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.
I have tried couple other islay whisky and I find this one to be very balance and more subtile than the others (in the same price range). You have the peat, the frutiness and also a long finished. Reminds me of the Laphroaig 10yo kind of taste... Not only peat but some sweetness and character. I have also tried the 2000 Distiller Edition, which for me is the best whisky so fare I have ever had. It taste quiet the same, the DE has more complexity and is more on the honey and vanilla where de 16yo is more on fresh fruits like lemon and orange. In the end : very good but not perfect.
An absolute delight !
This is my favorite Scotch at the moment. My sister turned me on to the Islay versions a few years ago, and after many sampling’s, this is the one I continue to return to. Strong, but not over powering. Smooth, but not easy drinking. Simply perfect with a cut of steak and a buttered baked potato.
Its a great tasting whisky. Goes down smoothly over the course of an evening especially with good friends
Love it, very unique taste
