Lochlea Our Barley / Lochlea Sowing Edition

Lochlea Our Barley is the first expression to join the standard Lochlea Single Malt in the distillery’s core range. The whisky comes from a combination of ex-bourbon casks and ex-Oloroso sherry butts, as well as STR barriques,

 

Lochlea Our Barley (46%, OB 2022)

Nose: starts like a white wine, in a sense. Lime and crisp apples, with a hint of peach and pear. Fresh fruit salad with a drop of honey. Then some grist appears, with orange peels as well as pencil shavings. Hints of ginger ale and fresh grass too.

Mouth: slightly fuller than the nose suggested. Still these bright orchard fruits, as well as golden raisins and lemon zest. Nutmeg and cinnamon, as well as a hint of rye bread. Then almonds, barley sugars, ginger and a touch of white pepper.

Finish: short to medium, on cereal notes and slightly sharp wood, with a hint of vanilla.

There’s always the same dilemma with young ‘pop-up’ distilleries. On the one hand they make a technically perfect whisky that tastes better than a 3-year-old should. On the other hand they charge more than, say, a 12 year old Tomatin or Glengoyne. Nice to try, but maybe not a whole bottle yet. Still available from Abbey Whisky or The Whisky Exchange for instance.

 

On to Lochlea Sowing Edition. This is crafted from first-fill bourbon barrels from Makers Mark, located high up the warehouse where there is some extra heat for faster maturation.

 

Lochlea Sowing Edition – First Crop (48%, OB 2023)

Nose: creamier and sweeter. Vanilla custard, peardrops and breakfast cereals with honey. Still some bright green apple, unripe banana and hints of lemon. Then shortbread and hints of Play-Doh.

Mouth: still a sweeter take on this spirit. More vanilla custard, caramel apples, sweet lemons and plenty of grains. Then some hazelnuts and almond oil. The woody note seems a little more plankish here, you really get that raw bourbonny edge with a faint spirity edge in the end.

Finish: long, spicy, mostly on ginger and allspice.

Richer in some respects, but also showing more youth and more wood. I could see this work in a highball, but I’m not sure the increased ABV is an asset. In fact the second edition is down to 46%. That one is still available from The Whisky Exchange or TyndrumWhisky, among others. Score: 82/100