Lagavulin 16 - huge disappointment

[lexvo]

When I was in the Netherlands the bar I went to had a selection of about 300 whiskies so me and a couple other guys would give the bartender a list of 10-15 whiskies to pour and have him throw a couple of his own choise in. We would then taste them all and rate them and then try to guess what they were. It was alot of fun and getting even a couple right was always nice. We would go for themes like sherried or peaty so it was a little trickier. It was neat to see what won and what didn't after we added up everyones favorites. The key part there was making sure we didn't mix up the glasses because the bartender kept track of which was which for us.

I don't have many bars with that much selection here but it would be fun to try again, who knows maybe in a couple weeks in Victoria.

Len

Can you tell me what bar that was?

It is called Clancy's in the town Tilburg it is down the street that the Mercure hotel is across from.

The actual whisky bar is called The Three Swallows if you stop in ask for Frank he is the owner, very knowledgeble, and tell him Len from the US sais hello.

Len, thanks very much!

[Rory B Bellows]

I think the huge difference between Ardbeg and Lagavulin is the sherry notes in the later. So even though Ardbeg packs a harder peaty punch, I marginally prefer Lagavulin because of the added depth.

Rumour has it that Lagavulin has taken the sherry out of the mix for the 2008ish release, so I guess I'll have to go to the DE for the sherry notes.

[Deactivated Member]

Let's hope they drop the radioactive orange coloring, too.

[Onefortheditch]

I think the huge difference between Ardbeg and Lagavulin is the sherry notes in the later. So even though Ardbeg packs a harder peaty punch, I marginally prefer Lagavulin because of the added depth.

Rumour has it that Lagavulin has taken the sherry out of the mix for the 2008ish release, so I guess I'll have to go to the DE for the sherry notes.

I would agree with this. I bought a 20cl bottle to try the Lag 16. Its an excellent mix of sherry and peat...and very smooth...an excellent whisky!!

I'll buy a proper bottle now!!

[peergynt323]

As a Lagavulin fan, I should add this. My dad picked up some $50/bottle Laga 16 and it was truly beautiful. The way I remembered it. Then I picked up a bottle for myself (different store) and it was truly disappointing. No wave of peat that I'm used to. I have trouble getting a dram down.

Batch variation.

[Mr Fjeld]

Rumour has it that Lagavulin has taken the sherry out of the mix for the 2008ish release, so I guess I'll have to go to the DE for the sherry notes.

What
Can someone confirm this please? Lagavulin 16 without the sherry matured whisky in it sounds disappointing. I hope it's nothing but a rumour!

[lbacha]

I've noticed a trend of people saying they opened a bottle to be dissapointed with the initial dram, I wonder if lack of oxidation is the cause of this, most of us try whisky from bottles that have been opened a while. I think this changes the character and opens the whisky up just like wine. I wonder if people who have commented that they bought a bottle of Lagavulin opened it up and were dissapointed are experiencing this. The bottle of Ardbeg "Airigh Nam Beist" I opened up a few months ago wasn't very exciting when I first tried it, It was good but not alot going on. Now after a couple months the complexity has increasd and it has mellowed and become more balanced. The Glenfarclas Quarter Cask is a good example of this as well, it is alot different after a few months of being opened then it is on initial taste.

Len

[Onefortheditch]

I've noticed a trend of people saying they opened a bottle to be dissapointed with the initial dram, I wonder if lack of oxidation is the cause of this, most of us try whisky from bottles that have been opened a while. I think this changes the character and opens the whisky up just like wine. I wonder if people who have commented that they bought a bottle of Lagavulin opened it up and were dissapointed are experiencing this. The bottle of Ardbeg "Airigh Nam Beist" I opened up a few months ago wasn't very exciting when I first tried it, It was good but not alot going on. Now after a couple months the complexity has increasd and it has mellowed and become more balanced. The Glenfarclas Quarter Cask is a good example of this as well, it is alot different after a few months of being opened then it is on initial taste.

