A while back, I found this rather interesting bottling through a German whisky retailer.
Although it doesn't say the name of the distillery anywhere on the bottle, I suspected it to be a single cask Lagavulin. There wasn't a great deal of information on it , other than what a few of you had kindly sent in for us.
It had been sitting there, at the back of my cabinet looking slightly forlorn and abandoned, until now that is!!! In preparation of the forthcoming Feis Ile, I thought it high time to crack it open and breathe in the wonderful aromas of Islay. We'll be heading there for the first weekend and i'll certainly be bringing this along, if you fancy a dram!
Taste Still - Vanilla Peat - Lagavulin Single Cask Bottling - Distilled 1994 - Bottled 2007- 56.8%
Nose: The vanilla notes coming from the glass are astonishing. From 6 feet away, you can still smell the sweet, aromatic fragrance of sliced vanilla pods, vanilla pipe tobacco plus creamy white chocolate, vintage Star Wars figures (that heady plastic note) and a little Carbolic soap reek.... unmistakably Lagavulin and unmistakably great. It shares similarities to the proprietary 12 yo releases but is just a touch sweeter. Given time in the glass, you'll find cream soda notes emerging and some sweet cereal notes. Just lovely.
Palate: Undiluted- the spirit grabs you with a sweet licorice flavour from the off, coupled with a wonderful silky mouthfeel. More white chocolate comes to the fore, followed by some light summer fruit (strawberries) and vanilla ice cream. With a dash of water, a banana'y sweetness emerges, similar to those foam sweets you used to get served in your local corner shop. Layers of creaminess then take over the palate and you're left smiling broadly, wanting another mouthful.
Finish: A return of the strawberries, mixed in with the vanilla ice cream, rather like the flavours you'd get from a Cherryade ice cream float.
Overall: I'm so pleased I opened this - the sun is shining today and it has just added another dimension of enjoyment to the day ahead. Great Lagavulin has the ability to lift ones spirits like no other distillery I know (save for a great Rosebank) and i'd rank this one up there with my favourite. A truly wonderful bottling. Scour the German retail sites and you may find another bottle of this, which has been stashed away. That is, unless I get there first.... ;-)
Palate: Undiluted- the spirit grabs you with a sweet licorice flavour from the off, coupled with a wonderful silky mouthfeel. More white chocolate comes to the fore, followed by some light summer fruit (strawberries) and vanilla ice cream. With a dash of water, a banana'y sweetness emerges, similar to those foam sweets you used to get served in your local corner shop. Layers of creaminess then take over the palate and you're left smiling broadly, wanting another mouthful.
Finish: A return of the strawberries, mixed in with the vanilla ice cream, rather like the flavours you'd get from a Cherryade ice cream float.
Overall: I'm so pleased I opened this - the sun is shining today and it has just added another dimension of enjoyment to the day ahead. Great Lagavulin has the ability to lift ones spirits like no other distillery I know (save for a great Rosebank) and i'd rank this one up there with my favourite. A truly wonderful bottling. Scour the German retail sites and you may find another bottle of this, which has been stashed away. That is, unless I get there first.... ;-)