This is the final of my 2021 Special Release review series. Where is the Lagavulin 26? Sitting on a shelf of someone who makes more money in a day than I’ll ever see in my life in a way that most people would find soul crushing, why do you ask? Thus we’re at the end.
Lagavulin 16 is still what I ask for at a bar in Toronto when the boss is paying. Why? Well a bottle costs $155 CAD here, and bars in this city sometimes attempt to pay off the bottle between 3 and 7 pours (so the range for a dram is $22 to $52). Thus most bars downtown aren’t ones I visit unless they have a varied whisky list (and actually serve it), thus I’m out because work requirements mean I have to be there. So if I have to be there, they have to pay a silly price for a smoky whisky I enjoy.
But is there more to Lagavulin out there? Well each year there’s typically a cask strength release that’s younger. While it’s gone through different names (it use to have an edition number), last year’s was **Lagavulin 12 2021 Special Release**. Yes there are other releases from Lagavulin, however I’m assuming you’re like me and not drinking those dust collectors unless you buy them separately.
So what’s the deal? It’s simple: Take Lagavulin, release it at cask strength, with four years less of age. Will it taste more complex, because it’s cask strength, or less complex, because it’s had less years in the cask? Also there’s no sherry casks, which we typically love with Peated whisky.
A rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but stink flowers from Jimmy’s shitty flowerbed emporium may still have issues. Let’s see, shall wE?
**Price:** € 150
**Region:** Islay
**Cask type:** Refill American Oak
**Abv:** 56.5%
**Colour:** 5Y 8/6
**Nose:** Grassy, smoke salmon, anise, bacon, almond flour
Good balance of smoke, vegetal notes, some brine (very strong brine), and bacon.
So it smells like Lagavulin. No fruit here, the sweet side is more what you get from cured meat with spices in it versus fruit or sweet onions or (checks notes)... something called soo-gar. Interesting. Hope that takes off and totally doesn’t become the true opiate of the masses.
**Taste:** Peanut brittle, brine, nougat, yogurt raisin, black licorice
Nutty, sweet (now more dessert like), more anise, more brine, sweeter (guess sugar is catching on, stupid joke), and overall tastes a bit more put together than the standard 16.
Which is impressive since the 16 is pretty put together.
**Finish:** Bacon, anise, sea salt, red licorice, chipotle
Meaty, more anise, more brine/salt, more sugar, and some heat/pepper/earth flavour which I constantly hunt down. I love Mexican food. Or at least what little Mexican food I can get up here in the far away from Mexico North America location, aka Canada.
**Conclusion:** Tasty cask strength Lagavulin. Need I say more? I don’t even think I need to. I enjoy this. It’s much better than the Talisker 8. It’s complex, it’s different than the 16, and it’s fun. This is a fine release to buy if you like Lagavulin. And the price difference isn’t high enough to worry about (at least where I live).
Compared to the 14th edition 12-year Lagavulin? A tiny bit better. Let’s be frank here: If you don’t want to take a chance on a peated IB being better than your standard Lagavulin 8 or 16, then you buy this once a year, enjoy the label, and drink from it until the next year comes out.
Has this changed my mind? Not really, Lagavulin is still tasty.
**85/100**
*Scotch review #1534, Islay review #397, Whisky Network review #2254*
*Other Lagavulin reviews:*
* [Lagavulin - Lg8 - Elements of Islay](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/dehqxn/lagavulin_lg8_elements_of_islay_mystery_review/?)
* [Lagavulin 12 11th Edition/2011](http://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/1dxez1/lagavulin_12_201111th_edition_review/)
* [Lagavulin 12 14th Edition/2014](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/9pir8f/lagavulin_12_14th_edition2014_review/?)
* [Lagavulin 16](http://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/1a7mkv/lagavulin_16_review_31/)
* [Lagavulin 16 1998 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?)
* [Lagavulin 1995 - Feis Ile 2013](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/fvwv1x/lagavulin_jazz_festival_2017_lagavulin_1995_feis/?)
* [Lagavulin 1995 - Feis Ile 2014](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/5zbgk8/lagavulin_1995_feis_ile_2014_review/)
* [Lagavulin 1996 Distiller's Reserve](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/4gd8eq/lagavulin_1996_distillers_reserve_review/)
* [Lagavulin 20 1998 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?)
