Lagavulin 16 Tasting Notes and Ratings.

Lagavulin 16

Added on Thursday, Feb 8, 2007 at 12:31 AM

Bottler:

Age:	16 yrs	Type:	Scotch
Vintage:	N/A	Subtype:	Single Malt
ABV:	43.00 %	Region:	Islay
Price:	$80	Availability:	Wide

Member Ratings and Notes

Adam

Yeah, it's extremely good. If you know it, you know it. A fantastic interplay of all the phenols in the book -- smoke, medicinal stuff, strong iodine, peat -- a classic and a must-have for every bar. (2007) A-

Needs more oomph but I still love it. (2012) B+

The old standy-by. I can't say I've enjoyed the 50% price increase the past few years, but for a peaty, widely-available, always-enjoyable bottle, you really can't beat the Lag 16.

[No Notes.]

Lag 16 is wind beneath my wings. Near perfection for a standard, popular bottle.

Chris

N: Smoke dominates initially, orange custard, iodine, then honey and heather take over as one works their way to the bottom of the glass.
P: This is just masterfully put together, the peat is made almost delicate by the accompanying nectary sweetness.   Sea salt.   Mouth coating, medium oily changing to dry in the finish..
F: Here's where is gets really excellent, back and forth between the smoke and sugar, it could almost be made into a candy.   Smoke lingers on and on.
Incredibly drinkable and delicious.   More than any other, Lag 16 is the malt that gets people hooked on malts. It's so good, I may have touched the bottle in an inappropriate manner. Please forgive me.

The whiskey that forced me, at knifepoint, to love whiskey. I forgive you, Laggy.

Andy

Great introduction to smoky peat. A standard. For the "A" version of Lag, please see Lag 21.

Mike

Nose is brown bananas and dried peat. The palate is smoked fish and salt, little brown sugar. Finish is long and satisfying. I love this whisky. A year ago I would give it an A. It has all that you could want in a whisky. But with some side-by-sides, I've found others that I have to rate higher. But Lag 16 deserves a note as the best all-rounder you could find at most good bars and restaurants. I have had it at many, and it makes my evening.

Dave

A great example of an Islay malt. Campfire smoke and medicinal iodine along with earthy notes that make this a depth chart master. There are not many better versions of a distillery starter.

Fuji

L6 Bottle: B+

Warm peat, iodine and matchsticks on the nose. There's whiffs of sherry hiding behind the peat. The peat and medicinal notes carry through on the palate leaving a briney lingering finish. This is a very nostalgic and comforting whisky, kind of like moms home cooking or a warm blanket. One of those "ah ha" whiskies that turn people to the dark side of peat.

L12 bottle: B

N:More rubbery, honeycomb sweetness, peaty campfire

P: Starts very spicy. Peat smoke and bbq meats follow

F: Lingering smoke and salt. But the salt was more dominent than I recall.

Sku

As with many Scotch drinkers, this used to be one of my all-time favorites, one of the malts responsible for getting me into whiskey, but it's changed over the years. Sampling a current (2012) version. The nose was smoky but more raw than rich. The palate is sweet initially, followed by peat and pepper. Iodine comes in mostly at the finish.

There's plenty here to like, but it's not the rich, intense and complex malt of the old days. The flavors are fairly one-dimensional, though to be fair, I was comparing it with a much older and more complex version.

Dan

2012 bottling: A go to whisky at any bar. Very peaty and woody. Never disappoints, but always wants me wanting a little bit more. B

2005 bottling: A little less wood, and some different nuances but I actually slightly prefer newer bottlings. B- [1/4/13]

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