Lagavulin Distillery: History, Owner, Range and Visitor Guide
Updated: 24 hours ago
Lagavulin is an Islay single malt distillery with a long and tangled history, a famous 16 year old and a place in popular culture. This guide covers where it is, how it began, who owns it, its range and your most common questions.
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Lagavulin at a glance
Distillery fact | Verified detail |
|---|---|
Distillery / brand | Lagavulin |
Whisky region | Islay, Scotland |
Ownership (October 2026) | Diageo |
History | Licensed distillery founded in 1816; local illicit distilling predates it. |
Expressions to explore | Lagavulin 16 Year Old and Lagavulin 8 Year Old |
Visiting / editorial note | ScotchWhisky.com lists opening from 9am (10am November to February) to between 4pm and 6pm depending on the season, with shorter Sunday hours outside March to… |
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Where is Lagavulin Distillery?
Lagavulin is in the village of Lagavulin on the south of the Isle of Islay, Scotland. The name is an anglicisation of the Gaelic Lag a' Mhuilinn, meaning hollow of the mill.
Lagavulin history
The distillery officially dates from 1816, when John Johnston and Archibald Campbell Brooks constructed two distilleries on the site. One of them became Lagavulin. Records show illicit distillation at as many as ten illegal distilleries on the site as far back as 1742.
John Johnston ran the distillery until 1835. It was then taken over by Alexander Graham, who installed his son Walter Graham as distiller. Later John Crawford Graham entered a partnership with James Logan Mackie, who was in charge from 1856.
Peter Mackie joined his uncle's firm in 1878 and became sole partner in 1889. In 1895 the businesses amalgamated as Mackie and Co (Distillers), which blended the White Horse brand using whisky from Lagavulin. White Horse won Royal Warrant appointment as purveyor to King Edward VII in 1908. Legal battles followed with neighbouring Laphroaig, after Mackie leased the Laphroaig distillery.
Buchanan Dewar acquired the firm in 1923 and the company joined Distillers Company in 1925. Guinness acquired Distillers Company in 1986, and Guinness merged with Grand Metropolitan to form Diageo in 1997.
Who owns Lagavulin?
Lagavulin is owned by Diageo. It was previously marketed under the Classic Malts range, which is now defunct.
Distillery managers
Georgie Crawford, 2010 to 2018
Colin Gordon, 2018 to 2020
Pierrick Guillaume, 2020 to 2022
Jordan Paisley, from 2022
Stills, water and production
Stills: two wash stills of 11,000 litres and two spirit stills of 12,500 litres.
Water source: the Solum Lochs.
Capacity: 1,400,000 litres.
Casks: bourbon and sherry.
Distillation is known for its slow speed and pear shaped pot stills.
Lagavulin range
Lagavulin 16 Year Old: the standard bottling, at 43% ABV.
Lagavulin Distiller's Edition: finished in Pedro Ximénez sherry casks.
Lagavulin 12 Year Old: a cask strength release, issued regularly.
Lagavulin 8 Year Old.
Older and rarer expressions including 21, 25, 30 and 37 year olds.
Lagavulin Offerman Edition: an 11 year old.
Check the official Lagavulin page for what is currently on sale.
Interesting facts about Lagavulin
The 16 Year Old won four consecutive double gold medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition between 2005 and 2008, and gold medals in the years since.
Lagavulin is the drink of choice of Ron Swanson, played by Nick Offerman, in Parks and Recreation. Offerman later appeared in Lagavulin commercials and the distillery issued an Offerman edition.
Lagavulin also appears in The West Wing, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery and The Expanse.
In the card game Slay the Spire, Lagavulin is the official name of one of the elite enemies.
Distillery manager and team
Jordan Paisley is Lagavulin's Distillery Manager, according to the Lagavulin pages on Malts.com. He was appointed in April 2022, after working for Diageo as a performance improvement lead since 2019.
Lagavulin production facts from the trade record
Stills: four plain shaped stills. ScotchWhisky.com gives a wash still charge of 10,500 litres and a spirit still charge of 11,500 litres. The Single Cask quotes about 11,000 and 12,500 litres for still size.
