A Scot on Scotch

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A Scot on Scotch reviews a Lady of the Glen Lochindaal Islay single malt Scotch whisky, produced in 2007 at Bruichladdich Distillery.

Lovely Lochindaal

From Mull to the Pentland Skerries, from Skye to Colonsay
From Staffa to Iona and the sands of Castlebay.
Each island has its magic, which holds men in its thrall
But always in my dreams, I’ll see the lights of Lochindaal.

– Lights of Lochindaal by Iain Simpson

Loch Indaal is a sea loch on Islay with a coastline of around 35 miles. The villages of Bowmore, Bridgend, Bruichladdich and Port Charlotte line its coast and much of the Eastern shore comprises the Big Strand, a six-mile-long sandy beach, popular with tourists and locals alike.

The beloved folk song describes the moonlight, twinkling and dancing on the loch and having spent a few evenings in Islay, I can certainly relate. The island has a magic that tends to stay with you and there has been one or two Bowmore sunsets that I’ve found particularly hard to shake off. In fact, should you ever find me, perhaps in a whisky bar, lost in quiet contemplation, with a glass of something peaty in my hand, there’s a very high probability that my consciousness is lingering on the shores of Loch Indaal.

In the early days of Bruichladdich’s new millenium rebirth, they produced a heavily peated spirit, of around 50ppm, and named it Lochindaal. With the establishment of Port Charlotte and Octomore as the distilleries core peated brands, however, the Lochindaal name has somewhat fallen out of favour. Thankfully, the spirit is still around in limited form, and many of the casks that were filled back in the day have found their way to independent bottlers like Lady of the Glen, and from there, to the glasses of eager whisky lovers.

Lady of the Glen Lochindaal 2007 Review

The whisky was distilled in 2007 and bottled in 2024. The spirit was filled in a bourbon barrel before being transferred to a Tawny Port Cask. It’s bottled at 59.4%.

Tasting notes: The nose isn’t immediately smoky – it has a lightness, and a softness. There’s some fruity berry notes along with some coastal stuff, like sea shells and a touch of brine. Subtle smoke coming through with some oranges, lemons, barley and toffee. On the palate, meanwhile, there’s fudge and salted caramel then oak and black pepper, then right at the back there’s some smoke and shellfish – like all the flavours of the Atlantic! There’s also some woody spice in there and some jammy fruits.

Thoughts: What’s really interesting here, is that I can’t really compare this with anything else from Bruichladdich. It’s fair to say I’ve had a few Laddies’ over the years – whether it be the Aqua dram itself, or Port Charlotte or Octomore – but this one seems to be different. Perhaps that’s an age thing. The vast majority of peated Bruichladdich I’ve come across has been younger, punchier. I suspect this Lochindaal started off fairly powerfully but it has mellowed over 16 years in the cask – and then been further sweetened by the port finish. Speaking of the finish, it could very easily have overpowered the mature spirit but it’s been skillfully handled and the balance is spot on. Balance is a key word here – even the peat isn’t as in-your-face as you might expect. That’s probably another sympton of age. Altogether a highly enjoyable dram.

Price: £215. to put it bluntly, single cask Bruichladdich is a pain in the arse when it comes to price. Add the supposed scarcity of Lochindaal and you’re in double trouble. That’s what happens when you’re popular – people will pay silly money for a piece of you. That’s very much where we are with Bruichladdich these days. Annoyingly, though, the whisky coming from the distillery seems to maintain its high standard, for the most part and this Lady of the Glen release is no exception. Fantastic dram but likely out of the price range of most every day whisky drinkers.

For more about Lady of the Glen visit here

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