Official Bottling Collab Review | 48% ABV

What am I missing?

Some context before we begin: I haven’t bought an official Diageo product in over four years. A boycott for all the obvious reasons, but not giving one jot about their customer base and treating staff poorly being the main ones.

And while I don’t want it to be the case, I’m not ruling out that deliberately ignoring Diageo might have unknowingly developed into a bit of a pet peeve over the years. I don’t advertise the fact that I stay clear of official Diageo releases, if only to avoid the risk of being labelled as a ‘Diageo hating hipster’. But, for the sake of this review, I think it’s relevant to know where I’m coming from.

I have a lot of love for a lot of their distilleries - and whiskies - but some of the decisions made in recent years at Diageo HQ really rubbed me the wrong way. When a few years ago they decided to cut off brokers and indie bottlers from some of their distilleries (weirdly Caol Ila being one of them), followed by another decision to stop providing peated malt from Port Ellen to non-Diageo distilleries, their entire strategy just stank of trying to create some sort of artificial scarcity while driving up costs for ‘competitors’. I’m not saying that’s actually the case, I’m just stating how it looked to me.

Add to that the shameless pricing of their annual Special Releases and the overnight doubling (at least!) of retail prices on Talisker 18 and Caol Ila 18, and I feel zero inclination to go out and support that. I’m also frankly baffled by the shortsightedness of some of these decisions, particularly where the ‘cutting off brokers and bottlers’ decision is concerned. Given the current state of the industry I’m really curious how long they will be able to maintain that one. The word is that, in a typically fickle turnaround, the taps are open once more.

I know their interim CEO stated they are putting a stop to deliberate premiumization and will be focusing more on revenue and profit through volume instead, but until I see some sort of price reset to normality, consider Earie out. I’m sure they are losing sleep over this micro boycott…

And as such, if anybody is affected it is of course me. You see: I love Clynelish 14, I appreciate Johnnie Walker Black as an easy sipper and it’s fair to say that both Caol Ila 12 and Lagavulin 16 were quite pivotal experiences in my whisky journey all those years ago. But with 160-ish operating distilleries and dozens and dozens of indie bottlers (who often offer incredible stuff from the likes of Benrinnes, Linkwood, Blair Athol, Teaninich, Glen Ord or others under ownership of Diageo), it has become very, very easy to ignore them.

All that said, and before this turns into a full-fledged rant, occasionally something official from Diageo does end up in my cabinet, by definition (and until further notice) in the form of a gift.

People by now know how I’m ‘somewhat keen’ on whisky and when they take the effort to actually gift me some, the last person I’d ever want to turn into would be that of a snob who wearily rolls his eyes when accepting a gifted bottle. Just how much of a stuck up, insufferable ass would you have to be to snub someone who takes the effort of gifting you something they know you actually love? Rhetorical question.

Or is it?

Review 1/2 - Earie

Lagavulin 8yo, Official bottling, Islay single malt scotch whisky, 48% ABV
£50-60 typically. This bottle was a gift

Score: 6/10

**Good stuff.**
***TL;DR***
*Good, but not good enough to plaster over greed crimes against whisky*

Nose

A truckload of citrus – lemons and orange peel a go-go, vanilla and (sweet) peaty smoke. It also offers an almost shy herbal/woody bitterness which leans into a savoury touch; revealing hints of mushrooms.

What’s interesting is how on the one hand it’s very bright, crisp and fresh yet at the same time it has this autumnal forest vibe going on. And to be clear; this contrast works really well.

Palate

Again, that combo of lemony citrus, vanilla and smoky peat at the heart and centre of it all. A hint of umami and wood lies beneath, this time. It may (unofficially) be non-chill filtered, but seeing how on the mouthfeel it is, unfortunately, a bit thin, I’m guessing some pretty heavy filtering has come into play, regardless.

Luckily this is somewhat made up for by a pleasant, long and lingering finish where echoes of ashy, sweet smoke hang around for quite a while.

The Dregs

If this would have offered just a bit more body and grip it would have merited a 7/10 in my book. Easily. But that is effectively all the negatives I can come up with.

If you are looking for a classic representation of Islay whisky, this may well cater to your needs. I will add that the price of this particular expression can be a bit all over the place, and that can’t all be down to different taxes on alcohol, surely. Typically, in Germany, you can find this for about €50 or even less (£42-ish), while in other markets I have seen this retailing for £66/€75 or even higher. Which is of course too steep and seems like a retailer might be capitalizing on those four words: ‘Islay single malt whisky’.

