Lagavulin 10 Year Old - That Boutique-y Whisky Company - Batch 3 - 2017 Release

Lagavulin is one of the classic distilleries on the southern coast of Islay, famed for their heavily-peated single malt whisky. Situated between Laphroaig and Ardbeg on the road from Port Ellen to Kildalton, Lagavulin is often considered the most stylistically elegant of the trio, perhaps because its entry-level 16-year-old is generally more nuanced than its neighbour’s standard 10-year-olds. Lagavulin’s house style also embraces a strong sweetness alongside its phenolicity.

Lagavulin has been a staple of United Distillers/Diageo’s regionally-themed Classic Malts range of single malt whiskies since the series first appeared in 1987. The distillery’s relatively low output and long ageing requirements mean that stocks must be carefully husbanded and independent bottlings of Lagavulin are therefore exceptionally rare, although some superb long-aged examples have appeared from The Syndicate, a mysterious cabal of Islay insiders.

That Boutique-y Whisky Company is an independent bottling subsidiary of Atom Group, the company that owns Master of Malt and Maverick Drinks. That Boutique-y Whisky Co.’s first bottlings appeared in 2012 and are easily recognisable by their small bottles and garish cartoon labels depicting oblique references to each distillery’s history and characteristics. The company does not reveal the whisky’s vintage on their labels, and only began using age statements in 2016.

That Boutique-y Whisky Company are prolific bottlers, with over 800 releases in their first decade. The company are also distinguished by the innovation of their offering, particularly in regard to world whiskies, and are often the first UK bottlers to release whiskies from new world distilleries. That Boutique-y Whisky Co.'s parent company Atom Group was purchased by Budweiser brewers AB-InBev in 2018; in 2024 the takeover was reversed when Atom bought themselves back.