Lagavulin 8 vs 9 - Does one year make a difference? Let's find out!

[@SippersSocialClub]

Did this same review, pretty much came to the same conclusions. The 9 slightly reminded me of the 16. Thought the 9 probably had some sherried whisky in it, but I scored the 8 higher.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Interesting!

[@VikingShaver]

I actually prefer the 8 slightly over the 16. Just slightly though....both are amazing peated whisky.

[@SippersSocialClub]

@@VikingShaver Ive had some 16s that are better than others, and I agree that the 8 can be better for sure

[@welshtoro3256]

Keep your eyes open for other Lagavulin. It turns up in unnamed independent bottles. I have a 10 year Islay cask strength aged in wine barrels by North Star. The general consensus is it's Lagavulin. The Ileach (unnamed Islay malt) is also thought to be Lagavulin. The Cask Strength NAS is a beauty and dirt cheap. Ardbeg and Caol Ila also turn up in unnamed Islay releases.

[@Tantrum777]

Pog

[@NickVolk]

Wow folks! I' been lookin' forward to getting this comparison for years! Thanks a lot!)

[@bartdamen2161]

The maturation of the 9 is ex-E150a containers...

[@trooperhenry5274]

Gentlemen thanks!! Great review as always. This has been on my mind for quite some time now an FINALLY... y’all have gotten me straight on all of these great whiskies!!! But right now that 9 -year old has got me in its sights it’s so hard to put down! I will see y’all tonight!!

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Thanks TH. Good luck on the 9. You won't be disappointed.

[@budmathewspodcast]

I would pour the 8 and 9 together and make a lagavulin 17!

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Ha! You guys are crafters!

[@maboy1994]

The 8 and 9 together would make an 8.5???

[@Openmindallthetime143]

It soukd actually end up 8 1/2

[@Openmindallthetime143]

@@maboy1994 damn i said that too and yes w.e are right also matters if bottles are newly or pre opened.

[@TheSuperTrickey]

Followed your channel for a little while now, and really enjoyed this recent video. It has a different style to it, and your channel now seems far more versatile, offering plenty of different ‘flavours’ in video design/format. Love the 4 dummy vids, the long live chats and the 2dummy contrast videos. Awesome video guys!

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Thanks - I think we're going to do a lot more 2 dummy videos coming in the future. Stand by and thanks for the input. -Drew

[@pjmacneil8406]

I agree with a few drops of water in the 8 changes it and for me it is for the better - much better on nose and taste is different and better too.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

I like them both and the water on the 8 really opens it up for me. For sure two different bottles here. -Drew

[@Kasperkatballe]

Awesome video guys! Now I can't wait for the 9 to release in Denmark.

[@Kiltedmoose]

Great video, boys. Looking forward to trying the 9 when it launches over here in February. Cheers.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Can't go wrong with the 9 Moose. It's delicious! -Drew

[@welshtoro3256]

It's up on MOM right now. I'm going to give it a miss. Got my eyes on some Indi Laphroaigs.

[@ripilot17]

Compared the two myself last week. Agree with pretty much all of what you said. The 8 has that classic peaty iodine flavor i expect from a young Lagavulin. The 9, which I really do enjoy, just doesn't scream Lagavulin to me. It's smoother, more approachable, and less of a punch in the face with the peat. And slightly sweet, almost like it has some light sherry influence to it. Both are great whiskies, but I prefer the 8

[@Scotch4Dummies]

I think it just depends on your mood. Both are really great IMO. -Drew

[@jimidrammer4187]

All i needed to hear. Thought it was nearly identical to the 8 so I've been holding off. The 9 is $65 vs $55 for the 8, I'm going to get one now, sounds like the difference is noticeable. Thanks guys.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Very noticeable. Thanks for stopping by!

[@NightDog351]

Excellent review!! I actually have the Lagavulin 16 year in a glass here as we speak, I do also have the Lannister 9, have not tried the Lannister yet, can't wait to do my own personal comparison as you guys did here.. Cheers!!

