Lagavulin Distillers Edition 2015 43% 1999

Professional reviews

Serge Valentin (87)

We’ve already tried last year’s DE but had missed the one from 2015. As usual, it’s finished in Pedro Ximenez (which is to whisky what a turbo-look is to Porsche, haha). Ah, the 1979… Colour: gold. Nose: I didn’t enjoy the 2016 too much, but this is nice, soft, rather complex, with a mild tarry side, some peelings and leaves, blood oranges, marmalade, raisins, oyster mushrooms, cigars, a touch of agave syrup, and the faintest whiffs of pencil shaving (a thing that sadly got much bigger in the 2000/2016). Mouth: super good. In a way, this is smoked cognac. Oranges, peaches, sea salt, raisins, liquorice, sweet tar, candied citrons, and of course smoke. Relatively mild and easy, some Lagavulin to sip without thinking too much about it. Finish: rather long, drier, with some chocolate and some salty marmalade. Some oak in the aftertaste, which is the only weaker part in my opinion. Comments: a rather sweeter and fruitier Lagavulin DE, but still with all flags out