A New Lowlands Distillery
Lochlea - Where Robbie Burns Lived!
Lochlea is a new distillery in the Lowlands region of Scotland. It is set in the area where Robbie Burns, Scotlands Bard, spent much of his early life. Robert Burns father William was a former tenant of 'Lochlie' farm in Ayrshire. Rabbie came there at the age of 18 and helped his father on the farm until his father's death in 1784. Robert Burns had to move away to Mossgiel Farm near Mauchline. And now almost 240 years later, a distillery has been built here and is producing some very fine whisky indeed.
I first learned about Lochlea on a trip to Lindores Abbey Distillery with my daughter. We spent a day walking around Edinburgh and she kindly bought me one of the first bottlings of Lochlea. Since then, I have treated myself to a few more bottles.
From Cattle To Barley
Lochlea had been a dairy farm for many years. Neil McGeoch bought the 222 Acre Farm with a herd of Simmental cattle in 2006. Neil and his wife, Jen, farmed their pedigree beef cattle until 2014, when they decided that for a farm of this size to be viable, they needed to do something very different.
In years gone by, much of the farm had grown barley as feed for the cattle. In 2015, Neil and Jen gave 50 Acres of their land over to growing barley as an experiment. They investigated the local barley malting houses and soon took the very brave decision to start their own production of single malt whisky - using their own home-grown barley.
From Piggery to Distillery
Construction began in 2017. The old piggery and other farm areas were converted to the distillery. The cattle sheds were converted to bonded warehouses. A borehole on the farm supplies the needed water. They secured all of the licenses in 2018, and the distillery was commissioned in August 2018. And since then, they have been growing barley and the distillery team have been making spirit.
Initially led by the experience of Malcolm Rennie, Lochlea is now under the management of ex-Laphroaig Distillery Manager John Campbell. Having been responsible for one of the top ten Scotch whisky brands in the world for over 27 years, John brought a wealth of knowledge and a burning ambition to assist Lochlea fulfil its potential.
Lochlea produces around 180,000 LPA (Liters Per Annum). Casks are filled on-site, approximately 30 per week, and they are stored in 3 bonded warehouses.
The Whisky
Lochlea produces a core single malt whisky, Lochlea ‘Our Barley’ and also has released several seasonal limited-edition whiskies. It is all made from barley grown on Lochlea Farm and is bottled at 46% ABV.
Production Director John Campbell has carefully honed this recipe using his years of experience, using a combination of first-fill Bourbon, Oloroso Sherry and STR casks.
Nose: Pear syrup, fruit bon bons, warm cut grass, marmalade.
Palate: Golden syrup, pepper, rye bread, macadamia nuts, cream soda.
Finish: Long finish with a lasting orange beeswax note.
Lochlea "Our Barley" costs under 50€ per bottle which for me is well priced. They have also started an annual series of cask strength whiskies. Lochlea Cask Strength Batch One is 60.1% ABV. It matured in first-fill Bourbon barrels and Oloroso Sherry casks that work particularly well at high strength, amplifying the fruit, nut and cereal flavours.
Nose: Fruit punch, cigar notes, coffee beans
Palate: Signature Lochlea fruit, Brazil nuts
Finish: Orange syrup, aged oak shavings
Batch One is on sale for around 60€ per bottle. I am sure that Robbie would be proud of developments at his old home!