Len

I agree with this. For me whisky usually improves after the bottle has been opened for a while.

[Steve Rush]

Lagavulin 16yr in my opinion has to be one if not the best drams I have every encountered. Though by it's distictive abundance of peaty iodine for many it will be a love or hate affair.

One of those bottles where you have to have another on standby so your never lagless.

I hear rumours that there will be a new bottling released sometime this year. I wait in hope.

[Les Paul]

I think the Lagavulin 16 is one of the finest SMs I have tasted.

[Deactivated Member]

Okay, you've just about convinced me to go and buy an Lag 16 from a local dealer who has several. I want to know what the Hell you guys are talking about! Is it worth $90 US? Talk me out of it!

[killerwhale]

TN.... I know the feeling, many speak highly of it and I dearly want to try it however the price.... ack, 93 and change in my neck of the woods makes me a little ill
I can get Ardbeg 10 for 73 and I LOVE Ardbeg.... tough choices.... maybe sometime in the future for me

[Frodo]

Okay, you've just about convinced me to go and buy an Lag 16 from a local dealer who has several. I want to know what the Hell you guys are talking about! Is it worth $90 US? Talk me out of it!

At that price, and knowing what you could buy in bourbon for that, I'd say skip the Laga.

[lbacha]

Okay, you've just about convinced me to go and buy an Lag 16 from a local dealer who has several. I want to know what the Hell you guys are talking about! Is it worth $90 US? Talk me out of it!

At that price, and knowing what you could buy in bourbon for that, I'd say skip the Laga.

I agree that is a high price, if you travel at look around you will find it cheaper, I just saw a bottle in Oklahoma City for $42.75 which irritates me because I just bought 3 bottles for $47.50 because i thought that was a great deal.

Len

[Deactivated Member]

That's a very hard question to answer. In a market sense, yes, it's worth $90, because enough people will pay that to sell what they have. Lagavulin suffered a terrible supply crunch for a couple years, and shortages and rationing would indicate that the price wasn't high enough...in the market sense. It has remained a very popular dram, and obviously a lot of people think that price is worth paying. But Frodometrically, it's hard for someone who's never tasted it to swallow. Lagavulin was the first love of many of us, and it's something I think every knowledgeable malt lover would want to have a handle on. If you can justify that kind of money on the basis of the experience you'll get out of it, regardless of how much you like it (or don't), then it's probably worth it. If you can't think that way, you're likely better off having a dram or two in a bar somewhere, when the occasion permits. Maybe, like many of us, you will fall in love with it, and $90 will then seem a bargain.

[lbacha]

I agree with Mr T, for people who have tried it and love it (I'm in this group) you will pay the price but if you havn't tried it then you may be put off by the price, you may even expect more than what it is and therefore be dissapointed when you try it. I ussually attempt to try everything before I buy a bottle of it. This is why shows are so nice. I whish we had something like the tasting tower I keep hearing about in Ohio. There are a couple bottles I'm interested in but I want to try them first.

Len

[Drrich1965]

I agree with Mr T, for people who have tried it and love it (I'm in this group) you will pay the price but if you havn't tried it then you may be put off by the price, you may even expect more than what it is and therefore be dissapointed when you try it. I ussually attempt to try everything before I buy a bottle of it. This is why shows are so nice. I whish we had something like the tasting tower I keep hearing about in Ohio. There are a couple bottles I'm interested in but I want to try them first.

Len

thus the reason i love to trade samples with folks

[killerwhale]

thought I would add my humble opin to this thread as I just tried Laga 16 last night.... I loved it! what a fantastic scotch. I love Ardbeg 10 aswell and they are 2 different animals with great characteristics in their own right..... sort of like the Tiger and Lion both are worthy, wonderful beasts.
I would be VERY happy to have both however, the price difference here in BC is not pleasing and for this reason I would choose Ardbeg 10.
I would also say that it is good to go 'into' the Laga without trying to compare it to Ardbeg.
These are my two favorite scotches without a doubt.

