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LAGAVULIN DISTILLERY
This classic Islay malt, with the driest and most sustained attack of any readily available whisky, has in recent years emerged from relative obscurity to international stardom. Purists regret the demise in the late 1980s of its especially vigorous 12-year-old version, but the more mature 16-year-old still has a tremendous punch. The producers have on occasion denied using sherry wood for this version. Well, perhaps not first-fill, but there is certainly a residual sherry character. The launch in 1997-98 of a version identified as being finished in Pedro Ximinez sherry excited great interest. ‘Decanter’ magazine once compared the relationship of Lagavulin and Laphroaig on Islay with that of Cheval Blanc and Petrus in Bordeaux. In name at least, Lagavulin must be the Cheval Blanc, as it contributes malt whisky to the White Horse blends, and the animal decorates the distillery sign. The well-kept distillery has armchairs for visitors. “We give our guests plenty of our time,” says manager Mike Nicholson. “They like a meaningful exchange rather than an audio-visual.” The tour includes a look at the rock whence the Lords of the Isles departed to fight the Vikings. The stone frame of the sea gate still stands. The distillery’s water arrives by way of a fast-flowing stream that no doubt picks up plenty of peat on the way there. The sea batters the maturation warehouses, and they have their own jetty. Lagavulin (pronounced “lagga-voolin”) means “the hollow where the mill is”. There are reputed to have been ten illicit stills on this bay in the mid 1700s. Lagavulin traces its history to 1816.
HOUSE STYLE
Back to Western Isles Distilleries Single Malt Scotch, Irish Whiskey, Bourbon, Rye Whisky, Canadian Whisky, Cognac and Tequila all available for purchase online to Michigan residents only |
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