At For Peat' Sake you are the whiskey expert. All of our whiskey reviews have been submitted by whiskey drinkers like you who want to help others by sharing their experiences. We encourage you to help us grow by signing up and reviewing the whiskey you drink.
Finlaggan Old Reserve Reviews
- Distillery
- Finlaggan
- Style
- Single Malt
- Release
- Unspecified
- Age
- Unspecified
- Alcohol
- 40% abv.
- Region
- Scotland, Islay
- Bottled For
- Distillery
Finlaggan is very much the secret Islay, as the name of the distillery from which it comes is a closely guarded secret and known to only a select few. Only those who have sampled Islay malts over a long period and who are familiar with the subtle differences of nose and taste, could begin to guess at the pedigree of this true son of Islay.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Pale amber
- Nose
- Band aid, light peat
- Body
- Light oily
- Palate
- Iodine, band aid, light peat
- Finish
- Long finish, too long.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by San Diego Drammer
- Color
- Deep Amber
- Nose
- Strong peat smoked, sea salt, ocean, slightly medicinal, iodine, leathery
- Body
- Light to Medium.
- Palate
- Smoke and peat, earthy, a slight cereal sweetness, very smooth.
- Finish
- Smoke smoke and peat! Fades into a more medicinal note. Short to Medium finish, with lingering peat and smoke.
A young, peaty Islay. An astounding deal for the price of 18$ at Trader Joes. Whether it be Caoil Ila, Lephroig or Lagavulin, it's undeniably Islay. Big peat, big smoke, young, lacking in complexity, but very smooth, drinkable and effective at what it does.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- pale amber
- Nose
- Good Smoke and Peat.
- Palate
- peat, sea salt
- Finish
- strong
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- light amber
- Nose
- Dreadful
- Body
- Big
- Palate
- Trademark Islay peat and sea salt, touch of honey, but also some nasty hydrocarbon and rubber. No sulfur is present though, so this isn't an off barrel, it's just not A-game whiskey
- Finish
- Terrible. The charming peat and sea salt give way to this whisky's true colour, which is a reminiscent of a swamp on a contaminated industrial site
I am reviewing the cast strength 56%. The comments below do not apply to the 40% bottling, which I have yet to try. Based on the 56%, the 40% is not high on my list though!
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- amber
- Nose
- smokey beyond belief
- Body
- like a stale cigar
- Palate
- not mine
- Finish
- horrible I would like the old Trader joes scotch back
smells like a dirty cigar and tastes like it too...ackkk
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Pale Amber
- Nose
- Lightly peaty, lightly iodine
- Body
- Gritty
- Palate
- A slight touch of peat and iodine, Chinese Cassia, and
- Finish
- Coarse finish that evaporates quickly.
Cheap but not enjoyable. Save up for a bottle of smooth and rich Lagavulin. Finlaggan is a bland watered down Islay.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Judgecrater
- Color
- Pale amber.
- Nose
- Peat smoke.
- Body
- full
- Palate
- peat and smoky
For those that enjoy Islay malts this will be a treat. Similar to Laphroaig and Lagavulin. I have been enjoying this scotch from Trader Joe's at $19 a bottle for years and find it very consistent. At one third the price of the big boys it is excellent. If you don't like Ardbeg or Laphroaig, you won't enjoy this either.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Light Caramel
- Nose
- Wet Tarmac Road, Bananas, Strawberries
- Body
- Smooth and light.
- Palate
- wet peat, sea salt, with a light flavor of burnt rubber.
- Finish
- Very short and wet finish.
For the under $20 price, this is a MUST buy IF yo are an Islay lover. I drank this in a taste test side to side with my 16 year Lagavulin: Its very similar, but watered down in Comparison. It's like a watered down Lagavulin. Past reviewers who compared it to Gasoline should stick to their bud light beers.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- just over straw,pale green/gold
- Nose
- big big peat hit,nose prickle if you linger too long ,rubber doggy toys,inner tubes, but a fishy hint,and a bit of mint,does remind me of a caol ila crossed with ledaig,
- Body
- smooth yet dry, can't really call it oily
- Palate
- smokey and dry, peat an iodine rule,slightly salty
- Finish
- medium finish but very dry and salty, slight burn and hint of pepper/spice
If you are into Islays you are in for a treat
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Light Yellow
- Nose
- Earthy
- Body
- Thick and Rich
- Palate
- Hot Peat
- Finish
- smokey, strong and long
My favorite so far , but have tasted only a few.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Pale amber.
- Nose
- Reminiscent of laphroaig 10 y.o. but not as strong.
- Body
- Medium body.
- Palate
- Very tasty, reminds me of laphroaig but not as strong - decent enough.
- Finish
- Peaty finish. Warm and tasty. Highly drinkable. If you want to start your peat exploration, this is a good start bottle.
Great bottle. Has braille on the bottom of the bottle for the blind. Excellent. Finlaggan is the first bottle I came across who's taking consideration for the handicapped. Nicely done. This is a big point booster.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Amber
- Nose
- Peat, mild smoke
- Body
- Surprisingly light and delicate for an Islay
- Palate
- Peat, iodine
- Finish
- Relatively short finish. I disagree with a reviewer on one web site who suggested this had a bad aftertaste. No such aftertaste discerned.
