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.
First time trying an islay single malt. Very good. Has the strong smokiness like fire burning on wood. Also has slight fruitiness and minty aromas in the smoke. Smoky flavors take time to adjust when used to caramel/toffee/vanilla/chocolate/fruit/butterscotch in speysides, highlands, lowlands, and japanese whiskies. Would have something smoky here and there but prefer the caramel/toffee/vanilla/chocolate/fruit/butterscotch tones.
Peaty smoke that is perfect for rainy weather.
The views that say acetone or meths... I concur, it was bought as a present for me and a 50 a bottle I am sure glad I didn't spend it on this. I'm more a fan of pleasant single malts and bourbons. Penderyn madeira , glenfiddich, glenmorangie and the southern bourbons. I find it more like meths+dettol to taste. My view only. Each to their own
I mean, just so complex and lovely. It may be a love it or hate it product, I am not sure, but I can hardly imagine not having at least one bottle on the shelf.
I bought this in duty free, my bottle of ardbeg 10 was empty and i wanted another,but alas it was not to be. I was recommended this by the friendly salesman so I gave it a go, now to be honest the first few times I tried It, I really wasn't a fan, i could taste nothing but smoke and it was placed at the back of the cupboard and marked up as a poor impulse buy, I cursed the salesman and went about my life. 12 months later, this very night in fact, I find myself writing this review, my 4th dram in hand and a feeling of guilt that I was so quick to judge, the smokeyness is still there but there's so much more behind it, a warmness that takes me back to my beloved homeland, a sweetness that could only be born in Scotland. It may not be matured in Islay as a couple of people have mentioned but, it is Scotland in a glass,strong, powerful, earthy, with a sweetness you won't find anywhere else. Slàinte