So if you’re budget aware, please do take this into account and be on the lookout for potential cheaper alternatives (Ardbeg 10 being the obvious one in my opinion) offering you just as much (if not more) in terms of that smoky and peaty Islay whisky experience. But I digress!

Even if I may be staying clear of anything official Diageo for the time being, I am very happy to have this bottle in my cabinet. It’s not blowing my socks off, but It’s absolutely engaging enough to satisfy me when I want to sit back and give my undivided attention to what’s in the glass; while I find it can just as easily be enjoyed if you want a classic smoky Islay whisky without too much ‘fuss’.

Just a nice, very decent smoky whisky.

Score: 6/10 EA

Review 2/2 - Archie

Lagavulin 8yo, Official bottling, Islay single malt scotch whisky, 48% ABV
£50-60 typically. This bottle was a gift

When the opportunity for a collaborate with another Dramface writer, who I respect very much, was offered, I jumped at the chance. It’s been a while since I poured myself a dram of Laga 8. So first off, huge appreciation to Earie for inviting me to tag along on his piece here.

I remember enjoying this expression, but it’s been months since I pulled it out of the closet for a pour. In fact, dust had settled on the bottle, so now is a great opportunity to compare old notes and see if the whisky stood up to what I remember. Also, a good exercise to check if my nose and palate have shifted in that time.

As I did with the Ardnahoe Cask Strength write-up I submitted that was also Wally’s Whisky-of-the-Year 2025, I didn’t peek at the previous author’s notes. I didn’t want to be influenced by any of their suggestions, good or bad. Plus, in my opinion, it adds more value for our readers, especially on collab pieces, that each writer can submit their own notes and scores without the bias of others. It offers a fresher perspective that I hope brings differing and unique views on the whisky itself.

Score: 7/10

**Very good indeed.**
***TL;DR***
*A better value alternative to its famous older sibling*

Nose

At first there’s lots of bright lemon-ey citrus, wood smoke, and a nice sea-salty maritime profile similar to Caol Ila, but with a bit more brininess and tang. Lemonheads candy. Peppercorns. Limoncello Lacroix. Hints of sweet peppers. Tangy Carolina barbecue sauce. Roast chicken. Yellow grapefruit.

The smoke isn’t heavy or rich, but light and engaging like a low campfire. There’s a maltiness behind the smoke and fruits like burnt wheat toast. Coming back there’s rock salt, lovely grassy floral notes, vanilla cream, and whiffs of chloraseptic spray.

Water brings vibrant, juicier fruits like fresh lemons, clementine oranges, and limes. Pork seasoning, roasted nuts, and a more layered smokiness reminiscent of a distant cookfire - like walking past a restaurant at lunch time.

Palate

A nice peppery bite. More briney-ness. Savory, white meat smokiness. Salt & Vinegar chips. Whole orange almond cake. Creamy and oily mouthfeel with a surprising thickness. Water brings Nilla wafers, lemon layer cake, green Lifesavers, and Halls honey and lemon cough drops.

There’s a long, lingering finish I like with more candied lemon and malted saltiness like snack pretzels and Triscuit crackers. I really enjoyed this more as it went along.

The Dregs

In anticipation for my first Dramface collab I’ll admit I threw myself into it. That meant a whole vertical Lagavulin experience. The core range 16, this 8, a 12 year cask strength I got on sale and a distillery exclusive bottle I received as a gift.

The more time I spent with this the more I realized I didn’t need to overthink it. Treating this as a stand-alone, it shines next to every other one in the lineup, especially the 16, which might be one of the most famous whiskies in the world.

I’m firm in saying I actually like this more than the 16. Part of me shakes my head at what “could be” if the Diageo overlords ever saw fit to craft-present their whisky, or what a phenomenal dram any of their expressions could also be at 48%. Alas, we’ll likely never know.

As mentioned, it’s been a while since I poured myself a dram of the Lagavulin 8. Going through my old notes I had written: “better than the 16, similar to Caol Ila.” Well, that was nearly a year ago and I have to say, I still agree with past Archie. I can’t help but compare its salty-sweet citrusy maritime profile to Caol Ila; in fact, poured blind I might mistake the two. Two Diageo powerhouses hobbled by a watered-down core range.

There’s no doubt this benefits from the higher ABV and at a cheaper price, is also the better bargain. For those starting their plunge into peated whiskies, or even the enthusiast pulling a dusty bottle from the back of the closet, to me there’s no doubt, this is very good whisky.

Score: 7/10 AD

Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. EA

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