There are very few independent Lagavulin bottlings. Most of them are sold under a different name (e.g. Classic of Islay, Vanilla Sky).
The label on this bottle contains a misprint. It says “distilled: January 1979 – bottled: May 1988” but also “19 years old”. It was released in 1998 instead of 1988. I’m quite sure Murray McDavid was not yet operating in 1988…
Lagavulin 19y 1979 (46%, Murray McDavid 1998, cask #MM8593, bourbon cask)
Nose: dense peat, but also rather sweet and perfumy at first. Vanilla. After that, more typical notes of diesel oil and seaweed. Camphor. Some lemon. Hazelnut. Interesting but not overly complex.
Mouth: sweet attack, fruitier than official Lagavulins. Soon becoming grassier and drier, with the peat taking over. Not overly powerful. Some cardamom. Rather bitter towards the finish (cloves, grapefruit).
Finish: medium long, peaty and smokey. Iodine. Slightly metallic. The bitterness is still here. A pinch of salt.
Good nose, but the taste lacks some complexity. I like most of the original Lagavulin expressions better.
Not available any more. Score: 85/100