SMWS 29.247 “All Hands On Deck” Review

SMWS 29.247 “All Hands On Deck” was an exclusive release for the Feis Ile festival on Islay in Scotland and for a good reason. 19-year-old Laphroaig isn’t exactly easy to come by these days. And if you do it’s usually set at a crazy price, so massive thanks to Jenna for bringing it to the SCWC meeting where we got to drink it.

Per the SMWS Codes list distillery, 29 is Laphroaig. So named because it’s the 29th Scottish distillery the Scotch Malt Whisky Society bottled from. We’re all familiar with Laphroaig these days so there’s not much more to cover up here before jumping into the Scotch review… now let’s get on with it.

SMWS 29.247 “All Hands On Deck” Review: Details and Tasting Notes

In SMWS’ Words:

The panel found sublime concentration on the nose. Fresh citrus fruits, orange liqueur and creme de menthe were all packed together with dried herbs, black olive tapenade, umami paste, oyster sauce and various farmyard complexities. Reduction brings earthier and more vegetal notes of roast turnip, rosemary and then menthol, root beer, boiler shed and iodine. We found the palate smouldering with syrupy peat, cough syrup, smoked seaweed, ointment and assorted medical tinctures. Fresh lime juice on smoked mussels and glimmers of tar liqueur. Water gave us burnt porridge, salted hazelnuts, shellfish and lemon balm. A rollercoaster ride!

Details for the All Hands On Deck (price, mash bill, cask type, ABV, etc.)

Details (price, mash bill, cask type, ABV, etc.)

Region: Islay,

Distiller: Laphroaig
Mash Bill: 100% Malted Barley
Cask: Refill Ex-Bourbon Hogshead
Age: 19 Years
ABV: 59.4%

Cask Strength | Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color

Price: $130

Tasting Notes

EYE
Light gold

NOSE
Smoke, “coastal” notes, honey graham, lemon-lime citrus, honey, apples and bits of leather and biscuits.

PALATE
Smoke, charred meat, grilled fruit, dark honey, Smarties and roasted malt with some bits of spice and maritime/coastal notes.

FINISH
Long -> Smoke, char, fruit and malty sweetness.

BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Great balance, full round body and an oily feel.

A coastal wonderland of flavors and aromas. Love it.

SMWS 29.247 “All Hands On Deck” Review: Overall and Score

Wow, that’s great. Full, complex and deep with a bold delivery, the SMWS 29.247 “All Hands On Deck” is just simply… great. The aroma is a coastal bonfire accented with some soft fruity and honey sweetness. The Palate starts in with grilled fruity drizzled in honey and gets wrapped in smoke. It’s one of those whiskies I don’t want to stop experiencing.

Adding water brings out more plasticy notes on the aroma and enhances the malty sweetness. On the palate it drops the smoke a touch to even things out further and let the other notes shine a bit more. All-in-all I’m loving this one.

SCORE: 90/100 (A-)