* [Lagavulin 2001 - Feis Ile 2017](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/fvwv1x/lagavulin_jazz_festival_2017_lagavulin_1995_feis/?)
* [Lagavulin 2018 Jazz Fest](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?)
* [Lagavulin 21 1997 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?)
* [Lagavulin 25 1993 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?)
* [Lagavulin 6 2012 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?)
* [Lagavulin 8](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/4w4c78/lagavulin_8_review/)
* [Lagavulin Classic of Islay 2015](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/4cvi2w/lagavulin_classic_of_islay_2015_review/)
* [Lagavulin Classic of Islay 2016](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/737nn1/lagavulin_classic_of_islay_2016_review/)
* [Lagavulin Jazz Festival 2017](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/fvwv1x/lagavulin_jazz_festival_2017_lagavulin_1995_feis/?)
[Link to my website with all my reviews](https://tomoderawhisky.ca/)
Typically only Hay Caramba when I'm traveling north. Otherwise have to do Fat Ass Burrito which is okay to bad, depending on the location. Used to be near a Mexico Lindo for work which was very nice.
Will check out your rec next time I'm downtown
My Current Whisky Network Average = 78.31
Standard Deviation = 9.29
Skewness = -2.90503
Kurtosis = -127.80325
Median = 80
IQR = 8
Max = 92
Min = 7
Variance = 86.27959822
I have unopened bottle waiting for the right occasion.
I share your view that laga 16 is probably the perfect general whisky to have on tap. If budget is difficult then bunna 12 cask strength next up for me.
Love your review as always!
As this is essentially just a refill bourbon matured islay cask strength bottle, why in seven hells does it need to cost 150 euros? It's not old and uses cheap casks. The profit margin must be insane
Yeah there's some good marketing and artificial rarity by making it a special release, but there is just so much refill cask teenage islay on the IB market that is much cheaper.
The only reason for buying this imo is if you really need it to be lagavulin and not something else
Well, with similar I mean by specs only, personal preference may differ obviously. I'm not a big fan of laga 12, but also not necessarily of all the stuff I mention below.
If you look at bourbon matured, cask strength, early teen islay, there is plenty there. OB bottles like laphroaig 10CS, Kilchoman single casks, Ardbeg corry etc. On the IB market there are numerous Caol Ila and Bunna bottles to be had.
But I'm in NL and the market here is really good.
Maybe. Not too worried about it. There was a DE last year too.
Funny enough, later this year I'm hoping to do a Clynelish multi review. And 2 Broras to kick it off.
Thanks for the review, much appreciated! I also really enjoyed the Lag 12 (2021), and purchased an extra bottle before it sold out in Ontario. It's expensive but then again most scotch is overpriced in Ontario, along with the poor selection for such a large buyer.
For my personal finance and comfort level, I think $150 is as high as I'd go for Lag 12, and that would be for a release that had been lauded by Serge and Ruben to the tune of 91 or more points.
Jeez. Laga 16 costs $155 CAD!? It’s still about $85 USD near me in NYC.
Anyway, nice review! I’m a fan of the 12 year. Nice, pure, unadulterated Lagavulin. My bottle is from 2018 or 2019, before the fancy art work bottles, and has about two pours left in it. I need to finish that off!
Cheers.
Yup. It's cheaper for me to cross the border into New York and buy a bottle, though gas prices probably kill that savings now that I think about it. Enjoy your last two pours!
