining the warehouse.
  • What to make with Laphroaig.
  • Distillery tour and reviews.

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