Laphroaig Scotch Single Malt 28 Year

Appearance: Antique brass

Nose: Unsurprisingly, you can smell this one a mile away. Surprisingly, it’s herbs, not peat, that hits first. Thyme, mint, oregano, and cumin seed jockey for attention at the starting line, followed up by smoky notes of camphor, pine-smoked tea, herbal salve, and bandages. Burnt rib ends and barbecue bark make an appearance as well, plus a faint note of juicy grilled peach.

Palate: Rather sweet at first, with fruity, aldehydic green apple and almost white-grape like bits evolving into a plume of resinous, aromatic smoke. There’s wet sweater, lanolin, fino sherry, and almonds. It’s quite warming—you really feel it in your chest—yet somehow also mild and rounded, with a long, aromatic Vicks Vapo-Rub finish