[JDaniel]

Lagavulin 16 Year Old Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky

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Read Review of Lagavulin 16 Year Old Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Author's Review About the Author

Was that my smoke detector going off?
Apr 19 '01 (Updated Apr 19 '01)

Author's Product Rating



Pros
Smooth, smoky, peaty delight. Heavenly.

Cons
Bah!

The Bottom Line
One of the best Scotch whiskies around. Try it, you'll be surprised!



Full Review


"Smoke in a bottle". That's how a friend of mine, nowadays a whisky-nerd just like me, described the 16 y.o. Lagavulin to me after his first taste of the stuff. "I swear that you could smell the smoke in my apartment the whole day once I had opened the bottle!", he went on to describe his virgin Islay experience.

And no, my smoke detector didn't actually go off when, intrigued by my friends surprise, I bought and opened a bottle for myself... The smoke did however stay in my unaccustomed nose for quite a while after my first tasting.

Lagavulin is distilled on the island of Islay, which is a very small but a very distinctive whisky region, in fame and prestige easily rivalling larger regions. An Islay whisky will usually lure you in with salty smokiness, and enchant you completely with tastes that fail to sound as inviting as they are when experienced "live"; peat, salt, medicinal notes - the rough rugged tastes of a rough rugged island.

Notably Lagavulin is a "parent whisky" to Laphroaig, the latter having been born in a tumultuous splintering off from the Lagavulin distillery - the battles and disagreements that formed the birth pains did pay off though, as the countless of Laphroaig lovers around the world will attest. With the new name on the island adding it's flavour to the Islay experience, Lagavulin continued making it's own unique brand the old way, which, quite rightly has earned it a position as one of the six Classic Malts.

Each Classic Malt represents a whisky from a different area in Scotland, Lagavulin being from Islay, Talisker from Isle of Skye, Oban from Western Highlands, Dalwhinnie from Central Highlands, Glenkinchie from Lowlands and Gragganmore from Speyside. They each have something special to "say" for single malt Scotch.

(A side-note: A huge minus for Epinions - they don't have Talisker listed, despite it being one of the Classic Malts, one of the best known, and best loved single malts in the world! It's almost like having a category for luxury watches and forgetting about Rolex. Embarrassing.)


Tasting recommendations

As always, those among you, dear readers, who thought about ice while reading any of the above should avoid going outside for a while. A bunch of angry whisky deities are just itching to zap you with a lightning bolt. Quality Scotch should always be drank warm.

And in the case of Lagavulin, for an unforgettable tasting experience, I would suggest that you warm it up a bit more than usual. If you want to do it really right, and I do recommend this, use a brandy glass, and warm it over a candle flame. To avoid staining the glass, while holding it above the flame slightly tilted, keep rotating it. Kind of like barbecue over an open fire… Warm it until the liquid inside is a bit warmer than body temperature, enjoying the mouth watering aroma while you are doing this.

If you do warm it like this, you can skip adding the drop of water (which is usually used to "open up" the flavours), and drink it straight. In fact, this is what I did for this tasting.



Tasting Notes


Aroma:

Very smoky and peaty. There's a hint of marine saltiness too, though the dominating peat smoke is likely to have you looking for it for a while…


Flavour:

Deep, warming, smooth smokiness with soft peat dominating - the peatiest whisky around. There's faint saltiness, and a wonderful hint of sweetness in the finish. The aftertaste lingers for what seems like an eternity, which is a very good thing in the case of such delight as Lagavulin.


Conclusion

One of the best single malts around, a must for anyone who... er... well, for everyone! Lagavulin is more accessible and less complex than it's "offspring" Laphroaig, which some people consider too harsh. Laphroaig is actually smokier of the two, though with it's peatiness Lagavulin may fool your nose to conclude otherwise.

A delight definitely worth it's price!


Recommended
Yes

Spirit Rating: A must - sensational