[Lawrence]

After the tasting last night one of my friends twisted my rubber arm to go upstairs for a dram of Lagavulin 16; it really is an exceptional whisky. Must add some more 16 to the line up at home.

[Scotchio]

Just done a H2H between an old mini white horse Lagavulin 16 and a recent bottle;

Colour: Identical ( now there's a thing!)

Nose: Similar but the older one seemed deeper and drier,a little more salty, the recent bottle was sweeter, a little thinner with the smoky peat note less concentrated

T: The newer bottling had a grassy sweetness(although still predominantly dry) , the peat/ smoke seemed to rumble gently underneath,light salt,dissolved a little quickly.
The older bottle was richer, a little hotter,notably drier, and had the full bodied velvetty feel I remember from the 1st time I tried Lagavulin.

F: Old bottle; Long, salty, mouthcoating, possibly a faint refill sherry note ending on smoked tea
Newer bottle; Lighter, some mint,shorter.

Both are good whiskies with as you'd expect very similar flavours but the older bottle was drier, more assertive, saltier and much richer/more substantial than the newer one.

TH has already picked out some of the reasons for these differences and don't get me wrong the recent bottle is still a good whisky, just not as great as the older bottling.

As regards some of the earlier comments re old bottle bias from the malt maniacs, I was a little sceptical myself but having tried a few old minis I've got to say I'm beginning to think there is something in it. They often seem richer and more full flavoured than their modern counterparts. There are plenty of possible reasons; the gradual disappearance of Golden promise barley, the past availability of more better quality sherry casks, rationalisation and cost cutting measures introduced in the austere 1980s, the growth of the single malt market leading to less opportunity for cherry picking the best casks, centralization of maltings, a general trend toward lower peating levels(on Speyside)...

Oh , and with regard to the question that started the whole thread, Ardbeg Laphroaig and Lagavulin are all quite different, Lagavulin seems drier and the peat note comes across more smoky than peaty to me,no Laphroaig iodine and less sweet and perfumy than modern Ardbegs. I wouldnt call Lagavulin complex either,at best it has a good smoky depth,saltiness, a nice rich mouth feel and a long finish but i cant pick out any sherry flavours and there is nothing floral and fruity going on.

[Deactivated Member]

Colour: Identical ( now there's a thing!)

That's the one thing they have complete control of!

[hpulley]

I think the popularity of Lagavulin has been a bit of its curse as well. Ten years ago and certainly before that, they probably blended more but today nearly all of it goes to the 16yo and the DE, a few casks here and there to the 12yo CS, probably even less to the 25yo. Whereas before they could choose only the most ideal casks for the 16yo today they have to choose what to finish in PX for the DE and what can stand alone essentially without any sherry in the CS. It is a pretty tall order to fill the additional demand without being able to ramp up the supply since the 16yo of today is from the late '80s and very early '90s. I'd say their master blender does a pretty good job attempting to maintain the flavour profile under the circumstances (BTW, anyone know who that is? Douglas Murray?).

I don't usually have Laga 16 on hand as it is one of the better malts to find when I'm out at a bar (the ones that get the Classic Malts and JW). I am going to get a bottle though and will let everyone know my thoughts.

Harry

[Jobi]

Okay, you've just about convinced me to go and buy an Lag 16 from a local dealer who has several. I want to know what the Hell you guys are talking about! Is it worth $90 US? Talk me out of it!

I'm in the same boat about George T. Stagg. I'm seriously considering buying a bottle. Is it really as good as everyone says, or does the high ABV just bring out the macho in a lot of people?

[irishwhiskeychaser]

I found the G T S not bad but I feel the high ABV is just a bit too much for the whiskey and it is the only whiskey to give me a head ache even diluted way down. I prefered the William L Weller at 61% which was wonderful and much better than the George T in my opinion. I have a Fall 2005 edition of both.