Lagavulin 12 Cask Strength (2017)
After posting a mildly positive review of Lagvulin 8 and a fairly negative review of Lagavulin 16, I’m wrapping up my three-part series on Lagavulin with a bang—Lagavulin 12 Year Cask Strength.
Like the Caol Ila Unpeated Style, which I also reviewed recently, Lagavulin 12 Cask Strength is a member of the Diageo annual special release range. And like that Caol Ila, this particular bottle is from the 2017 class of special releases. Although this is a “limited” release, there seem to be plenty of bottles to go around. At the time of this writing, there are several online stores that show the 2017 edition as being in stock (and I know of at least one store near me that still has bottles on the shelf). Diageo (owners of Lagavulin) recently announced their 2018 special edition range, and Lagavulin 12 will indeed be included as usual.
Although I’ve long heard that the annual 12 year old release is one of the best Lagavulin expressions available, I’d never previously bought a bottle. But after hearing quite a few good things about the 2017 version, I couldn’t resist hunting down a bottle and bringing it home. I was a little skeptical going in despite several glowing recommendations—as detailed in my aforementioned reviews, I’m not a big fan of Lagavulin 16, and I find Lagavulin 8 to be good, but not great. So would this highly revered Islay malt live up to it’s reputation, or would it be another Diageo disappointment? Let’s find out.
Lagavulin 12 Cask Strength Review (2017)
Type: Single Malt Scotch
Region: Islay
ABV: 56.5%
Nose
Pungent, earthy, and crisp peat smoke. Iodine and minerals. Vanilla. Clay pots. Dark chocolate. Pipe tobacco (a blend of black cavendish, red Virginia, and burley). Lemon. Vetiver. A freshly cleaned bathroom. Men’s shampoo. Sea salted caramel. Damp basement. Thoroughly interesting and complex.
Palate
Crisp, campfire smokiness. Tobacco. Vanilla cream. Lemon. So much lemon. Lemon candy. Lemon meringue pie. Lemon sorbet. Juicy tropical fruits. Ginger gummies. Minerals. Seashells and seawater. Water chestnuts. Hot cinnamon candy. Slightly floral. The mouthfeel is somewhat creamy and a little oily (not bad, although not the best aspect of this whisky). Without water, this is quite hot (especially when the bottle was first opened). A drop or two of water is required to open things up.
Finish
Long and lingering. Gentle smoke and ash. Vanilla. Sea water. Tobacco. Lemon. Ginger candy. Cinnamon. Heather. Like the palate, the finish is a bit hot if you don’t add a drop or two of water.
Overall
This. This is delicious. Compared to the 8 year and the 16 year… sure, you can see they have related DNA, but the 12 year is so, so much better. It has all of the things I like about the 8 year and much more, and then dials it up to 10. When I take a sip of Lagavulin 12 Cask Strength, I want to let it roll around my mouth forever and never swallow… it’s just so tasty.
In my review of Lagavulin 16, I mentioned a scent of laundry detergent, which really ruined the nose (and the whisky) for me. Here with the 12 year, I find some related notes on the nose (freshly cleaned bathroom and men’s shampoo), but in this case it works. It’s much more fully integrated with the other notes, whereas with the 16 year, it seems flawed and completely out of place. I find the nose here on the 12 year to be fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable—especially that hint of vetiver, which I don’t remember having ever experienced before in a whisky (and I’m a big fan of vetiver).
The palate and finish are just about as balanced, complex, and wonderful as a young and heavily peated whisky can be. Quite simply, it’s one of the best Islay malts I’ve been fortunate enough to try. My only criticisms are that the mouthfeel is merely good, not great, and that without water, the palate and finish are pretty hot. And even with water, it still packs a bit of heat, although the heat diminishes with some prolonged exposure to air.
This is a powerhouse of a dram. As with all fine whiskies, take you time with this one, and savor every sip.
SCORE: 93/100
Final Thoughts
Is Lagavulin simply great at cask strength? Is 12 years the ideal age of maturation for the distillery’s whisky? Does Diageo hold back some of its best casks for this annual special edition? Or is there some other reason why this 12 year cask strength expression is so much better than the other Lagavulin whiskies I’ve tried? I don’t know. Perhaps a little bit of all of those things. Regardless, I love this whisky and highly recommend it.
Buy Again? Yes. Like all Lagavulin products, this is overpriced (I paid around $140 for my bottle), but in this case I think it’s worth it. This is terrific whisky.
Drink This Not That: Drink this. But if you can’t find a bottle (or it’s out of your price range), try another high ABV whisky from Islay, such as Laphroaig 10 Year Cask Strength, Ardbeg Corryvreckan, or Kilchoman Cask Strength, all of which are excellent.
Questions about my scoring system? Refer to the Review Method & Scoring Scale page.
For more reviews, check out the Whisky Review Archive.
