Lagavulin 8yo

Volume: 0.7 litres | Alcohol content: 48% | Chill filtration: No | Colouring: Yes

Special Features:

Lagavulin 8 combines a relatively short maturation with the distillery's pronounced smoky character. Now a permanent part of the range, the whisky matures for eight years exclusively in refill American oak casks. It is bottled at 48% without chill filtration.

The expression was first released in 2016 to mark the distillery's 200th anniversary and joined the permanent range in 2017. Its historical inspiration came from Alfred Barnard: during a visit in the late 1880s, the Victorian whisky writer particularly appreciated an eight-year-old Lagavulin. The present expression pays homage by adopting that age.

The whisky comes in a 0.7-litre bottle with gift packaging. It can be enjoyed neat or with a small drop of water.

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: The nose opens softly and freshly with traces of milk chocolate and lemon. Tea-like smoke, maritime dryness and delicate cereal notes then develop. A slightly pungent impression accompanies hints of fresh newspaper and gentle soot. Water makes the nose fuller and rounder; beneath the more prominent smoke, a trace of red berry jam emerges.
• Palate: The initially light texture becomes increasingly oily. Sweetness, smoke and warmth open the palate, before the smoke intensifies and the impression becomes drier. Charred notes meet mint and dark chocolate. Salt and deeply roasted baked potato skins then appear. Water rounds out the palate, making it juicier, sweeter and spicier, with tingling mint freshness and warmth.
• Finish: The very long finish combines gentle minty smoke with chocolatey tannic notes; dryness only emerges later. With water, it becomes softer and warming, remaining smoky but growing shorter and less intense. Sweet smoke lingers while the palate is left dry.

Distillery/Bottler:

Lagavulin stands on Islay's south coast in a small bay near Port Ellen and the ruins of Dunyvaig Castle. John Johnston officially founded the distillery in 1816; evidence of illicit distilling at the site dates back to the 1740s. Later, Peter Mackie, the man behind the White Horse blend, shaped the distillery's development and reputation.

Its production style includes peated malt from the nearby Port Ellen Maltings, pear-shaped stills and particularly slow distillation. The water comes from Lochan Solum. These methods shape the distillery's smoke-led style.

Facts: