Please add any Info you may have :) (Douglas Laing Jura)

Hello Everyone,

First time poster, I have been collecting for a few years now and recently my in-laws visited Scotland on vacation, it was a short notice trip so I didn't have much time to research or ask around on the web to see which few bottles I should get them to bring me home. Long story short I told them:

Macallan's 18 Y/O Sherry Oak ( Didn't have one yet and it's much cheaper there then Canada)

I also gave them a list of 5-6 different ones and said get what you can (the trip was literally planned in a day as they had family to stay with) and I recieved word that I got:

Laphroaig 18 Y/O Islay Single Malt

+

Jura 18 Y/O (old and rare platinum selection island) the "Douglas Laing" bottled, bottle.

Which leads me to my question I am in it for both collecting (with potential but most likely not resale) and for the love of a great single malt and I can really find info anywhere on the Jura I am getting which kind of worries me.

That all being said is there anyone on here that knows anything about it, any info would be appreciated tasting notes value potential collecting ect?

Thanks!!

-Steve

[Dale]

Douglas Laing is an independent bottler. They're over 60 years old as a company and are quite well respected. I think their releases are a bit higher priced than other good independents. That said, I've never had a poor malt from them. They bottle lots of different distilleries, Jura being just one of them, and I've found their bottle speak to the distiller. Meaning, if you taste the distillery's official bottles, Laing's do not depart from the distiller.

I've been to Jura and like the whisky. Their un-peated official releases have aromas of the town, the ocean, their environment... fresh, slightly salty and short dry finish.

I'd suggest buying an Isle of Jura 10 or 16 and drink it next to the Laing bottling.

As for collecting, Laphroaig has a more passionate following. However, I'm all for the drinking.

[Jojo]

Hi there Steve, our contact at Douglas Laing & Co Ltd told us the below in regard to your 18 year old Jura inquiry....

"We know the pack in question – as it was bottled for our valued clients – The Whisky Shop group (who have an estate of 15 or 16 retailers – using that same name throughout the UK)."

"It was a personalised OLD & RARE bottling carried out in March 2011. Steve – your unregistered guest who made the enquiry – can be totally relaxed that it is a very nice whisky in the bottle. The system is that the Glenkeir buyer indicates a requirement for a whisky to retail at £XX per bottle asking us specifically for perhaps a region and an age that is lacking on their shelves."

For this enquiry (for a good Island bottling), we would have sent samples covering Arran, Islay, Jura and Orkney to Glenkeir to make their own selection. This Jura was in the top half in terms of prices but was not the most expensive offered. However, as Jura ages, in our view there are some really nice qualities that can be extracted and in this case there was a sweet spiced fruit quality – ripe apples in wooden fruit boxes – a warming spicy palate carrying black cherries and a finish with orange pith and milk chocolate."

"When we make our Douglas Laing selection for OLD & RARE (Platinum) we wax the bottles green but when the label indicates “selected by and bottled exclusively for ....” then we wax the bottle red. In our opinion when we make our own selection the casks are the best of the best (even if it is from a lesser known distillery) without massive marketing clout behind it. So in terms of drinking it should be “non plus ultra” quality and also a great investment. For that reason we prefer our clients to buy 2 – drinking one and stacking the other away as the pension pot! That is probably less the case with the red wax bottle but a serious operation such as Glenkeir will not buy a whisky of inferior quality. This Jura 18 should still be a good drink and in years to come it may well appreciate – but not as much as the green waxed version."

In closing they said, "I hope that helps and send you and your team/readers all best wishes from Fred." (Fred Laing is the company director).

[Jojo]

Originally Posted by Dale

Douglas Laing is an independent bottler. They're over 60 years old as a company and are quite well respected. I think their releases are a bit higher priced than other good independents. That said, I've never had a poor malt from them. They bottle lots of different distilleries, Jura being just one of them, and I've found their bottle speak to the distiller. Meaning, if you taste the distillery's official bottles, Laing's do not depart from the distiller.

I've been to Jura and like the whisky. Their un-peated official releases have aromas of the town, the ocean, their environment... fresh, slightly salty and short dry finish.

I'd suggest buying an Isle of Jura 10 or 16 and drink it next to the Laing bottling.

As for collecting, Laphroaig has a more passionate following. However, I'm all for the drinking.

Thanks Dale for your input!