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 peated whisky ever. Always have in my bar.
I really struggle with the negative reviews of this, and many other Islay malts. The intrinsic character of Islay malts lies in its peated barley. This imparts notes of chemical cleaners, iodine and even formaldehyde, and varying levels of smoke. This smoke can be medicinal or bonfire, depending on cask influence and peat ppm levels. With that said, I would recommend working up to a malt of this strong character. Try some Speysiders, or even a Bowmore or Bunnahabhain before taking this on. As for my review, and I should say I've had exactly ONE dram from my bottle, I was hoping for more. It's not bad at all, in fact I think it's got a lot to offer, but I'm finding it a bit uninspired. The coat lines and legs are gorgeous. Nose: roiling peat smoke, beautiful barley sugar, vanilla and soft oak Palate: full and oily, creamy even. coats the tongue. Phenolic smoke leading into a touch of dried dark fruit, vanilla and more of that soft oak Finish: it starts slow, with sweet raisin, fig and dates and then fell a bit flat on me. After a bit of time, the smoke crept back in Closing Thoughts: this is a fine malt, but for me, the lack of complexity left me wanting. I've got to try the Distiller's Edition.
Nose - new asphalt, antiseptic ointment, ripe apples. With water new teabags and candy apple. Flavour: amaretti biscuits fruitcake fruit, sweet almond. With water musk melon marzipan and malted milk. Finish: almandine honey menthol and Ben-gay. Great Halloween malt! Mark from WhiskyWhistle
Have been drinking Lagavulin for over 20 years. Occasionally sample something else like Macallan, Glenfeddich, Glenmorangie, Talisker, Balvenie, etc. Many are good, but none have the bold, smokey satisfying flavor of Lagavulin
The smoked aroma of Lagavulin takes away the taste of liquor in your palate and after three doubles of it you start feeling as it you have millions of dollars. The morning after is a refreshing one because you want to eat your porridge before breakfast, no hangovers at all.
