Ledaig 10 Year Old & Ledaig 18 Year Old
Official Bottlings| 46.3% ABV
Score: 7/10
Very good indeed.
TL;DR
Don’t ‘mull’ over these malts, they’re belters
Sometimes your whisky stash turns up a gem you’d forgotten all about.
Often, I find myself staring at my whisky bottles without a notion of what kind of flavour mood I’m after. Do I go with super peat and grab an Islay malt, super sweet with a bourbon, or go mellow with a simple Jameson? The same indecisiveness tends to lead me to online whisky shops where again, I’ve no idea what flavour mood I’d like to sample next and I’m inundated with choice right now, searching for that next bargain or hidden gem.
There are still a lot of distilleries, expressions, and variations of world whisky I’ve yet to try. For us all, it’s an ongoing journey where our preferences change dramatically and so quickly on occasion too. My recent review on the Cadenhead’s Tomatin 12 really blew the doors off in realising how magical that independent bottler is. It’ll be the first indy bottler I’ll browse whenever the next purchase comes along. And Dramfacers, I don’t know when that next buy will be either. I’ve mentioned to the other writers that I’m finding it increasingly hard to get whisky home without my wife knowing. Belfast (and indeed Northern Ireland) is bereft of more than one speciality retailer that stocks a wide range of whisky, so I’m having to revert to the online stores. A recent softly muttered, ‘Jesus Christ…’ in response to peering into the open whisky cupboard was met with a quick subject change.
So, on occasion I’d really dig deep into the whisky collection and remind myself what I have in stock. It also helps with what Dramface reviews I can line up for the future. After pouring the last remaining drams of the almost empty bottles into whatever solera bottle I have going (which ultimately results in a longer list of bottles I really have to re-stock), you find a few wee gems you completely forgot you had. Some even unopened! It’s like a new whisky delivery all over again. I sometimes have a sudden sense of FOMO when it comes to the brilliant reviews I read online or see on YouTube, where I want to buy all of these expressions. There’s still so much I have yet to try and I get a bit overwhelmed at what my next whisky purchase will be. Indeed, I don’t really have anywhere else I can store new bottles, but the majority of the time I’m looking at the next purchase rather than enjoying what I have in the glass on any given day, or what’s resting in the cupboard.
“The finish and flavour last so much longer on this. It lasts an eternity! ”
A bit of self-discipline and remembrance to what I have in the collection would ease this FOMO. I’m a big fan of sample sharing with other whisky folk, to try drams and whiskies I’ve either missed out on or wouldn’t have the chance to try at all. I think a few wee sample bottles coming in the post are easier to justify to my better half than a larger box and the judging eyes burning in the back of my skull when the postman arrives. Think of the end of the film Se7en with Brad Pitt shouting, ‘What’s in the box?’ I won’t spoil the movie for anyone, but it’s whisky… it’s always whisky.
With this in mind, I recently unearthed a Ledaig 10yo and a nice sample of the Ledaig 18yo at the back of the cupboard. Great to stumble upon, taste side by side and it makes for a nice topic of review.
Review
Ledaig 10yo, Official bottling, 46.3% ABV
£45 or less, widely available
A little about Ledaig and the history of the brand within Tobermory distillery. Ledaig is the peated alter ego of Tobermory single malt, with the distillery situated on the Hebridean Isle of Mull. It’s owned by Distell Group, who also bring us Bunnahabhain and Deanston. The peated expression produced at Tobermory is heavily peated, with Ledaig becoming a brand of its own in 2007.
Score: 7/10
Very Good Indeed.
TL;DR
The online darling of peat hits the spot
The history of Ledaig dates to 1798 when the distillery was established by John Sinclair. Like many Scottish distilleries, Ledaig’s history is also one of mothballing and reopening, falling into some trouble in 1837 and closing completely for 41 years. When it reopened in 1878, the Ledaig deeds and ownership were passed from pillar to post before closing for a second time in 1930, as there was a drop in the demand for whisky due to prohibition in the United States. While closed, it seemed the Ledaig name would be forgotten, but out of the blue, a Liverpool shipping company purchased the distillery and named it Tobermory.
