Ah, mysterious Loch Lomond distillery. They have so many imprints and sub-labels, it's hard to get a grasp on their full output... but I have had some really amazing stuff from them over the past couple years, and it's fair to say that they are on the rise these days. Their profile is definitely higher than it's ever been.
This is the 12 Year expression (thank you to Rob Martin for the sample), matured in three cask types: first fill bourbon, refill bourbon, and "recharged" bourbon (I assume this means shaved-toasted-recharred), and bottled at 46% - which is a nice touch, thank you Loch Lomond. Let's dive right in:
Nose: Very much a Highland nose: dry, somewhat salty, leathery, slightly sour, unripe fruit, a little hay, a little smoke, vanilla/toffee, uncooked pastry. Very solid.
Mouthfeel: Viscous, medium body.
Palate: Brown sugar, bitter scorched orange peel, herbal notes, light smoke, burnt oak, white pepper, a bit of alcohol heat. Uncooked dough. Solid.
Finish: A bit too brief - wisps of smoke, light oak, light pepper, apple turnover, unripe plum. Gone before its time.
Verdict: The word I keep coming back to is "solid." This is priced pretty aggressively and in the price range it's aiming at, it's very good. This easily competes with the other "baseline 12s" of Glenmorangie, Glenlivet, and Glenfiddich. Loch Lomond may not be pulling out all the stops with this bottle or anything, but this is still exceedingly drinkable Highland scotch.
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