Today two New Lagavulin


October 2, 2023

Little Duos, today two New Lagavulin

You know the joke, if you had to decide between two cases of blend and one bottle of malt whisky, which Lagavulin would you choose? We'll even have two of them today, two new ones, and we'll have more in the coming weeks, especially the new Special Release. Now another question, suppose you had to decide between a bottle of Lagavulin and a jazz gig, which would you choose?...

Lagavulin 15 yo 'Islay Jazz Festival 2023' (53.9%, OB, Distillery Exclusive, oloroso sherry butt finish, 3,000 bottles)

To my eyes as a seasoned (right, older) aficionado, displaying a finishing is always a tad diminishing for a malt like Lagavulin, but apparently, I am going to have to get used to it. Alright, let's pretend we didn't notice anything. What's more, the Lagavulin Islay Jazz Festival was celebrating it's 25th Anniversary this year!Colour: light gold. Nose: to be honest, I do not notice anything, it's just a pure, tarry, maritime, slightly rubbery Lagavulin (always loved this wee rubber in Lagavulin) that would go on with litres of walnut wine and a mocha spoon of mustard. And a tiny drop of vinegar, de Jerez (maybe). With water: a little gunpowder, more walnuts yet, quite some chocolate and some boisé. But of course there isn't any boisé in there, couldn't be. Mouth (neat): a little sweeter, but still extremely Lagavulin. More coal tar, a feeling of pipe juice, touch of chilli, walnut liqueur rather than wine… It's relatively fat in fact, more a tuba than a trumpet. Right, right… With water: straight to the malt, with some straight peat, straight lemons, straight oysters, 'tarry ropes' and just a tiny bit of rubber. The sherry gave way to the distillate, it seems. Finish: long, both fat and more crystalline, in a way. The tarry walnuts are back in the aftertaste. Comments: I really need to go back to the Islay Jazz Festival one of these years.
SGP:567 - 89 points.

Lagavulin 25 yo 1997/2023 (50.7%, OB, Prima & Ultima, refill American oak cask, 1013 bottles)

Distilled by Manager and temporary Whiskyfun contributor Mike 'The Growl' Nicolson back then in 1997 and vatted from the last casks of that vintage (as I understand it) by Master Blender Dr. Emma Walker. This is the fourth annual series of Diageo's 'Prima & Ultima'. One might say that we're approaching this baby with a certain relish… Colour: straw. Nose: of exquisite purity, and that's the utter beauty of refill wood combined with proper age. I know that saying this is becoming almost politically incorrect these days, but at the time when this was distilled, it was the prevailing opinion, whereas overly active casks were previously 'softened' with grain whisky before receiving the great malts like Lagavulin. That's why there were always thousands of ex-grain casks in the yard, waiting to be filled... Anyway, this one is just luminous. I'd almost say 'epitomical'. Sea spray, lemons, lighter tar, green bananas, a little eucalyptus… With water: 12-yo-cream-label quality. Old fabric, old jacket, chalk, putty, ointments… Mouth (neat): a blade. Smoke, pepper, oysters, lemon, sunflower oil, citrons, seaweed, tar. In short, Lagavulin. No burn at all but it's true that 50.7% isn't that strong. With water: many more ashes now, and candied citrus, with a salty tang and always this medicinal side that's a bit reminiscent of some neighbour. Finish: medium, still pure, coastal, extremely elegant. More ashes yet in the aftertaste. Comments: it's become a little softer in fact. It's a beautiful pure Lagavulin au naturel. Lovely putty.
SGP:556 - 92 points.

Check the index of all Lagavulin we've tasted so far