Lagavulin 16
Happy Chinese New Year!
As this is the year of the Horse
What better way for Whiskyrific to welcome it with Lagavulin 16.
Loch water rushing over rocksy falls, barley malted over moorland peat, slow distillation and long maturation in oak casks; all help us to shape Lagavulin’s robust and smoke character. “Time”, says the islanders, TALES OUT THE FIRE but LEAVES IN THE WARMTH.
“THE STRANGE HORSE OF SUINABHAL” – By William Black – “I hef been in Isla more as three times or two times myself, and I hef been close to the ‘Lagavulin Distillery, and I know that it is the clear watter of the spring that will make the ‘Lagavulin’ Whisky just as fine as new milk.”
*This is batch L3XXX, meaning bottled in 2013.
Nose: Billowing peat smoke – dry smoke but oily and rich, if that makes sense. Liquid firewood, to use a friend’s description. Superbly rich and balanced nose, the most gentlemanly of the 3 powerhouses’ entry malts, molten tar and salty sand, seagulls on high. It’s Islay with it’s power bridled. Hot coals, and a faint medicinal seaweedy note that is not Laphroaig strong. Also a particular something in it just makes me think of plums dried in black pepper.
Palette: Warm smoldering peat, starts sweetish but turns peppery and drying soon. Salty, savoury like smoked meat washed down with really thick pu erh, seaweed-iodine kick brings up the rear. Complex but likewise well balanced.
Finish: Long, dry smoke and rich.
I love this stuff. In the power department it does not pale next to it’s two illustrious neighbours, it’s just more elegant in composition. All the right things in all the right places, and just enough, and not more, so everything comes together splendidly.
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