Lagavulin 16 Year Old is truly a benchmark Islay whisky. It’s loved for its deep, earthy, and maritime character with rich notes of dried fruit, vanilla, and smokiness that comes from Islay peat but is more akin to Lapsang Souchong tea in profile.
Before Lagavulin 16, the distillery did have a 12-year-old single malt. But when Diageo launched the Classic Malt series in the 1980s, Lagavulin 16 Year Old was introduced and became the distillery's flagship bottling. It received a boost in popularity after featuring in Parks and Recreation as a favourite drink of Nick Offerman’s character Ron Swanson. Offerman has since collaborated with the distillery on several occasions.
If you're looking for a food pairing for this beauty, try intensely flavoured salty blue cheeses, which complement the intense, peat-rich, sweet and salty character of this Lagavulin wonderfully.
More like Lapsang Souchong tea than Lapsang Souchong! One of the smokiest noses from Islay. It's big, very, very concentrated, and redolent of iodine, sweet spices, good, mature Sherry and creamy vanilla. Stunning.
Very thick and rich. A massive mouthful of malt and Sherry with good fruity sweetness, but also a wonderful sweetness. Big, powerful peat and oak.
Long, spicy finish, figs, dates, peat smoke, vanilla.
As well as adding gifts to lucky MoM orders, #WhiskySanta is granting wishes on social media every day! Hit the button above and let them know what you'd like. It could be yours!
Lovely tipple. Cheers to the unnamed polish barman in Inverness that introduced me to it!
I like!
I you like the ubiquitous Islay profile o peat, smoke, and sweet nectar this is the bottle you need in your cabinet. Only negative is the price keeps going up.
Just finished the bottle I brought home for Christmas. Lovely, a full, peaty flavour and enough depth to make me pause and think after every mouthful. Going onto my favourites list without a shadow of doubt
My first taste of this alarmingly excellent whisky was when I made a film about it back in the 1970's. Then it had a smoothness and a magical smoky peat aroma that no others possessed. That has become less intense since the days of its ownership by Distillers Co. But for my money (now more than double the price it was then) it is the best malt around.
