Official bottling Dual Review | 48% ABV

Smart Parenting

Being a parent is a job. Diaper changes, midnight cries to be soothed, spit ups and vomits. Blowouts too.

Uncontrollable fits of crying and screaming, usually in the middle of a store when the child is overtired. Trips to pediatricians’ offices for all sorts of coughs, rashes, and maladies. Parent-teacher conferences. Coaching sports teams. Homework checker. Being the taxi driver to and from all those extracurricular activities. Being called to the school for “incidents”. Disciplinary steps of various measures.

These, of course, are all tempered by hugs, seeing your child take steps in confidence and independence, their graduations. Hopefully, if you’re lucky, there might be occasional cards or messages thanking you for all of the sacrifices.

But, after all of the years and events to turn hair grey and create furrows in brows, your progeny leave the nest. They take tenets of morality, gleaned from you and the education you have bequeathed, with the lessons they have learned, out into the world.

As you watch your children navigate their way through the world, you vicariously cheer on their successes and help them through challenges whenever you can. At this point, all you can do as a parent is hope that you’ve done a good job. (Spoiler alert to our kids: we never believe that we have been perfect parents…and there is always guilt and second guessing). But there are certain indicators that prove, as a parent, you have indeed done a good job.

One indicator, for me, arrived this past weekend. Connell, my twenty-six year old son from DC came to visit. He brought with him a bottle of Laphroaig Quarter Cask as well as a 2021 bottle of GlenDronach 21. I taught him well.

He came wearing a healthy grin. He had made it to the final round of a very competitive interview process for a job of which more than fifty had applied. He wanted to thank us for helping him get through to the final round. To my better half, who had been a corporate HR officer for twenty years, he thanked her for coaching him through the interview process; how to present himself and the manner by which he needed to conduct himself through interviews. And then, to me, surprisingly, he grinned a bit wider and gave me a hug. In so doing, he wanted to thank me for giving him the education of whisky. I was puzzled.

As he smiled he said that, during his last interview, things felt a bit stiff in the room until he noticed that over the interviewer’s shoulders, on the credenza, was a bottle of Laphroaig 10 year old. Noticing that – and summoning all of the education, stories, and information about the water of life that he has heard or been a part of over the past decade – he struck up a conversation about Islay, comparing the peat of a Kilchoman to a Lagavulin to a Laphroaig (all of which he has sampled with us).

Within minutes, Connell said he and his interviewer were much more relaxed, laughing, and my son (genetically blessed with the gift of gab) relayed stories we had shared with him from the trip Mrs. Shaw and I took to Islay in 2022. It seems, more than likely, that whisky might just have been the grease to the wheel to get him to the final round of three.

While we’re not counting our chickens before they’re hatched, nonetheless it appears his job prospect may be within reach. For Mrs. Shaw and I - a proud parenting moment. Damn it, we’ve done a bang-up job, if we do say so ourselves… With a little help from uisge beatha.

So, as I was selfishly basking in the glow of seeing our twenty-six year old hit his stride, we poured drams from the Laphroaig Quarter Cask that Connell brought. My wife – a peathead among peatheads – thoroughly enjoyed her dram and asked what our writers at Dramface had said about this bottle. I couldn’t remember seeing a review of this expression, but surely this stalwart official bottling has been reviewed previously? And yet, when I used the search tool here on the Dramface site, I discovered that there had been no previous review.

I certainly need to correct this glaring omission. And, in so doing, I sent out the call to other Dramface writers to see if anyone else had a Laphroaig Quarter Cask on the shelf. And, lo and behold, Charlie said he had a handy, open bottle and would be glad to climb aboard to provide his feedback. Another Dramface joint review, then.

Review 1/2 - Ogilvie

Laphroaig Quarter Cask, Official bottling, 48% ABV
US$75 (£60) paid locally, wide availability

Laphroaig’s Quarter Cask expression, as noted, has been a stalwart bottling. Laphroaig has been producing the Quarter Cask since 2004. Unlike its older brethren of 10, 18 and 30 year old expressions, the Quarter Cask is first matured in ex-bourbon barrels for five years. At that point, the distillate is transferred to quarter casks – much smaller casks, that allow for greater interaction with the oak. This second maturation is rumored to be in the seven to eight month range.

Interestingly, one online site states that Laphroaig makes the conscious decision after distillation to ignore most of the fruity and lighter “heads”, instead focusing more on the richer “tails” in their selection. This bit of information seems at odds with the lemon I usually get from a Laphroaig tasting. Second spoiler alert: lemons incoming!

Score: 7/10

**Very Good Indeed.**
***TL;DR***
*An OG that retains its status as among the most solid of OBs*

Nose

Unmistakable Laphroaig. Sweetish and ashy peat so beautifully combined with malt, lemon, and a waft of seaweed. Grilled pineapple. Some Petro-chemical-medicinal loveliness. A bit chalky and a hint of vanilla. Citrus rinds and the sense of a beach along the ocean or brackish water after rain.