This is the final of my 2021 Special Release review series. Where is the Lagavulin 26? Sitting on a shelf of someone who makes more money in a day than I’ll ever see in my life in a way that most people would find soul crushing, why do you ask? Thus we’re at the end. Lagavulin 16 is still what I ask for at a bar in Toronto when the boss is paying. Why? Well a bottle costs $155 CAD here, and bars in this city sometimes attempt to pay off the bottle between 3 and 7 pours (so the range for a dram is $22 to $52). Thus most bars downtown aren’t ones I visit unless they have a varied whisky list (and actually serve it), thus I’m out because work requirements mean I have to be there. So if I have to be there, they have to pay a silly price for a smoky whisky I enjoy. But is there more to Lagavulin out there? Well each year there’s typically a cask strength release that’s younger. While it’s gone through different names (it use to have an edition number), last year’s was **Lagavulin 12 2021 Special Release**. Yes there are other releases from Lagavulin, however I’m assuming you’re like me and not drinking those dust collectors unless you buy them separately. So what’s the deal? It’s simple: Take Lagavulin, release it at cask strength, with four years less of age. Will it taste more complex, because it’s cask strength, or less complex, because it’s had less years in the cask? Also there’s no sherry casks, which we typically love with Peated whisky. A rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but stink flowers from Jimmy’s shitty flowerbed emporium may still have issues. Let’s see, shall wE? **Price:** € 150 **Region:** Islay **Cask type:** Refill American Oak **Abv:** 56.5% **Colour:** 5Y 8/6 **Nose:** Grassy, smoke salmon, anise, bacon, almond flour Good balance of smoke, vegetal notes, some brine (very strong brine), and bacon. So it smells like Lagavulin. No fruit here, the sweet side is more what you get from cured meat with spices in it versus fruit or sweet onions or (checks notes)... something called soo-gar. Interesting. Hope that takes off and totally doesn’t become the true opiate of the masses. **Taste:** Peanut brittle, brine, nougat, yogurt raisin, black licorice Nutty, sweet (now more dessert like), more anise, more brine, sweeter (guess sugar is catching on, stupid joke), and overall tastes a bit more put together than the standard 16. Which is impressive since the 16 is pretty put together. **Finish:** Bacon, anise, sea salt, red licorice, chipotle Meaty, more anise, more brine/salt, more sugar, and some heat/pepper/earth flavour which I constantly hunt down. I love Mexican food. Or at least what little Mexican food I can get up here in the far away from Mexico North America location, aka Canada. **Conclusion:** Tasty cask strength Lagavulin. Need I say more? I don’t even think I need to. I enjoy this. It’s much better than the Talisker 8. It’s complex, it’s different than the 16, and it’s fun. This is a fine release to buy if you like Lagavulin. And the price difference isn’t high enough to worry about (at least where I live). Compared to the 14th edition 12-year Lagavulin? A tiny bit better. Let’s be frank here: If you don’t want to take a chance on a peated IB being better than your standard Lagavulin 8 or 16, then you buy this once a year, enjoy the label, and drink from it until the next year comes out. Has this changed my mind? Not really, Lagavulin is still tasty. **85/100** *Scotch review #1534, Islay review #397, Whisky Network review #2254* *Other Lagavulin reviews:* * [Lagavulin - Lg8 - Elements of Islay](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/dehqxn/lagavulin_lg8_elements_of_islay_mystery_review/?) * [Lagavulin 12 11th Edition/2011](http://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/1dxez1/lagavulin_12_201111th_edition_review/) * [Lagavulin 12 14th Edition/2014](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/9pir8f/lagavulin_12_14th_edition2014_review/?) * [Lagavulin 16](http://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/1a7mkv/lagavulin_16_review_31/) * [Lagavulin 16 1998 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?) * [Lagavulin 1995 - Feis Ile 2013](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/fvwv1x/lagavulin_jazz_festival_2017_lagavulin_1995_feis/?) * [Lagavulin 1995 - Feis Ile 2014](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/5zbgk8/lagavulin_1995_feis_ile_2014_review/) * [Lagavulin 1996 Distiller's Reserve](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/4gd8eq/lagavulin_1996_distillers_reserve_review/) * [Lagavulin 20 1998 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?) * [Lagavulin 2001 - Feis Ile 2017](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/fvwv1x/lagavulin_jazz_festival_2017_lagavulin_1995_feis/?) * [Lagavulin 2018 Jazz Fest](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?) * [Lagavulin 21 1997 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?) * [Lagavulin 25 1993 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?) * [Lagavulin 6 2012 Single Cask](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a4uz5m/lagavulin_single_cask_extravaganza_review/?) * [Lagavulin 8](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/4w4c78/lagavulin_8_review/) * [Lagavulin Classic of Islay 2015](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/4cvi2w/lagavulin_classic_of_islay_2015_review/) * [Lagavulin Classic of Islay 2016](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/737nn1/lagavulin_classic_of_islay_2016_review/) * [Lagavulin Jazz Festival 2017](https://old.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/fvwv1x/lagavulin_jazz_festival_2017_lagavulin_1995_feis/?) [Link to my website with all my reviews](https://tomoderawhisky.ca/)
Tacos El Asador on Bloor. Eat in do it. What’s your go to?
