The Islay Whisky Festival is around the corner, and even if you're not planning a visit to the Isle, the iconic Islay distilleries have cooked up some limited edition bottlings to vie for.

Lagavulin Distillery would be presenting two limited edition Fèis Ìle 2024 releases aged 29 years and 10 years respectively.

The Lagavulin Skies of Fèis Ìle 29-Year-Old celebrates the brilliant displays of aurora borealis in the night sky of Islay. This has been finished in heavily charred Amoroso (seasoned casks. Also known as cream sherry), Amoroso is a sweet style of Sherry that offers a balanced sweetness and richness, often with figs, chocolate, dried fruits and roasted nuts. Lagavulin says that this would provide some "intense fruity notes".

This would retail at a RRSP of £2,500. Only 250 bottles are available, and a limited number would be available at the festival, each one personally hand filled and signed by Distillery Manager, Jordan Paisley.

“As good as it gets! This is a hugely satisfying and complex whisky and a superb example of Lagavulin, whose distillery character still shines through its considerable age and unique finishing.”

– Charles MacLean, whisky expert, on tasting the Skies of Fèis Ìle

The next bottling appears to be a lively and and powerful one. The Lagavulin Fèis Ìle 2024 10-Year-Old is made from a batch of extra-heavily-peated stock that was last seen during an exclusive tasting event at the distillery.

This whisky is made from malt with higher peating levels, then matured in refill, heavily charred and first fill ex-bourbon American oak hogsheads casks.

This would offer "savoury maritime nuances of iodine and dry seaweed with an underlying strong smoke", and would stay true to the beloved Lagavulin profile while tuning it up a notch.

The 10-Year-Old is bottled at 56.7% ABV, with a RRSP of £175, with an outturn of 1,800 bottles.

Diageo - the parent company of Lagavulin - would be making available the Lagavulin Fèis Ìle 2024 10-Year-Old on its official retail site, malts.com, from next month onwards.

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team