Ah, finally I get to Lagavulin. Considered by many to be THE Islay Scotch, it's the favorite single malt of many a refined drinker. I first had this delicious beauty at a birthday party in a small apartment on Capital Hill, drinking with a pilot who generously shared his bottle. I was instantly enamored. It's dangerously easy to drink and bottles tend to empty themselves all too quickly.
The distillery at Lagavulin dates back to 1816, which is pretty damn impressive. The website hints that illicit off-the-books whisky production was probably occurring as early as 1742. I am very curious if those bottles tasted anything like what is being produced today. That would be a good use for a time machine.
If Ardbeg and Laphroaig - the other two in the Great Traditional Islay Triumvirate - are bold and even impetuous in their levels of peat and smoke, Lagavulin takes a different path. There is something exceptionally refined and almost regal about the taste of the 16 Year. It's absolutely perfectly integrated - the fact that they can reach this level of consistency year to year is just mind-boggling. The 16 Year is bottled at 43% and is aged in ex-bourbon oak barrels.
Lagavulin is also one of those distillers like Oban or Talisker that only produces about three core expressions - the 16 Year, the 12 Year (which is strangely more expensive and harder to find), and the Distiller's Edition. I've had the 16 Year a number of times, but never the other two although I look forward to them greatly. Yet you can apparently acquire independent bottlings of Lagavulin that are ancient indeed. Whiskybase.com has listings for 25-, 30-, and even 37-year old bottles (!). You'll be dancing with the devil in the pale moonlight to get ahold of those, I'm sure.
Nose: Sweet - in fact surprisingly so. The sweetness seems to come in the guise of a very deep lemon or citrus with all bitterness removed - let's go with chilled lemon meringue cookies or lemon fondant frosting. Iodine and smoke are rich and elegant and plentiful. Maritime notes - salt, seaweed. But the sweetness pervades.
Mouthfeel: Very very thick, rich glow.
Palate: Exceptionally smooth. Maybe rounded is maybe the best word here - no sharp corners on any flavor, everything is seamless. A good balance between campfire pinewood smoke and tropical fruit. Pineapple? Poached pear? More citrus comes through as well. Cereal notes interspersed, like intermissions between acts.
Finish: Long and smoky, with a sweetness that is slow to fade.
Verdict: Very highly recommended. This is probably the Islay whisky that even smoke-haters would tolerate, due to the regal smoothness and marvellous, enigmatic sweetness. Those with no peat tolerance at all will dislike it, all others will delight. I was lucky to find a bottle recently on sale for $55 - and it was almost entirely sold out at that price. Normally this is around $75-90, and STILL hard to find.
Link to the website for Lagavulin: http://www.malts.com/index.php/en_us/Our-Whiskies/Lagavulin
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