For fans of Laphroaig, peat has always been a part of the game. The historic distillery—one of nine active on the Scottish island of Islay—is known for balancing peated malt with a wide array of other flavors. Indeed, that union is so integral to Laphroaig’s whisky that the distillery still malts around one-fourth of its peated barley on-site, which helps imbue the grain with unique local character. (While Laphroaig isn’t totally unique in this regard, most modern distilleries source malted grain from more efficient external partners.)
But production quirks do happen, even for the experienced maltsters at Laphroaig. Years ago, a buildup of peat dust accidentally caught flame in Laphroaig’s kilns, resulting in higher temperatures and a longer-than-usual burn. (According to the brand, unusual black smoke alerted the team that something was amiss.) The resulting grain held on to elevated levels of ashy, charcoal-like flavors. Instead of discarding the over-kilned barley, Laphroaig decided to move forward with production, keeping an eye on how it might impact flavor in mature whisky.
We got an early taste of the result, and today, it’s hitting shelves as Laphroaig Elements 3.0. That marks the third latest installment in the distillery’s experimental line, which dates back to 2023. Elements 1.0 showcased changes in wort, mash size, and malt makeup. Elements 2.0 followed in 2024 and highlighted the impact of extended fermentation, leading to amped-up fruit flavors.
This year’s Elements 3.0 is all about that extra-roasted malt.
“All the malt that was used to distill Elements 3.0 came from the extra roasted batch malted onsite at Laphroaig,” says Simon Brooking, Laphroaig’s Senior Ambassador, speaking exclusively to Forbes. “In general, 20 -25 % of the malt used at Laphroaig comes from our onsite malting facility.”
The new whisky is bottled at a cask strength 55.3% ABV, without the use of chill filtration. So how does it taste?
Laphroaig fans, don’t stress too much about getting a flavor curveball: this is immediately characteristic of the Islay distillery, though with a few idiosyncrasies. The nose opens with a combination of chocolate and smokier, the latter a bit deeper, rubber-like, iodine-rich, and more chemical than a typical Laphroaig. It’s potent at 110.6 proof, which combines with the borderline-intense peat to warrant small sniffs. Behind that initial cocoa and smoke comes a stewed fruit medley, like apple preserves with orange and lemon rind. Heavily burnt caramel and flaming Christmas pudding wrap things up on a deep inhale.
A first sip isn’t as big on charred barley as one might predict (or even fear!). Instead, there’s a sweet/tart mashup of fruit (specifically dark berries), salted caramel, and chocolate ganache. It’s at once dessert-like and peaty, as if one had exposed various chocolate cakes and berry tarts to Laphroaig’s own kiln. Vanilla shortcake is up next, soaked in citrus-infused sugar syrup. The whisky boasts some lovely viscosity that helps keep sweeter notes on the tongue long enough to balance out (and even lightly dominate) the heavily smoked components.
The finish features overripe berries, along with—no surprise—a lot of peat influence, which never decouples itself from lingering syrupy sweetness. It’s a fascinating look into what happens when kilning goes a bit overboard, and the result is a dram I’d certainly describe as a happy accident.
Laphroaig Elements 3.0 is available now at a suggested retail price of $165 for a 750-ml. bottle.