| Rating | 27.7/40 |
| Origin | Scotland, Islay, South Shore |
| Distillery | Lagavulin |
| Owner | Diageo |
| Edition | Offerman Edition |
| Style | Single Malt |
| Peated | Yes |
| Cask | Re-filled and re-juvenated American Oak Barrels |
| Bottled | August 2019 |
| Strength | 46% (92 Proof) |
| Whiskybase | Whiskybase |
According to the marketing blurb this whisky was created in partnership with Parks & Recreations’ Nick Offerman. What exactly that partnership involved is not entirely clear to me. Nor does it matter much. I’m always up for trying a new Lag when one pops up. Which, unfortunately, does not happen all that often.
Nose: Fresh peat brightly leaps out of a box of thin mints. This is one of the rare noses with what I can only describe as horizontal geometry. That’s how my brain experiences it anyways. It seems to be wide rather than tall and slices into my head right through my sinuses. I like peat a lot but this feels almost a little… green? Is there such a thing as unripe peat? (6.9/10)
Palate: Again with this green quality of the peat. I like the sparkly brightness of it, but it lacks the depth and heaviness I most appreciate in my favorite peaty malts. And this one wears itself out quickly on my tongue. It sort of shrinks and vanishes there towards the center leaving next to nothing behind other than a mild burn. (5.9/10)
Finish: The very moment the whisky goes down it releases a voluminous cloud of peat smoke that finally no longer contains that green unripe element of itself. However, that cloud is also really just an overblown puff of bright smoke and quickly fades into seeming emptiness. After a few more moments, when things have calmed down, I suddenly discover a much quieter and richer, dark peat smoke that’s quietly accumulated deep down in my chest, accompanied by a little bit of mellow heat. Hey, that’s actually rather nice! (8.0/10)
Balance: The reward here is in the very distant last part of the finish. I really could do without those bright, young, unripe and green elements up front. And I’m not sure the finish of the finish is truly worth the effort given that I could just drink some Lag 16 or 12 cask strength or one of the Distiller’s Editions which I think are much, much more rewarding overall. (6.9/10)