Palate

Briny and ashy. Peat and lemon. White pepper and that beautiful Petro-chemical-medicinal loveliness is there from the nose. Slight hint of heavily roasted coffee grinds. Barley and dark honey. A not-insignificant finish brings a retro-nasal review of those medicinal and lemon oil wafts along with that amazing, ashy, and briny goodness.

The Dregs

This, to me, is as good a peated official release as you’ll find. Solid. Flavorful. Do I wish it had more heft and oiliness? Sure. But this is not thin, by any stretch of the imagination.

One other observation. As the Laphroaig that says it is “the perfect marriage of peat and oak” squarely on the front label, I must admit I didn’t get a meaningful sense of oak. Maybe it is because I have been sampling more bourbons of recent vintage, or maybe the oak isn’t as pronounced as one might think. I would think the former.

Frankly, it’s been a while since I’ve had a Laphroaig and having this dram has reminded me how much I’ve missed the Southern Islay malt being in my whisky cabinet. After renewing my acquaintances with it, I’d like to do a comparison between this and their 10 year old. I’ll do that on another day, and remain curious to see what differences I can discern.

This is a cracking whisky. As for the $75.00 USD price tag, it doesn’t offend me for this quality of pour. How do I know the current price if Connell brought down the bottle? This happens to be one of the few good bottles I see at the local ABC store, and I went today and bought my own. This will be a bottle I replace.

For now, Mrs. Shaw, Connell, and I will continue with sharing whisky, whisky trivia and good stories. All the while we will keep our fingers crossed that, during Connell’s final round interview, the interviewer will have another single malt in plain view.

Score: 7/10 OS

Review 2/2 - Charlie

Laphroaig Quarter Cask, Official bottling, 48% ABV
£30 paid at auction, wide availability around £50

I first encountered Laphroaig more than 30 years ago. A friend of mine -always the contrarian on nights out - would skip the usual progression from beer to Jack and Coke or vodka, and instead order Laphroaig. Back then, I couldn’t get on with it. That medicinal peat was simply overwhelming - more punishment than pleasure.

Decades later, as my whisky journey deepened and I found myself drawn into the world of peat, I naturally gave Laphroaig another go. But it never quite clicked. I respected it, sure, but it wasn’t a favourite.

Then came the Glasgow Whisky Festival in 2023. Among all the brilliant new pours I sampled that day, the Laphroaig Quarter Cask stood out. I liked it instantly. It lingered in memory and, not long after, I picked up a bottle at auction for just £30 - a steal, really. It’s not a regular reach if I’m honest, but it is a good whisky.

Score: 7/10

**Very good indeed.**
***TL;DR***
*A definite step up over the standard 10 year old*

Nose

It has that classic, trademark Laphroaig smoke and iodine. The intensity of the peat smoke softens quickly and the nose develops more into a saline nature with vanilla and citrus fruit. There’s a firm oak presence beneath it all, and an unexpected sweetness that feels almost out of place, yet somehow works.

Palate

That medical, saline smoke covers the palate immediately, but it isn’t overpowering. The whisky itself is thick and weighty, almost viscous, and you can see it in the way it clings to the glass - borderline chewy in texture. Underlying the smoke, there’s a layered oak sweetness, balanced by a flicker of peppery heat. Subtle notes of cinnamon and clove emerge, adding warmth and spice, while a thread of dark chocolate runs through it, giving a touch of bitterness.

There is a long, warming finish which you expect to dry the mouth but really doesn’t. There are hints of salty caramel and of course the smoke lingers.

The Dregs

It’s unapologetically bold, isn’t it? Laphroaig Quarter Cask doesn’t shy away from its identity - in fact, it proudly declares itself “the most richly flavoured of all Scotch Whiskies.” And you know what? That might not be far off. It certainly sits at the far edge of the flavour spectrum, where the peat is thick, the medicinal notes are uncompromising, and the overall profile is too intense for many. It’s not trying to be universally liked.

One thing that always catches me off guard is the colour. There’s a richness to it that you’d never expect, hidden behind that classic green bottle which masks everything until the pour. You assume it’ll be pale, maybe straw-like, but instead it arrives with a deeper amber glow. It’s rumoured to be coloured. Not that colour sways me much but it’s a small surprise, if it were indeed natural it would add to the experience.

For me, this easily edges out the standard Laphroaig 10 year old. It’s fuller, more expressive, and somehow more complex and complete. If you factor in the price - especially when you can snag it for around £30 - it’s not just a good whisky, it’s a smart one.

Score: 7/10 CC

Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. OS

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