islay_emissary
Lagavulin Distillers Edition (2023 Release)
Single Malt — Islay, Scotland
Reviewed
October 26, 2023 (edited May 11, 2026)
Lagavulin’s Distillers Edition was first introduced in 1997 with spirit laid down in 1979. Back then, it is reported they took their 16 year-old core release and double matured it in ex-Pedro Jimenez (PX) wood casks for up to an additional 2 years. Traditionally, however, aging held steady at a total 16 years until it dropped to 15 with the 2021 Edition. Then in 2022 the Distillers Edition removed its age statement altogether to become a NAS (no-age-statement) expression (pictured).
Lagavulin’s nonuse of the word “sherry” for all of their Distillers Edition releases since 1997, simply means they have probably been using ex-Pedro Jimenez wine casks from outside the Sherry Triangle and unable to use the “sherry” designation. Usage would require adherence to Spanish regulations and the same applies to the term “sherry cask” since 2015. In brief, the PX grapes used to make sherry must be aged and processed in this geographical triangle in southwestern Spain. PX grapes grown outside this area can still be used if shipped in. Also, the wine must be aged for a minimum average of 2 years for solera style or a full 2 years for single-barrel vintage aging. Additionally, to be a certified “sherry cask,” it must be seasoned with “actual” sherry for a minimum of 1 year.
The region most notable for growing Spain’s PX grapes is Montilla-Moriles, which has its own “denomination of origin,” or legally protected designation. Their wines are every bit as good as those produced in the Sherry Triangle, so, for Lagavulin, it’s just a matter of semantics and an opportunity to save on costs.
Indulge in this latest offering neat and it gives hints to its heritage. Add a few cubes and the palate turns slightly metallic leaving one to question the product’s integrity relative to its predecessor. Still a good whisky, just no longer “great,” in my opinion.
110.0
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per
Bottle
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My comment of 10/29/23 below mentions one instance of the word “sherry” found on their website in reference to this product. It has since been removed. Very disappointing!
@Slainte-Mhath - thanks! Unfortunately, all those 2021 boxes in the photo are empty. Cheers! 🙂🥃
@islay_emissary Excellent summary. The downfall of Diageo products does not stop at their special releases, the decision to drop the age statement on their Distillers Edition further confirmed that I won't buy any of their releases in the future. I have quite a few old bottlings left, always good to have a stash.
@cascode - maybe I’ve been jumping to too many conclusions. I just checked out malts.com and Lagavulin is using the words Pedro Ximenez Sherry in their advertising for the Distillers Edition. Looks like there’s another edit coming. 🙂🤷
@islay_emissary An excellent summary article - thanks for reposting the URL. I've come across all that information previously but not so well distilled (ha ha) into one article. It should be compulsory reading. Cheers!
@cascode - Thank you! In the original post, I did include a good article on regulations governing sherry production and history of transit casks. I dropped it in subsequent edits because linking and copy & paste are still nonfunctional with this app. https://www.whiskynotes.be/sherry-casks-in-the-whisky-industry.pdf Until Lagavulin starts using the word “sherry” in their advertising, no telling what they are using to season their casks.
@islay_emissary Tl;dr – This reason for your impression of over-dilution and lackluster quality with ice could be that it’s not as “densely-packed” with flavor as it used to be. A significant change in palate due to temperature is related to brix, both the degrees brix of sugar present (as perceived sweetness changes a lot with cooling) and also the degrees brix of dissolved congeners. So basically, the density of tasty “stuff” present in the liquid will affect how tasty the whisky remains at lower temperature. Everything core-range bottled by Lagavulin since roughly 2000 (maybe 2005 at the absolute latest) has been aged in seasoned casks rather than the old-style transit casks and it’s arguable that these do not contribute the same amount of soluable congeners to the whisky (the degrees brix of sugar is, however, probably the same as it always was). Up until 30 years ago sherry transit casks contained top-notch sherry intended for eventual sale as a premium product and the cask was just a high-quality oak container that eventually became saturated with excellent sherry. Nowadays, the focus is on making the oak container itself and the sherry used for seasoning it is one of many manufacturing parameters, and it is never the top-grade drinking stuff, so even if it is left to season the casks for a considerable time it simply does not have as much to give.
@PBMichiganWolverine - I was hoping to draw on your chemistry knowledge. My fear is that Lagavulin may have shortcut the seasoning process and used immature PX. Reminds me of a few years back when Mezcal was the rage. @cascode and I had unopened bottles that were a year old and when opened, they had lost all of their smokiness due to instability.
@islay_emissary not the least bit….but our resident expert @cascode might know
@PBMichiganWolverine - US drops the tariffs and the still go up on the prices. Any thoughts on the LagaDE stability issue?
And yet, prices have skyrocketed up