Originally a Travel Retail exclusive, Laphroaig QA cask is initially matured in bourbon barrels before being finished in charred American white oak casks. The result is a peaty, warming and spicy whisky. Icing sugar sweetness is backed up by iodine and brine. Some black rubber, warm leather and gravelly minerality hide underneath the sweetness. The palate is sweet and syrupy, with candied ginger, hints of black rubber, light coal smoke, bitter charcoal, sweet apple and salted caramel.