Nose: Warm, oily malt extract, over-ripe fruit, rich dark soil. There’s a background note of orange but I don’t get any peat smoke from this – maybe an ashen or dusty aroma from either the distillate or barrel char, but it is very light and completely overshadowed by the big fruity malt character. Palate: Creamy, oily, sweet malt arrival with background notes of stout or porter. In the development there is toffee, dark fruit, oatmeal biscuits and a hefty, meaty flavour like spinach stewed in beef bouillon. Towards the finish I tasted buttered raisin toast, a pinch of salt and faint smokiness. This has very good weight … it’s a very full-bodied dram with mouth-coating oiliness. Finish: Medium. Sweet with a touch of balancing earthy sourness. Very satisfying. This is a surprisingly big whisky with authority and a mature quality that is unusual to find in an inexpensive NAS. It's malty, dense and very west-coast highland in style. It seems to be better than the last time I tasted it a few years ago. I doubt very much they are using older whiskies in the blend but something has changed. It has a similarity to Ben Nevis and it makes me suspect that Loch Lomond is the undisclosed supplier of malt whisky for the contemporary Nevis Dew blended scotch that is made by Ben Nevis using largely outsourced whiskies. I like this a lot. It has honesty, a down-to-earth quality and is lip-smackingly satisfying. It’s not a delicate, nuanced whisky but rather a big-hearted malt powerhouse that is pleasant to sip but cheap enough to use as a mixer. If you tasted this a few years back and were not impressed I'd recommend giving it another try. Tasted from a 3-pack of 50ml official distillery samples. “Above Average” : 81/100 (3 stars)