The Lochlea distillery has already made a name for themselves as a farm-based operation, with their flagship release being called “Our Barley” – this is a whisky we have reviewed before (see our write-up here) – celebrating the key ingredient for their whisky that they grow on the very farm. There is a tractor tread embossed into each bottle, and they have released a quarterly range that celebrates the different seasons and activity on the farm. Here we have the second edition or “crop” of their Fallow season release – celebrating the autumn months when the fields are left to fallow after harvest season.
Another key fact to know about Lochlea is that this is a farm where a young Robert Burns once worked, and so, I have been saving a dram of this corker to celebrate Burns Night with.
For the Fallow edition, the team at the distillery have led with a sherry maturation charge. This particular “Edition “crop” features their spirit matured in two different types of sherry, with a 55:45 split between Pedro Ximénez and oloroso casks.
The final whisky has been captured in that tractor tread bottle at 46% ABV, and is currently available around £50 GBP for a full-sized bottle. At the time of writing, the 3rd crop is also now available at a slightly higher price (£51 GBP) but having been aged in just oloroso casks for a longer period than the first two releases, albeit none of them with an age statement – a focus on flavour (and colour!) instead.
Nose
A big, sticky, sweet start to proceedings. Raisins and grapes. Sticky toffee pudding. Floral honey. A lovely stem ginger spice.
Taste
Quite a cloying and mouth filling start. The ginger spice and sherry cask influence really get the tastebuds going. Fruity desserts is the name of the game here. Raspberry Bakewell. Sticky toffee pudding. Jamaica finer cake and custard.
Finish
More red fruit sweetness and juiciness but there’s a slightly bitter aftertaste and drying oak note.
Verdict
Put simply: this was delicious. I really enjoyed it. This is an example of a distillery using their available stocks to produce something tasty without necessarily relying on their age. Here the sherry casks and decisions made by John Campbell and the team just manage to keep it light, flavourful and packed with so much fruit. There’s a superb colour on this one too, which shows those active casks at work.
From the Lochlea releases that I have tasted to date these guys and girls can’t seem to do wrong and they don’t seem to need the tenure. In fact the lack of age probably plays into the hands of this one by keeping it fresh and not having an overly dominate oaky profile that some solely sherry-matured whiskies can have.
Given the link to Robert Burns, I kept this dram behind to follow up a Burns Night Supper on January 25th. I actually used an Edradour 10 in the whisky sauce, and kept this Lochlea behind to basically enjoy as my pudding (no cranachan this year – just drams!) and it worked really well. Not too cloying or claggy – just big fresh fruit. A new Chieftain o’ the Puddin-race!
M
Dram disclosure: This sample was received as part of the Master of Malt Pour & Sip paid subscription service. All notes are intended as an honest, fair, and independent review of the whisky, and not as a promotion. Please drink responsibly. Please drink wisely.
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