I've tried most of the Islay Scotches and am fond of the Laphroaig 10, Caol Ila 12, and Lagavulin 16. Given the price, I had to give this one a try, especially after reading one reviewer's "gasoline" description. Now I can't say whether this is a Lagavulin cast-off, as some contend, or a Laphroiag or something else, but I can say that it is excellent -- not at all like gasoline or any other form of motor fuel. As Islay Scotches go, in fact, the Finalggan is downright mild-mannered, and I do mean positively shy and retiring. This is a rather light Scotch, smokiness notwithstanding. You want gasoline, you go with the Ardbeg 10 year old. That stuff is in-your-face gruesome, a bitter mouthful of bog. The Finlaggan Old Reserve is to the Ardbeg 10 as a ballerina is to a professional wrestler. For Islay Scotch drinkers (something Mr. Gasoline obviously is not) this is a real bargain. Buy it!
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Wet straw.
- Nose
- Mild cedar, pinesol. Peat, dried dulce on a beach. A nose only appreciated by the initiated.
- Body
- Silky. Cough medicine.
- Palate
- Clover honey, smoke, almond extract.
- Finish
- Enveloping and lasting. Radiant warmth.
This is old reserve owned and bottled by Bruichladdich. It's not Lagavulin per se as some have surmised here, but it does have those honey notes and the thick legs that you'd expect there. It is sold by Bruichladdich on the island and there is a bit of a hint that it was bottled by Bruichladdich in that Jim MacEwen is quoted on the box. It is a great bargain because you are getting the best of all Islay worlds: peat, seaspray and honey.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- warm amber
- Nose
- light peat and earthy
- Body
- soft, somewhat light with a satisfying aftertaste -- more refreshing than most Spesides
- Palate
- complex and hard to pin down -- subtle
- Finish
- not as warm as expected but also not harsh
I like this whisky. Am not an expert, but have been to Scotland several times and have tasted my share
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Commander Whitehead
- Color
- Pale amber
- Nose
- so much like an Islay four times the cost!
- Body
- Robust, mouth feel of a fine brandy or cornac,superb
- Palate
- smoke,peat,sea foam, with a touch of black oak
- Finish
- Long finish, so much like Lagavulin it is scary
Two fingers can be enjoyed by the fireside with a good book,I loved it!
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- amber
- Nose
- Horrid hospital iodine
- Body
- Bites and then I pucker and wish I never tried it.
- Palate
- Just as well drink gasoline
- Finish
- Long and strong, and with this scotch whiskey, long is a bad thing.
I tried it briefly and poured it down the drain.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Lagavulin
- Nose
- Lagavulin
- Body
- Lagavulin
- Palate
- Lagavulin - with a bit more smoke and lacking a hint of richness
- Finish
- Lagavulin - slightly shorter and drier than the 16 year old.
I actually have two bottles of Finlaggan - one of them is the 40% "Old Reserve", which is unabashedly and unmistakably Lagavulin. The silliness about the "most secret distillery" is all utter rubbish. There is no mystery, other than its age. Compared to the standard 16-year bottling of Lagavulin, I'd guess this at ~12-14 years, since it doesn't quite have the same richness or length of finish. Now the other bottle I have truly _is_ a mystery. It's a cask strength (56%) bottling, which is both (a) unrecognisable, and (b) undrinkable. It is horrible, HORRIBLE stuff--not just poor or bland, but aggressively unpleasant, unbalanced, and just plain nasty. Everyone who has tried it agrees--we'd rather be drinking cheap rye than this cask bottling. If 50 is the lowest score, than that's what this would get. However, it galls me to assign a value of 50 to this stuff. AVOID!
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- dark amber
- Nose
- peaty, earthy, farmlike; smells like the Irish countryside, smokey, verdant
- Body
- full, astringent, dense. I absolutely love the way this stuff smells; I regularly put my face into the glass and inhale.
- Palate
- peat, iodine, smoke, grassland
- Finish
- The finish is warm and long. It has an enjoyable aftertaste which subsides very gradually.
Admittedly, I'm not a scotch connossieur. I've come to this recently and have drunk some example of speyside, some blendeds, some Kentucky bourbons (some cheap, some expensive) but this is the most interesting and satisfying bottle I have in my bar. I've gone through 2 bottles and stocked up on a few more, The taste and smell are not to everyone's tastes, but if you like complexity and something which tastes organic/of the earth and soil, this is a good place to start.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- Golden
- Nose
- Heavy smoke, earthy, grassy
- Body
- Smooth
- Palate
- sea salt, the moor
- Finish
- Warm to the end, dry after taste
I disagree with some of the other reviewers. This is pretty good islay and you can't beat the price at Trader Joe's. I may have an overwhelming bite at first, but when opened up with a tablespoon of room-temp water and left to breathe for a moment, it's quite delightful.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Anonymous
- Color
- amber, slightly pale
- Nose
- Smoky but a sharp petro distillate background, like creosote. Yes, I get the "rubber tires" too.
- Body
- med. full
- Palate
- Tastes better than it smells. Has a bite but not too much. Can't compare to Jamesons or Bushmill for smoothness. No more raw than Knob Creek.
- Finish
- A good long finish.
I drink Irish & US whiskies mostly. I don't prefer the smoky scotch but I can appreciate it done well. This isn't it. It has a lot of flavor but the aroma is off in a big way.
Finlaggan Old Reserve
Review by Jsokol
- Color
- Light Amber
- Nose
- strong peat aroma mixed with fresh manure and compost
- Body
- raw and dangerous.
- Palate
- Rubber Tires, Aluminum pots, horse dung, high discordant,
- Finish
- more of the same, oxalic acid
Very strong peat but mixed with other stuff. This is barely drinkable, Not smooth at all. Really jarring and unenjoyable.