tasommer
Lagavulin 16 Year
Single Malt — Islay, Scotland
Reviewed
January 30, 2020 (edited February 8, 2020)
"Hey, you put your Heath Bar into my barbecued brisket!"
"No, you put your barbecued brisket into my Heath Bar!"
Ah, the gentle, smokey sweetness of the Lagavullin 16 will have you playing this dialogue over in your head.
Sometimes, just a little of something adds up to just enough of everything; if you want a little bit of attitude, a little bit of smoke, little bit of sweet (a pure sweet, not a fruit-based sweet), and a little bit of an almost jerky-like meat flavor, all adding up to a golden jewel, this is for you. In some senses, this is the exact line between plain and perfect, though it may be too plain for those -- like me -- who want a single malt to take a stand, to be fierce, to demand you attend to smoke, fruit, oil, iodine, or bite. Lagavullin 16 doesn't do that: It doesn't take a stand, except to aver that it is graceful, clear (but not bright), musical (but not loud). It is very much Goldilocks' perfect middle bed, and if you're in the right mood, and want a little bit of everything without being overwhelmed, this is just right.
Now, one caveat here: leave Lagavullin 16 on the tongue and in the mouth for a little while, and a far more rich and complex experience arises, hinting at apple sauce, tobacco, and old, cracked leather; but you have to search for it, it's like an easter egg.
I rate this so high because there is no doubt Lagavullin 16 is a treasure; but it's the kind of spirit that is going to accompany memorable experiences, not create them.
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