Lagg is a newly opened distillery on the South Isle of Arran that was built in 2017, some 22 years after Arran distillery opened at Lochranza on the north side of the island. While Arran’s classic whisky style is unpeated,  they distill a small amount of peated malt every year for its Machrie Moor expression. In opening Lagg distillery on the south side of the island, Isle of Arran Distillers will shift all production of peated whisky to its new site, a distillery that will be dedicated to the exploration of peat. The Inaugural Releases are the first 3 batches of whisky to ever be bottled at the newly opened distillery. They introduce Lagg’s signature house style, a heavily peated whisky, made using barley with a phenol content of 50ppm.

Colour: Very pale – white wine/pale straw.

Nose: Medium intensity. A hit of earthy peat with slight medicinal note. A sweetness; caramels, vanilla tablet. There is also a slight herbaceous note.

Palate: Very mouthfilling, quite thick texture. The sweetness on the nose is still there, more butterscotch and malted biscuit. Vanilla tablet notes and a minerality to it.

Finish: Medium-long and very full. Nice warming peat that lingers but a bit more of that medicinal note is prominent.