Well, then have a peek at the December 10, 2011 New York Times‘ tasting story: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/07/dining/reviews/whisky-from-islay-scotland-spirits-of-the-times.html One odd result: Laphroaig 18 year was rated the same as Bowmore 12 Year.
I don’t listen to rievews of single malt scotch anymore; or when I do, they have little impact on my opinion of the scotches. Eventually it comes down to personal taste. I initially read most of the main scotch books (e.g. Michael Jackson’s book) to learn about scotch and make some early selections, but once I had my taste of most of the major scotches from all the various regions, I settled on the Islay scotches. I love the peat. None of the other regions produce a scotch that tastes as peaty and earthy as the Islay scotches. If I have a bottle of Laphroaig or Lagavulin in the house, I’m happy. Laphroaig 15 cask strength is the best scotch I’ve ever had. #2 is regular Lagavulin, and #3 is regular Laphroaig. I’d be interested in trying cask strength of any region.