Loch Lomond 12yo...

Loch Lomond 12yo (46.0%): Loch Lomond 12yo is now one of the three twelve year old single malt whiskies in the distillery's recently revamped single malt portfolio besides Inchmurrin 12yo and Inchmoan 12yo right above their NAS expression "Original". With thirteen stills of four different kinds in total, an entire stand alone grain distillery and a cooperage on site and a whopping 30 million liters combined capacity of pure malt and grain alcohol per year Loch Lomond Distillery is truly one of a kind in Scotland. They produce a variety of single malt and single grain whiskies as well as blended ones using different peat levels and casks of different origins... And especially after the acquisition of the distillery by Hillhouse Capital Management last year and as a result of that all the new financial resources and markets they have been offered to the future of the brand looks brighter than ever. Enough talk... Let's pour some Loch Lomond 12yo to our glasses and start our horizontal Loch Lomond tasting today soon to be followed by Inchmurrin 12yo and Inchmoan 12yo.

Color: Medium amber, orange blossom honey color with fast but pretty thick and oily legs.

Nose: Used car tires, baked apples and maple syrup. PX Sherry, unstruck matches and Meyer lemons. Airing helps a lot, no sulphury and rubbery aromas to detect after a while... Overripe pears, candied orange peel and apricot nectar. Breakfast cereals with a lot of honey on, copper pennies and bitter greens It's a thick, syrupy and quite enjoyable nose.

Palate: Surprisingly weighty and thick mouthfeel. I actually don't have any clue why for some reason I expected it being rather thin. Maybe because of its price..? Odd.. Anyway, moving on: Wet wool, dandelion leaves and chamomile ice tea. Bunsen burner, plastic food containers and pear compote. Very Bowmore-esque... Cookie dough, cream soda and toasted oak. Charcoal and vanilla.

Finish: Medium to long with white pepper, ground ginger and grape seeds. It gets bitter and tannic at the very end.

Overall: I am pleasantly surprised... This is an incredibly satisfying single malt for the price you pay. Definition of a perfect session whisky, good to pour any time of the day and easy to drink. Great companion to a pint of ale in your local watering hole while you are chatting with your friends and having a good time. It's such a shame that this bottle wasn't under my radar before but it is now... Definitely recommended if you are looking for a decent dram that won't break the bank.

Price: $35

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