Laphroaig distillery ( ) is a single malt Scotch whisky distillery on

Islay Islay ( ; , ) is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Known as "The Queen of the Hebrides", it lies in Argyll and Bute just south west of Jura, Scotland, Jura and around north of the Northern Irish coast. The island's cap ...

, Scotland. It is situated on the south coast of the island, near

Port Ellen Port Ellen () is a small town on the island of Islay, in Argyll, Scotland. The town is named after the wife of its founder, Walter Frederick Campbell. Its previous name, ''Leòdamas'', is derived from Old Norse meaning "Leòd's Harbour". Port E ...

, at the head of a small bay known as Loch Laphroaig. The Lagavulin and Ardbeg distilleries are close by. The distillery and brand are owned and operated by

Suntory Global Spirits Suntory Global Spirits Inc., formerly known as Beam Suntory, Inc., is an American beverage company that is a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings, a Japanese multinational beverage conglomerate. The company produces alcoholic beverages. It is the th ...

, a subsidiary of

Suntory Holdings (commonly referred to as simply Suntory) is a Japanese multinational brewing and distilling company group. Established in 1899, it is one of the oldest companies in the distribution of alcoholic beverages in Japan, and makes Japanese whisky. ...

Osaka, Japan is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third-most populous city in Japan, following the special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a populatio ...

History

The Laphroaig distillery was established in 1815 by Donald and Alexander Johnston. The Johnstons who founded Laphroaig were from the Clan Donald and are likely to be from the MacIain of Ardnamurchan branch of the clan. The family anglicised their name to Johnston. The last member of the Johnston family to run the distillery was Ian Hunter, a nephew of Sandy Johnston, who died childless in 1954 and left the distillery to one of his managers, Bessie Williamson. The distillery was sold to Long John International, a Scottish distiller in the 1960s. In 1973, Long John International and the distillery were acquired by

Whitbread Whitbread is a British multinational hotel and restaurant company headquartered in Houghton Regis, England. The business was founded as a brewery in 1742 by Samuel Whitbread in partnership with Godfrey and Thomas Shewell, with premises in L ...

. In 1989, the distillery was sold by Whitbread to become part of

Allied Domecq Allied Domecq PLC was a multinational company, headquartered in Bristol, United Kingdom, that operated spirits, wine, and quick service restaurant businesses. It was once a FTSE 100 Index constituent and the world's second-largest spirits gro ...

. The brand was in turn acquired by Fortune Brands in 2005, as one of the brands divested by

Pernod Ricard Pernod Ricard () is a French company best known for its anise-flavoured pastis apéritifs Pernod Anise and Ricard Pastis (often referred to simply as ''Pernod'' or '' Ricard''). The world's second-largest wine and spirits seller, it also produ ...

in order to obtain regulatory approval for its takeover of Allied Domecq. Laphroaig has been the only

whisky Whisky or whiskey is a type of liquor made from Fermentation in food processing, fermented grain mashing, mash. Various grains (which may be Malting, malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, Maize, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky ...

to carry the Royal Warrant of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, which was awarded in person during a visit to the distillery in 1994. The distillery identifies Charles by his title of

Duke of Rothesay Duke of Rothesay ( ; ; ) is the main dynastic title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the Scottish and, later, British thrones. The dukedom was created in 1398 by Robert III of Scotland for his eldest son. Duke of Rothesay i ...

, as he is recognised in Scotland. The 15-year-old is reportedly then Prince and now King Charles' favourite whisky. Fortune Brands split up its business product lines in 2011, forming its spirits business into

Beam Inc Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Radio beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially lo ...

. Beam was then purchased by

in April 2014.

Taste

Expensive Laphroaig whiskies on Viking Amorella

Laphroaig calls itself "the most richly flavoured of all Scotch whiskies", and is most frequently aged to 10 years, although the 15-year-old variety is common (the 27-, 30- and 40-year-olds are rare and expensive; the 18-year-old was discontinued in late 2015).Noah Rothbaum
"How to Survive a Single-Malt Drought"
''

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'', January 28, 2016. The whisky has a peaty/smoky flavour. Approximately 10% of their barley is malted on site using hand-cut

peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...

from locations on Islay. The ''Laphroaig Quarter Cask'' was introduced in 2004. This expression is aged in ex-bourbon barrels, is finished in smaller casks, and is not chill filtered. Due to the smaller barrels used, the oak surface contact is 30% greater than with standard barrels. The company describes the effect of this as "creating a soft and velvety edge". The Quarter Cask is bottled at 48% ABV (96 proof).Michael Jackson's Malt Whisky Companion, Edition 6, page 307. The 10-year-old standard-bearer is bottled at 40% or 43% ABV, depending on the local market. There are also expressions now selling in Travel Retail: Laphroaig QA cask (matured in ex-bourbon barrels and virgin American oak casks), Laphroaig PX cask (matured in three types of wood – from American oak to Quarter Cask to Pedro Ximénez ex-sherry), Laphroaig An Cuan Mor – Big Ocean (matured in first-fill bourbon barrels and then in European oak).

Friends of Laphroaig

In 1994, the Friends of Laphroaig Club was established, members of which are granted a lifetime lease of up to per person of Laphroaig land on the island of Islay. The annual royalty from owning a plot is a

dram Dram, DRAM, or drams may refer to: Technology and engineering * Dram (unit), a unit of mass and volume, and an informal name for a small amount of liquor, especially whisky or whiskey * Dynamic random-access memory, a type of electronic semicondu ...

of Laphroaig which can be obtained upon visiting the distillery. Friends of Laphroaig was revamped in 2020, from lifetime status to an annualized tier-based system starting in 2021, whereby members gained annual access to club benefits commensurate with points earned under the programme's new rules.

Advertising

In early 2016, Scottish poet Elvis McGonagall began appearing in online ads, reciting his own poetry as he humorously discussed the correct pronunciation of Laphroaig whisky. In October of 2016, comedian

Andy Daly Andrew Daly (born April 15, 1971) is an American actor and comedian. He starred as Forrest MacNeil on the Comedy Central series ''Review'', and had a supporting role in the HBO comedy series '' Eastbound & Down'' as Terrence Cutler. He has also ...

performed a 3.5 hour filibuster by reading customer reviews of Laphroaig Single Malt scotch whisky.

Managers

*James A. McLennan 1919 (formerly manager of the Bowmore distillery) *Edward Shaw 1928-32 (afterwards manager of the Glenburgie distillery) *John MacDougall 1970-74 (afterwards manager of Tormore distillery) *Dennis Nicol 1974-80 *Murdo Reed 1980-87 (afterwards manager of Tormore distillery) *Colin Ross 1987-89 (formerly manager of the Ben Nevis distillery) *Iain Henderson 1989-2002 *Robin Sheilds 2003-2005 *John Campbell 2006-2021 *Barry MacAffer 2021-2024 *George Campbell 2024- https://www.whiskymag.com/articles/former-tour-guide-returns-to-laphroaig-as-distillery-manager/

References

Notes

Bibliography

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External links

Laphroaig official website
{{coord, 55, 37, 48, N, 06, 09, 08, W, type:landmark, display=title Suntory Suntory brands Distilleries in Scotland Whisky distilleries in Islay Scottish malt whisky 1825 establishments in Scotland Companies based in Argyll and Bute British royal warrant holders