Lochside 1991 | 18 Year Old | Old Malt Cask

Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Lochside 1991 bottled by Dougals Laing for the Old Malt Cask range.

Tasting Notes : (F)
Nose: Old fashioned hairdressing? Spiced, Grassy and Gristy
Palate: Subtle with mocha + an oily, nutty and barley quality
Finish: Warm spices + vanillapods + burnt pancake.

Tasting Notes : Angus

Lochside 1991 18yo. Douglas Laing OMC. 289 bottles. 50%. 70cl. Refill Hoggie.

Colour: Straw gold.

Nose: Immediately flinty, slightly mentholated and fruity with some lovely clean malt underneath. There are hints of that classic Lochside tropical fruit character coming out now, bits of melon, mango and pineapple, a delicate fruit salad really. Some tart citrus aromas as well, very delicate and beautifully composed nose this. It doesnÂ’t seem to develop too much further but what is there holds together really beautifully and is so aromatically delicious that it doesnÂ’t really matter, a minimalist poem of a nose. Some delicate wisps of oily hessian and coal now, also something like waxy honeycomb as well. A fragrant floral aspect develops after a while as well. I wouldnÂ’t want to touch this with water, it seems so fragile yet composed.

Palate: Very dry and savory on the palate at first with freshly baked whole meal bread and lemon rind. Then becomes delicately sweet towards the swallow. Seville orange marmalade and some simmering spices, there is also a slightly unfortunate flavour of rotting orange peel but its not too overpowering, in fact given time it disappears. There are also some rather pleasant flavours of nutmeg and delicate vanilla, pastry, licorice and a slight herbaciousness. My only real qualm is that it lacks more of that Lochside trademark fruitiness.

Finish: medium length but quite warming and leaves a pleasant dry fruitiness behind.

Comments: I feel the palate let this one down a bit but the nose is still gorgeous. A pleasant Lochside that shows snapshots of its glorious past and just how amazing it can be when it wants to be. I suspect like all distilleries it suffered from the modernisations of the late seventies and eighties.