Lagavulin 8 Year

Impressions @ neck level: The nose carries the wonderful Balblair aroma of ripe peaches in syrup, but overlaid with the white smoke of a newly lit bonfire at the beach. The youth shows itself on the palate with a pleasant zippiness, but the flavors are surprisingly muted. It begins with iodine and smoke before transitioning to a mild tannic note of black tea with lemon, and then a more vegetal eucalyptus-like note . The finish is medium in length, but shorter than the proof would suggest, lingering on the aforementioned herbal and vegetal notes. Thought it's not as close to the 12 year as I had hoped, this is great value at $50, and it compares favorably to Ardbeg 10 and Talisker 10 for me. Laphroaig 10, though, remains my entry-level go-to for this style and price range.