LAPHROAIG SAMAROLI 15 YEAR OLD 1967
Meetings between the Islay distilleries and the legendary Italian bottler, Silvano Samaroli, have produced an absolutely stellar selection of whisky over the years. No star in this constellation of greats shines quite as brightly however, as the Laphroaig 1967 sherry wood. Revered by whisky connoisseurs the world over, this is generally regarded as the best whisky ever committed to bottle.
- The best limited edition
This is rated in joint first place on WhiskyBase.com‘s Top 1000 Whiskies of All Time, sharing the accolade only with Samaroli’s other Islay epic, the Bowmore 1966 Bouquet. Both of these whiskies are rare gems. The 1960’s was a golden era in production for many Islay distilleries, with the south-east coast’s Laphroaig no exception. Today it is one of the few remaining Scottish distilleries with its own in-house malting floor, and this vintage dates to the time when this provided 100% of the malt they used.
While it takes a great distillery to produce a legendary whisky, it equally requires a keen eye, mind and palate to select the right cask, and Samaroli had all of these in spades. Renowned for hand-selecting his own barrels, this one was bottled by the man, widely regarded as a visionary, at the moment his raw talent was crystallising into something spectacular. He released his first bottles in 1979, followed by the acclaimed Flowers series in 1981. Then, just a year later as Samaroli was riding the crest of a wave of excitement and approval, came this, the Laphroaig 1967. The perfect moment. The perfect whisky.
- Perfect taste
Laphroaig 1967 Samaroli’s tasting event at Auld Alliance Bar – Singapore in 2016 drew visitors from all over the world for a rare chance to taste this masterpiece. Serge Valenti of WhiskeyFun.com is one of those lucky travelers. He has given the Laphroaig 1967 98 points, one of his highest scored reviews of all time.
1967 Laphroaig Samaroli 15 is scored at third on the top 1000 whiskeys of all time on Whiskeyfun.com.
- The version represents a milestone in terms of Samaroli’s independent bottling
Samaroli had been a whisky importer since 1968, but it was not until 1979 that he made tentative steps towards independent bottling with his own series of Cadenhead ‘dumpy’ bottles. These were followed in 1981 by the first run of the ‘Flowers’ series, a small batch of single malts all released at 46% abv that showcased uncommon distillery names such as Coleburn and Teaninich. They traced an arc of progress that exhibited Samaroli’s learning, assertion of control and an increasing clarity of thought about his subject. However, it wasn’t until the following year that he would begin to select and offer whiskies which would truly cement his reputation.
Laphroaig 1967 is also important because it represents a milestone in terms of independent bottling. Laphroaig 1967 is the first of the undeniably Samaroli’s masterpieces. If the Bowmore Bouquet 1966 is the purity of an amazing distillation then the Laphroaig Samaroli 15 of 1967 is the perfect maturation of the Sherry barrel where the wood doesn’t overpower Laphroaig’s unique medicinal and fruity style at that moment.
