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.
Best single malt, not easily found in Mexico, but every time I offer a glass to a friend a new fan is created
The best whisky I have ever tasted and I've tasted loads, all this talk of it not being what it was, well all I can ask is, did it grant eternal life before? because the taste is blissful.
Absolute stunner - im told not like it used to be but i have no benchmark for that - as it is now im happy to have this even though i feel its over priced really
I remember my first tasting of Lagavulin 16 like it was yesterday. Absolutely blew my mind. Earthy, rich, organic. But that's in the past. This whisky has changed beyond recognition unfortunately. Recent bottlings are a shadow of it's former self. Harsh, bitter and even the smoke and peatiness has subsided. Stick to Ardbeg folks for authentic peated scotch. The King has been dethroned.
My favorite Islay single malt, with intense smoky peat, an appealing salty character overlaying concentrated citrus and spicy fresh-baked snacking cake aromas. A unique and special experience and a benchmark single malt in its style.
