Laphroaig 15 Year Old has returned for the first time in 11 years, and this time it’s here to stay.
The Islay distillery is reintroducing the age statement to its core range, bringing back a liquid that was first launched in 1985 to offer a softer style compared to its heavily medicinal 10 Year Old.
The 15 Year Old was originally discontinued and replaced with the 18 Year Old in 2009, and last appeared as a limited edition in 2015 to celebrate Laphroaig’s 200th anniversary. Those bottles, and the original 15 Year Old, are highly sought-after by Laphroaig fans.
Master blender Dr Calum Fraser tells The World of Fine Spirits that the 15 Year Old fills a meaningful gap in its core line-up. He says: “The 10 Year Old leads with intense, raw peat character whereas the 18 Year Old moves into more refined territory: fresh tobacco, smoked ham, stewed fruits, honey.
“The 15 Year Old bridges those two expressions; you get the ruggedness of the 10 with markedly more complexity, but without the full refinement of the 18. By 15 years, the peat smoke has had time to fully integrate with the spirit rather than sitting on top of it, and you start to see genuine complexity develop; citrus, spice, a textured mouthfeel while still retaining the bold, coastal character the distillery is known for. That combination isn’t easy to find.”
It sounds like the 15 Year Old should never have left in the first place, and explains why some long-term Laphroaig drinkers chase old bottles at auction ahead of the standard 18 Year Old. This release may live and die on whether it recreates that magic.
Dr Fraser is confident, saying: “The fundamentals are the same – American oak bourbon casks, non-chill filtered, bottled at 46% ABV, so the structure and texture will be familiar. The oily, textured mouthfeel is still very much there, which is a direct result of the non-chill filtration. For anyone who knew the original, the DNA is recognizable.”
Refocusing to cater for fans of the original makes complete sense for Laphroaig. Not only does it plug an eight-year age gap between the two flagship bottles, but it may reabsorb the secondhand market that’s materialized around the old bottles.
As a non-chill-filtered liquid, bottled at 46% ABV and priced at £85/$89, the 15 Year Old is significantly cheaper than the 18 Year Old – half the price, in fact, indicating an intentional repricing strategy.
The liquid will launch on laphroaig.com from June 29th and in The Whisky Shop exclusively from July 1st, with a wider release slated for September.
