Lochlea Our Barley

Sydney Whisky Show May 20th 2023. Whisky #9 Nose: Fruity (orchard fruit, stone fruits, citrus), hay, fragrant grass, grape juice, honey-covered cereal snack bars and some wood notes from the casks. Palate: Mildly sweet arrival with vanilla cake, peaches and caramel sauce. Spice notes show up in the development which gains complexity over time with diverse fruit and grain flavours coming forward. The texture is full but also a little astringent. Finish: Medium/short. Spicy (pepper, tannin), grassy and slightly honied aftertaste. This was the second Lochlea I tried on the day, following their Sowing Edition Second Release. Overall, I thought this one was similar but more grassy and herbal on the nose and with a broader and more complex palate. However, whereas the Sowing Edition was a bourbon-matured whisky with a certain direct honesty of presentation, this one seemed to me very deliberate and engineered. It was matured in a combination of first-fill bourbon, oloroso sherry and STR casks and I could clearly distinguish the contribution of each cask type as a separate and disconnected facet. Although it was not at all unpleasant I thought this whisky was crying out for longer maturation and an extensive rest in a marrying tun to meld everything together. As it is, the seams show through. Still, it's a pleasant young whisky and worth a taste. “Above Average” : 80/100 (3 stars)

A large helping of carrot cake with thick cream cheese frosting on the nose. The palate is a heaping forkful of the cake with a surprise piece of pineapple. The finish is fruit and baking spice.

Banana and marmalade on the nose. Very light body, slight caramel and hints of nuts/spice very short finish. Smooth but boring

Light but flavorful. Sherry not very pronounced, but blends well with other flavors for a complex palate.

Imagine a Cattle Farm. That is what this distillery was back in 2006. By 2015, the owners decided to transform the Piggery into a Whisky Production facility. Quite the dream. Lochlea was allegedly the farm where Robert Burns lived. And now, it is one of the newest Whisky distilleries of Scotland. Bottled at 46%abv., this is the core expression. Golden color. On the nose, it still feels a little young. Acetone, canteloupe, Salt and pumpkin. Peaches and air freshener. A couple of sips released a wet vanilla cake. On the palates it is all about apricots and honey. Sweet peach halves. Aftertaste is more of the same profile. Peaches, cotton candy. Almost spicy, it feels like hot Honey. Overall, i believe that this very young whisky is a good spirit that in the upcoming years will manage to be a very interesting single malt. It is not a bad dram, but it lacks complexity and maturation to become more round. This is a nice product that should be watched closely in the future for better crafted expressions. My score for it is 77 over 100.