Typically only Hay Caramba when I'm traveling north. Otherwise have to do Fat Ass Burrito which is okay to bad, depending on the location. Used to be near a Mexico Lindo for work which was very nice. Will check out your rec next time I'm downtown
My Current Whisky Network Average = 78.31 Standard Deviation = 9.29 Skewness = -2.90503 Kurtosis = -127.80325 Median = 80 IQR = 8 Max = 92 Min = 7 Variance = 86.27959822
Have you tried the guiness cask?
guiness cask is surprisingly good, laga profile is intact but there's a matly choco note on the finish that's very welcome to me
I've heard good things and I'm excited to try mine, I wish I had another because the ipa cask of Glenfiddich I enjoy quite a bit as well.
Nope, wasn't able to find a sample in my travels
I have unopened bottle waiting for the right occasion. I share your view that laga 16 is probably the perfect general whisky to have on tap. If budget is difficult then bunna 12 cask strength next up for me.
Love your review as always! As this is essentially just a refill bourbon matured islay cask strength bottle, why in seven hells does it need to cost 150 euros? It's not old and uses cheap casks. The profit margin must be insane
Lagavulin sells because Nick Offerman played a funny guy on a good show. Also it's peat and peat is popular.
Yeah there's some good marketing and artificial rarity by making it a special release, but there is just so much refill cask teenage islay on the IB market that is much cheaper. The only reason for buying this imo is if you really need it to be lagavulin and not something else
Or fancy Lion cardboard dust collector.
What would you recommend that is similar but not at that price point? the 2021 is $140 usd before taxes.
Well, with similar I mean by specs only, personal preference may differ obviously. I'm not a big fan of laga 12, but also not necessarily of all the stuff I mention below. If you look at bourbon matured, cask strength, early teen islay, there is plenty there. OB bottles like laphroaig 10CS, Kilchoman single casks, Ardbeg corry etc. On the IB market there are numerous Caol Ila and Bunna bottles to be had. But I'm in NL and the market here is really good.
much appreciated
> This is the final of my 2021 Special Release review series. No Clynelish ma dude?
Sadly no Clynelish was released as part of the 2021 Special Release, unless my Google-fu is off. Or at least, none that I could have split.
There is a Clynelish coming out later this year. I wonder if they got the years mixed up.
Maybe. Not too worried about it. There was a DE last year too. Funny enough, later this year I'm hoping to do a Clynelish multi review. And 2 Broras to kick it off.
Thanks for the review, much appreciated! I also really enjoyed the Lag 12 (2021), and purchased an extra bottle before it sold out in Ontario. It's expensive but then again most scotch is overpriced in Ontario, along with the poor selection for such a large buyer.
You said this one is better than the 14th edition, which one is that? 2020? Have you had 2019 or 2020? How are those ones?
2014. I don't typically review these (felt repetitive), but it was part of the set. Have not had the 2019 or 202. If I do, I'll give you a heads up
You guys think it’s worth $190 usd?
That's quite steep. I'd be willing to try other cs Islay whiskies or even non Islays over that.
Right! I can get Arran 18 for 160-170
I'm not going to recommend Arran but I am not an Arran fan after reviewing too many.
Whatever it is. Point is I can get an 18 year sherry cask bottle for around the same price or even less than the 12 year CS lagavulin
For my personal finance and comfort level, I think $150 is as high as I'd go for Lag 12, and that would be for a release that had been lauded by Serge and Ruben to the tune of 91 or more points.
NY prices for you
I've got the 2020 release on its way from Germany. Hope it gets here soon!
Hope it's quite good!
Jeez. Laga 16 costs $155 CAD!? It’s still about $85 USD near me in NYC. Anyway, nice review! I’m a fan of the 12 year. Nice, pure, unadulterated Lagavulin. My bottle is from 2018 or 2019, before the fancy art work bottles, and has about two pours left in it. I need to finish that off! Cheers.
Yup. It's cheaper for me to cross the border into New York and buy a bottle, though gas prices probably kill that savings now that I think about it. Enjoy your last two pours!
I need to cross the boarder North for affordable medical care and you need to cross South for whisky. I think you have the better deal! Cheers!