I'm not a whisky drinker, but my brother collects, and drinks it. He's very familiar with the distilleries and ex-distilleries on Islay, in fact he will the going there on Friday for a couple of weeks.
As for your dilemma, personally I would read up and try to figure out whether I would enjoy it. If I thought it might not be my cup of tea, I would gladly exchange it for a pile of cash that would buy something to satisfy my more modest tastes. If I liked the sound of it however, well...