A jazzy cacophony of independent Lagavulin whisky

Laggan Mill, bottled at 46 % abv by The Vintage Malt Whisky Co.

Makeup: No vintage given but bottled in 2019. Matured in one single cask (numbered 97) and producing 330 bottles. This is from the Cooper’s Choice range, which offers nice gems regularly.

General impressions: Total white wine in the glass, if we judge the colour of it. Crispy clean peat produce sticks to the sides of your glass when you whirl this around. To see a whisky so naked and pristine is truly rare (not unlike the Korean Knockdhu we did a few days ago). But this has peat and it shows a much purer side of this method of drying the barley. The taste is traditionally milky, so this is definitely Lagavulin, but also incredibly sweet and satisfying. The new make character of this whisky still gives lots of fruit, and the cask influence is almost dialled back to zero. The finish carries some maritime notes, but the sweetness keeps pulling me back to a deserted island where I am burning S.O.S. wood letters on the beach.  

Laggan Mill, bottled at 55 % abv by The Vintage Malt Whisky Co.

Makeup: The label says Rioja Cask Matured, but I do not remember is this was a finish of a full maturation. This Laggan Mill was matured in the Spanish red wine cask carrying number 283, producing 312 bottles. This is from the Cooper’s Choice range.

General impressions: Can the contrast be bigger? From the purest whisky to a wine infused expression? Well, here we go! First a big hit of red fruit, but the wine cask appeals very obviously to the meaty side of the Lagavulin spirit. And it battles well with it, leaving some traces of gun powder but very delicately. The peat influences have been turned into wood smoke and fire on which you can easily sear a steak. Some ashes linger in the background. Big, big whisky on the nose, still coming off very balanced, including the gun powder notes. Let’s sip. Not bad, but a bit dry after the very juicy sample we had before. Some red smoky berries make an appearance. The meaty flavour is dominant, and it is richly steeped in hot spices and herbs. 

Islay South Coast, 12 years old, bottled at 56,4 % abv by Brühler Whiskyhaus

Makeup: Matured for 12 years but finished for 14 months in Palo Cortado. Soms 579 bottles were available, so one could wonder if this was a single cask of a small batch. Bottled in 2021.

General impressions: Smoky dried dades, some vinegar and sour cream on the nose. It needs some time to open up, then turns ashy. It has a fruity side but also something of an off-note that reminds me of barf. The Palo Cortado makes its presence known, let’s leave it at that. I am not the biggest fan of this sherry variant. I have to say, to drink this packs a lot of punch and the peat feels very harmonious with the liquid. The whole experience is a little sweeter than I am used to with Lagavulin. The ashes and smoked pineapple experience is freaky and fun.

Peatwave, bottled at 58 % abv for The Caskhound

Makeup: The full title of this bottling is “There's a peatwave comin' Old enough to be bloody tasty!” and I love it. The 60 bottles come from an ex-bourbon cask, and rumour has it that this is a vatting of some different vintages Lagavulin. Not unlike some official Jazz bottlings by Lagavulin itself. This bottle was created by The Caskhound.

General impressions: Something weird in the glass, that makes the nerds’ heart beat faster. More of a maritime, dare I say fishy kind of Lagavulin (if it really is that). Somehow, this expression does not hold a candle to the samples we tasted before. It feels a bit closed up, if this is indeed multi vintages, then probably too much of everything. I tried to dilute it a little, making some chalk and wet pebbles come out. Undiluted or diluted, the finish has a distinct soapy note to it. After some breathing, some lavender breaks out on the nose too. I like this smell on freshly washed sheets, but not when I am nosing a whisky.