Right off the bat, I’d like to say that I’m very excitable and when writing a post, I have to calm down and try not to jam everything into ONE post. With that said, there is a lot of great stuff to say about: Lochlea, the region; Lochlea, the distillery; and Lochlea, the Fallow Edition whisky. So, I’m going to chat briefly about each and look forward to some more detailed future posts with more details.
First of all, let’s talk about the region. The lowlands is fertile farming territory, great for growing… wait for it… barley! It is here in Lochlea that the one and only Robert Burns farmed and poemed in the late 1700s. He wrote, “to plough and sow, to reap and mow,” which is a fantastic toast to help you appreciate your good fortune born of your own hand before you drink your Lochlea whisky. Read “My Father was a Farmer,” by Robert Burns, written in 1782 for a ton of other great lines about the noble act of farming from the bard. On a little personal note, the first scotch I fell in love with many years ago was an Auchentoshan, also a lowland, so when I heard of this new distillery in the same region, I was very excited.
Secondly, let’s take a quick look at the Lochlea Distillery, in the scotch biz since only about 2018. According to their website, they have brought on a wealth of experience in hiring John Campbell, formerly of Laphroaig, as distillery manager. One exciting tidbit: at Lochlea distillery, they grow their own barley for their whiskies. So you’re connected to that wonderful, fruitful land with every drop. They use a hands-on approach with everything done on site and you can definitely taste the labour of love in the Lochlea whisky that rings true to the words of Burns. In fact, the top of their whisky bottle says “Dare to be honest, and fear no labour.” What a great touch — though I’m generally lazy, I like to read things about hard work.
Finally, let’s get to this particular expression: the Fallow Edition. Purple label and deep Oloroso Sherry colour. I had to go back to my liquor store a few times because this bottle kept selling out. Luckily, they had a tasting bar and this one was in the opened selections. What a treat! I could have planned ahead and had them hold one for me, I suppose, but I’m not very good at planning ahead. When I finally landed one, I almost opened it in the car, but then remembered how illegal that would be. At home, we tried it and it suitably impressed.
The nose is loaded with fruit — apricot nectar and prune compote. Apples and pears bubble in the background like their being made into jam.
On the palate, the fruit continues but is married with cereal and a hint of straw like the fallow fields in fall. Fruit, fall, fallow, fields. That’s a lot of Fs. Let’s through in fine finish.
Speaking of the finish. It leads into a bit more floral flavours (I’m stuck on F). I want to throw in filberts, but that might be a stretch.
To sum up… this is a great bottle to warm you up in autumn. It’s bottled at 46%, is non-chill filtered, and it’s natural in colour that is rich from maturation in Oloroso sherry casks. It comes in around $80 Canadian in Alberta, which means you pay a bit more in less fortunate provinces like Ontario, where you also have the Leafs. Sorry.
I look forward to more great stuff from this exciting new distillery making the lowlands region burst with excitement.