Review #49: Lagavulin 9 Year (Game of Thrones House Lannister)

Distillery: Lagavulin

Region: Islay

ABV: 46%

Age: 9 Year

Price: $65

Color: 0.8, Deep Gold. Most likely color added and chill filtered.

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Nose (according to the wife): She hates the smell of this mostly for the major burnt rubber scent (I didn’t think it was that bad). Along with it, there is a bit of leather, smoky peat, and a smoldering firewood. There’s a tad bit of strawberry hidden near the end as well.

Palate: As expected, there is a nice helping of peat in the form of both smoky and medicinal variants. After the peat, the dram turns out a lot sweeter than expected with some honey and strawberry jam. The mouthfeel is a bit watery/thin which is a real disappointment. With a bit of water, a bit of brine comes through which plays nicely with the sweetness.

Finish: Medium. A bit more of the smoky peat appears and really travels up into your nose toward the end. It’s a bit nutty with the smallest hint of brine.

Conclusion: When I first heard about these Game of Thrones limited editions, I was worried we’d get some really un-interesting/cruddy drams out of it. This one, surprisingly, was pretty decent. The smoke up front in the nose is nice and the little pops of strawberry play nice with it. The palate, while a bit thin, was very pleasant again thanks to the strawberry. Overall, not bad.

Final Score: 81

Scotch whisky review #49, Island review #5, Whisky Network Review #66

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Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection.
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.