Washbacks: ten wooden washbacks, fermenting for a minimum of 55 hours.
Water: Lochan Sholum, which The Single Cask says runs down through peat before reaching the mash house.
Malt: heavily peated, mainly malted in house according to ScotchWhisky.com. The Single Cask says the malt comes from Port Ellen Maltings at roughly 35 ppm. The sources differ.
Strengths: new make at 68 to 69%, filled at 63.5%.
Capacity: The Single Cask says about 2.5 million litres a year and notes older references of 1.4 million.
The distillery runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week to meet demand, and the second distillation is very long to maximise reflux.
Lagavulin history in more detail
John Johnston started legal distilling at Lagavulin in 1816. A neighbouring distillery on the site was bought in 1825 and merged in 1837. Alexander Graham bought the business in 1836 and James Logan Mackie and Company took it over in 1862 according to ScotchWhisky.com, so the exact handover years vary between sources.
Peter Mackie first came to Islay in 1878 to learn distilling and took control in 1889. He created the White Horse blend in 1890. In 1908, after losing the agency for Laphroaig, he built a replica distillery called Malt Mill at Lagavulin. It ran until 1962 and never reproduced Laphroaig. A fictitious cask of Malt Mill is the central prize in Ken Loach's film The Angels' Share. Mackie died in 1924 and the company became White Horse Distillers, joining Distillers Company in 1927.
The distillery closed during part of the Second World War, suffered a fire in 1951 and decommissioned its floor maltings in 1974. The old maltings now house the visitor centre and offices. Lagavulin 16 Year Old was selected as one of the six Classic Malts, dated 1988 in the trade timeline and 1989 elsewhere on the same page. Diageo has owned it since 1997 after United Distillers (1986) and Distillers Company before that.
Independent bottlings
The Single Cask states that Lagavulin casks essentially do not reach independent bottlers, with Diageo reserving the make for official releases, the Special Releases and festival bottlings. ScotchWhisky.com notes that ageing is mainly in refill casks, with some ex-sherry casks used in small controlled releases and a higher strength 12 year old released annually.
Visiting Lagavulin
ScotchWhisky.com lists opening from 9am (10am November to February) to between 4pm and 6pm depending on the season, with shorter Sunday hours outside March to October. Lagavulin sits on the A846 east of Port Ellen. The 2016 bicentenary included an 8 year old release. Recheck hours and booking requirements before travelling.
Official website
Sources
Photo credits
Image of Lagavulin Distillery. Photo: Charlie Marshall via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0). Photo source · Licence
Lagavulin bottle range and expression comparison
Bottle / expression | Age | ABV | Cask maturation / notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Lagavulin 16 Year Old | 16 years | 43% | Producer and release specifications may change; consult official sources. |
Lagavulin 8 Year Old | 8 years | Check label | Producer and release specifications may change; consult official sources. |
Lagavulin Distillers Edition | NAS / varies | Check label | Producer and release specifications may change; consult official sources. |
Bottle releases and visitor arrangements change over time; see original research and official sources.
More whisky distilleries to explore
Frequently asked questions about Lagavulin
Where is Lagavulin distillery?
In the village of Lagavulin on the south of Islay, Scotland.
Who owns Lagavulin?
The distillery officially dates from 1816, though illicit distilling is recorded on the site from 1742.
When was Lagavulin founded?
The distillery officially dates from 1816, though illicit distilling is recorded on the site from 1742.
What is the standard Lagavulin bottling?
The 16 Year Old, bottled at 43% ABV.
What does Lagavulin mean?
It comes from the Gaelic Lag a' Mhuilinn, meaning hollow of the mill.
Sources and latest checks
Whisky Clan has retained the original researched history and source notes above. The comparison table lists documented expressions, not guaranteed current stock. Please check the producer's current bottle labels for strength, cask details and availability.
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About the author
 | Filip Janczak Storyteller, drinker and explorer of all things whisky. Read more about the person behind Whisky Clan and explore additional reviews and distillery guides. |
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