[@Scotch4Dummies]

I've killed a bottle of that 9, just love me some vulin!!! :-) ~Mark

[@NightDog351]

@@Scotch4Dummies Update: Finally picked up the Lannister 9 year and tried it.. Was a little strong on the palate, alcohol-wise, but pretty good.. However, I did enjoy the 16 year age more.. Just not the price.. lol

[@sowlegwhiskyreview5501]

I did the same comparison with the Rotgut guys and I couldn't agree more. The 9 is much sweater and much more akin to the 16. There must have been different casks involved and possibly even different cut percentages. Great review! And actually a nice change having just the two of you there - less of a party but more of a conversation I guess.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Cheers SOWLEG!

[@ghostfactory5305]

Being a Lagavulin fan and a Game of Thrones fan, the Lagavulin 9 is liquid beauty in a bottle. The 8 year is different, but also very good.

[@FermentedGrains420]

Aa s Jvy t vt6vg6vy

[@courtcomposer]

Great review. Thanks.

[@michaeltabor4176]

What a difference a year (and a crappy finale) makes. I found about 6 bottles of the GoT 9 year for $25 a bottle on clearance. One of the best deals I've ever seen.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

No shit, helluva deal!! ~Mark

[@kerino1]

Really appreciate this video. Great job, gents!

[@Scotch4Dummies]

thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment! -Drew

[@gabrielg490]

Great comparison! What's with the background music? It sounds like music from those old driver safety videos that they put on at the DMV; I'm waiting for flashcards to pop up.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Yeah yeah, you're not the first to mention it. Duly noted for the future. I wish KZbin gave us the ability to modify and upload again without messing with stats. Unfortunately, we have to start over. Hope you can get past it for this video. Thanks! -Drew

[@kazakus]

Like Drew’s pinpointed tasting notes, probably has something to do with his musical mindset - gotta remember those notes (pun intended). Mark is eloquent as always. Great review fellas!

[@johngilbert9420]

thanks so much for doing this

[@charlesmontgomery3701]

No mystery here. Got nothing to do with age or abv. Like all scotch it comes down to the casking. 8 and 12 ex bourbon. 16 and 9 (and distillers edition) have some sherry cask involvement. It’s all about the barrels...

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Thanks for sharing!

[@georgekaplan5073]

Totally agree. The 8 and the 12 have the same parents, and are cousins to the 9 and 16. The 9 and the 16 also share the same parents. Looking forward to doing some head to head comparisons myself. Oh, and I need to snag that 8 year regular release as I only have the 200y anniversary. Cheers guys!

[@Hogibaer]

My thoughts exactly. Must say I love the 'untamed' style of Laga 8 and 12 very much, makes them more exiting than the 16 in my book. Interestingly the style is not as much about ageing as it is about cask differences, e.g. last year's Laga 18 Feis Ile was more of a refined 12 than 16 yo. As for the 8, be glad for the anniversary edition, it's supposedly better than the regular release. I only know the 200th edition and like it very much. If you do too, better stock up on the former if still available. ;-)

[@clintondeabreu8565]

Interesting you mentioned rose, as I was linking it to imported Turkish Delight.

[@fasstaerke]

strange with the price, in germany the 8yo is around 50€, the 9yo GoT is around 75€. the 16yo is often even less than 50€

[@darkoanton5]

In Canada, it's $85 for the 8, $110 for the GOT9 and $135 for the 16 and they are rarely on sale and if they are it $5-10 off.

[@WhiskyNeighbour]

Great video. I would love to do a comparison across those 3. Lagavulin is so good :)

[@sd3gunner]

do you guys know if there is a difference between the 2016 anniversary 8yr vs the new standard release???

[@welshtoro3256]

These are all great drams but....the Lagavulin 12 sets the standard. I would rather keep my money and put it towards another bottle. Just bought a replacement of the stellar 2013. Excellent review guys.