Inactivity and nothingness continued however right through the vast majority of the 20th century before Ledaig’s previous owners, Burn Stewart Distillers came to the fore and purchased the Mull distillery.
Prior to Burn Stewart’s involvement, the distillery had gone through periods of producing both peated and unpeated whiskies. However, the company made a choice in separating the distillations, producing peated spirit for six months of the year, and unpeated for the remainder.
In 2007 Burn Stewart reignited Tobermory’s original name under the Ledaig brand, which was launched as a heavily peated 10-year-old single malt in contrast to the unpeated Tobermory. Burn Stewart was bought by Distell Group Limited of South Africa in 2013.
Nose
This has a pungent smell. From the pour and letting it sit in the glass for a bit, the soft campfire smoke and briny element slowly fills the room. It has such a fresh nose. Bright lemon peel and a hint of peppermint. There’s baked puff pastry, flaked almonds, and a caramelised sugar paste. The brine from before is mixed in with a saltiness. Wood fire smoke, pine tree and tobacco. Maple cured bacon, sliced grapes and a heap of white chocolate fudge cubes.
The following morning I’d noticed the empty glass beside the sink. I had to nose to see how the liquid presence remained and there was lemon meringue pie, a touch of cold honey glazed ham with burnt twigs. A little doughy in places and sweetness with strawberry jam. A delight to nose first thing in the morning.
Palate
It’s honeyed. Soft pineapple slices and candied ginger. On the tongue is a prickly salinity and smoke. It’s astringent and bright, with quite a short finish. I wouldn’t describe it as having the greatest mouthfeel but it’s a great flavour. White pepper blast. Burnt bacon bits with warm butter on crusty bread. It’s a touch doughy. It reminds me of a beef stock cube sprinkled over button mushrooms in a frying pan. Battered fish comes through as well. It lingers off into some chocolate covered liqueur sweets, a hint of liquorice and a dry mouthfeel at the end.
Score: 7/10
Review
Ledaig 18yo, Official bottling, 46.3% ABV
£90 at Amazon, but is less widely available
Score: 7/10
Very Good Indeed.
TL;DR
Dark, rich and fruity peat smoke
Nose
Such a rich sherry nose. Dark chocolate and raisins. Smells like baked apple with mango and apricots all baked in an oat crumble. More oats with granola and some dried cranberries. Big sherry blast in this glass. Some damp wood and moss. Smoke and brine for sure taking a step back, but it’s a little refined. Mint leaves are in the mix. Stone fruit juiciness. Cola cube hard sweets, like an artificial cola. Back end you can find cinnamon spice and dry roasted peanuts.
The next day nosing of the 18 brought a cold fish platter on a plank of charred wood. It was slightly ashy and reminiscent of pine surface cleaner. An enjoyable sniff.
Palate
Vanilla custard. Parma violet sweets. Floral taste on initial sip. A much dryer peat smoke coats the tongue nicely. There’s some charred oak here. The finish and flavour last so much longer on this dram and comparing it to the 10yo. Velvety dark chocolate and a hint of cherry. Some delicious stroopwafel. Smoked ham and fried Brussels sprouts with hazelnuts. A wee hit of redcurrant bitterness develops after a while.
Score: 7/10
The Dregs
Both these whiskies scored a 7 in my eyes, but I’ve a stronger preference for the 18 due to the dark and richer character. The 18 had a quieter smoke/peat presence with a hint of coast when compared to the 10 which is vibrant, loud and full of flavour. I think on this occasion I was in the mood for subtle smoke and a fruity element. Any other day the 10 would be an absolutely delicious pour for any mood.
The Ledaig 10 and 18 are very solid drams. The 10 has plenty of fans and scored highly in the online whisky realm, becoming Ralfy’s whisky of the year 2022. The 18 is becoming a little bit harder to find these days, I think that’s what swayed me towards a sample of it. I’d have it on the list of ‘next whisky to buy’ for sure. That Amazon private wish list of mine, containing all the bottles I really need in my life gets longer by the day. I’ll make my way through it eventually but I’ll always have my head turned by something else. FOMO won’t go away and I’ll have to try harder to retry my own stocks before adding even more to the online basket.
Thanks to Jackie Muir for help with images
Tried these? Leave your thoughts in the comments below. HF
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