Laphroaig

working in whisky, especially as an independent bottler, a bottling side of the company as well as a distillery, is I have access to lots of different styles of whisky and flavours.

If it's someone who's never had a whisky across their lips or they tell you that same story, I was 17 years old and I raided my dad's cupboard and I had a Laphroaig and tasted of cough medicine and fire, then yeah, don't maybe show them an Islay, you know? Maybe approach it from a gentle side of things.

Maybe a bourbon matured, low alcohol Speysides.

Just dip your toe in the water and then you can go up from there.

We recently have been talking quite a lot about the Johnstons.

So we had Donald Johnston at Laphroaig.

And then we also had Dougal Johnson, his son, who took on the distillery.

And Donald Johnson died quite young.

Dougal Johnson inherited the Laphroaig distillery at 11 years old, but didn't really work at the distillery until about 10 years later when he was 21.

But Donald Johnson died at the distillery.

And by all accounts, it sounds like he may have fallen into a mash tun.

Is demand for the water of life running dry? I've just returned from a trip to Islay in Scotland, which has more whisky distilleries per square mile than anywhere else in the UK and several of its famous single malts are struggling.

Suntory, which owns Beaumont and Laphroaig, announced in February that it was merging the staff of the two brands, with Beaumont ceasing production until the end of the year and Laphroaig putting its planned expansion on hold.

Meanwhile, Sainsbury's recently dropped the price of a bottle of eight-year-old Lagavulin to £40, down from its recommended retail price of £52.50. Are we in the foothills of a global whisky recession? Alice, from the Lagavulin Visitors' Centre, who took Caroline and me on a tour on Sunday morning, seemed fairly bullish.

She pointed out that the Diageo-owned distillery is still producing about 2.5 million litres of pure alcohol each year, enough for 8 million bottles, although not that many will reach the shelves.

Production had momentarily halted during our visit due to a boiler fault, but it's usually a 24-7 operation, with the sturdy machinery – some of it older than her, she told us – still belching out the raw ingredients.

She remained good-humoured, even after I told her my favourite local tipple was Laphroaig, a deadly rival.

Mouthwash, she said, laughing.

Alice's job may be secure for now, but others on the island might soon be looking for work.

First of all, I know you're a big Isla malt fan.

Of course, but let's talk a little bit about, you want to start talking about, do you want to start talking about Islay or do you want to start talking specifically about Laphroaig, which is just about one of the most historic.

So Islay and the Herodian Isles towards the west there of Scotland is nicknamed Whiskey Island.

As you well know, Bona Havan is from there.

That is not the case with Isla Malts.

They are associated with strong peat tonalities, and that's not always the case.

There's some very fine unpeated whiskeys, but not from Laphroaig.

Laphroaig is leaning into that... traditional, stereotypical Islay flavor profile, and they are unapologetic about it.

He's looking at me up and down and judging me.

He said, I'll have a Laphroaig, double Laphroaig on us.

And I'm like,

what on earth is that? What's he just asked me for? Yeah.

And I'm looking at the menus and Laphroaig doesn't spell Laphroaig.

Exactly.

And I had to go back to him and say, Laphroaig! It was a bad start.

But I love that.

Uh, Spoonies is a reference to spooning whiskeys in scotch.

So sometimes, uh, a distillery will sell Laphroaig, but, you know-

Oh.

With a little-

...

they don't want you to...

Yeah, they don't want you to label it Laphroaig, so they'll put a little bit of-

So-