[@CountryRock2k1]

I have the 9 and 16 here along with Ardbeg 10 and Laphroaig 10. Definitely getting floral on the nose of the 9. It's not too far off from the 16, but I think the 9 nose is close to Laphroaig 10 too.

[@clintondeabreu8565]

Thanks, never been a fan of the 16, so will try the 8yo as it’s so different, prefer an edgier whisky. great review

[@Scotch4Dummies]

If you want it "edgier", than the 8 is for you. I really can see the youth in it! ~Mark

[@moose7611]

The changes between these (2) makes me want to have a full range with every year - 8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16.....

[@lippy22]

I have the Lagavulin 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 16, and 16 distillers edition. I do side by side comparisons with them regularly. Each one is distinctly different from one another. It's such a fantastic distillery.

[@franklampard6316]

Now you’ve got me thinking. I bought the Laga 9 more as a collection item and thinking it would be the same as (or at least very similar to) the 8 year but I’m now tempted to crack it and have a taste. Nice review, guys!

[@Scotch4Dummies]

You'll but another! 😉

[@franklampard6316]

Scotch 4 Dummies - I would buy another but they’re all sold out now. It will be interesting to see if Diageo does another batch of GoT or maybe go with another theme?

[@coreymartin-bigpoppa1377]

Do you think the Lagavulin 9 yr is Distillers edition cask? I’m sure it is !!! 👍

[@Scotch4Dummies]

That's a good question. Not really sure as we don't have the DE at hand. I will say it's a baby 16. -Drew

[@coreymartin-bigpoppa1377]

Scotch 4 Dummies get yourself a DE and I bet u agree

[@mjanovec]

It's important to remember that the 9-year age statement only refers to the youngest whisky in the bottle. There could easily be older casks in there to round off the whisky to achieve a desired flavor profile. Same goes for the 8-year old, though I'm inclined to believe the 8-year is mostly (if not all) 8 years old.

[@aimee2234]

Fun watching!

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Great seeing you here Aimee. Someone hit her LIKE button!!!

[@Hogibaer]

Great comparison I've been waiting for. From what I've heard you say about the Laga 9 (Europe release date: Feb 2019), the Laga 9 is akin to Laga 16, whereas the Laga 8 bears more similarities to the Laga 12 imho. Another thing is that the Laga 8 supposedly got a bit rougher since its regular release and was somewhat higher quality as the 200th Anniversary bottling. But fortunately as their distillate is just great, it's really hard to find a bad Lagavulin. :-)

[@Tantrum777]

What to do what to do? Buy the 8 buy the 9 buy the 16 and then discover that the 12 is best of all and buy that too (if you can find it) I have also had the distiller's edition many times and that is my least fav.

[@ernestclayton8550]

9 is better! Laphroaig quarter cask is better than the 8! Love the 9 house of Lannister!

[@trhoads07]

Head to Head. :D Mark's Bar? Just head Drew say "he as a bottle behind the bar" so it must be Drew's bar. Just looks different from other videos. Great review video and I agree the 9 is quite a bit different than the 9. I like the 8 or it's raw characteristics and the 9 brought some refinement. Maybe the 1 year or part of the year was in a used sherry cask/but.

[@TheOneGlassMan]

Spot on guys .... thx

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Love Lagavulin! ~Mark

[@patrickhogue8790]

Here in California I can get the 16 for $65 and the 8 for $50 both and are regulars in my cabinet. I also have the Distillers Edition. I saw the 9 at two different stores for $85 and $90... not worth it for the GOT hype.

[@foodquig]

If cost were no object I'd just drink the 12... Since cost is often the object, an 8 or 16 does the trick. The GoT version is probably not available here. I have not looked in liquor stores much in the past two months...

[@rolfgris5931]

From what I’ve seen the 9 is matured in first fill bourbon casks.

[@Raymaster7482]

Thx for this video :-)

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Thanks for supportin' us! ;-) ~Mark

[@Raymaster7482]

@@Scotch4Dummies It's my pleasure!

[@coreymartin-bigpoppa1377]

42.00 for the 8 year in my area. That’s my pick!!!

[@Scotch4Dummies]

That's a no brainer!

[@motorola7947]

Where is your area? :D

[@coreymartin-bigpoppa1377]

@@motorola7947 Minnesota

[@keithjensen3810]

Oh Happy Day! Lagavulin all the way. How in the heck did you keep the other two away from this tasting? Maybe they were hogtied and gagged on the floor behind the bar? That's the reason for the music; to cover up the $@#%* muffled sounds they were making. Thanks :0)

[@Scotch4Dummies]

I like that excuse, SDD. Mark and I did a quick video as we had a ton of viewers ask for this and the other dummies were busy at the time. However, after the fact we think we like the idea of doing more videos from time to time with just 2 dummies to be bit different. We will see! -Drew

[@MattStarkRealEstste]

This and this, that and this. Be specific guys, 8yr vs 9yr etc.

[@CRMSIN]

very surprised that the resident peat head andrew isnt in this vid

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Yeah, they're not happy about it. It was a quick hitter and they were away at the time.

[@jb4948]

What? out pops the 16!!

[@keithrose4227]

Please lose the weird background music

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Duly noted! -Drew

[@johnnyszumlanski6882]

Between the 46 & the 48. I know this is 1 % difference I can do the math 😂

[@Sundre-AB]

1 % difference between 43-46% vs 46-48%. All good with his math 😉

[@SuperDutchjohn]

Had the 16 year old, big disapointment, here in the Netherlands you can have the 16 for 45 euro's, there must be a reason for that, the 8 years old starts around 60 euro's (!!!)…..still have a full bottle of the 8 years old, will taste it in time but I already know that it wins by a mile over the 16...…..and I am sorry, I am not into that Game of Thrones hoax, that to me is a simple commercial advertising trick......I would go blind for the 8 years old, simply because I had the 16, and the Game of Thrones I don't trust!...…..And frankly, the Lagavulin 16 looses already to the Ardbeg 10 by a mile (mind you, this is all personal!)…...…..thumbs up from the Netherlands anyway for the entertainment!!

[@leonidasspartan9842]

The 8 reminds me of Ardbeg 10

[@maboy1994]

Love love love the 9: 1) beautiful nose 2) great palate 3) but why the fake color? Scotland, please stop adding color to your whisky😠😠😠

[@JackOfAllBladesCh]

True, but at least it isn't like Canada who can add up to 9.5 % additive flavors and colorants.

[@maboy1994]

@@JackOfAllBladesCh what is this? Shame on you Canada

[@Openmindallthetime143]

They were feeling nice by time the last two bottles

[@Scotch4Dummies]

We're always feeling nice after drinking - part of the fun! :-) Thanks for stopping by...

[@Openmindallthetime143]

Lol im drinking 9 yr right now reminds me of love

[@bedlamborn]

I cannot listen to this episode as I dislike the music in the background. Is is so unnecessary and it detracts from the conversation.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

Duly noted for the future. See my comment above. Wish we could remove it but it's too late. Hope you can get past it for this episode.

[@Diesel0807]

Ditch the obnoxious music

[@gipsyavenger9829]

9 - Win- DONE!

[@RomainRiviere]

Worst backup music ever. I thought you were about to do magic tricks from the 80s.

[@Scotch4Dummies]

The 80's is where it's at! lol!

[@muffineyes]

I agree, music have to go. The content stand on its own

[@Scotch4Dummies]

@@muffineyes I agree now that I've watched it again, and thanks to Roman I feel like a card trick should happen. :)

[@RomainRiviere]

@@Scotch4Dummies haha, i'm sorry, i was more used to hearing good jazzy tunes on your videos.