This 10 year old Lochside was bottled at some point in the 1980s and was the only official malt whisky bottling of Lochside distillery during its lifetime. A rare opportunity to try a whisky that is only becoming harder to find.
Lochside distillery was mothballed in 1992, completely demolished in 2005 and in the years since has become a highly sought after malt.
The whisky was bottled at 40% abv.
Our Tasting Notes:
Nose: Gooseberries. Damp orchard. Scented washing up liquid. Sour apple sweets. Vanilla custard.
Palate: Nutmeg. Candied mango. Powdered ginger. Wet leather.
Finish: Dry oak. Caramel brittle. Wet hay.
Lochside Distillery – Closed
Was it a castle? A whisky fortress? A giant-discoloured-tower-wall-thingy overlooking Montrose? Well, Lochside was perhaps all of those as well as being an excellent Highland distillery in its time.
What most people don’t realise is that Lochside’s iconic design was modelled after a classic German Brauhaus – very fitting considering Lochside was a brewery from 1786 until it was converted into a distillery in 1957.
For a period during its lifetime Lochside produced both malt and grain whisky and was responsible for coining the phrase ‘blended at birth’ – a process where malt and grain new make is mixed before maturing in oak. This technique was developed for Lochside’s own ‘Sandy Macnab’ blend, until founder Joseph Hobbs died in 1964. It is worth noting that some consider the Sandy Macnab blend to have been one of the finest blended whiskies ever created.
Unfortunately, after Lochside was incorporated into the Allied Distillers portfolio (now Chivas Brothers), it was quickly deemed surplus to requirements and was mothballed in 1992, with the last bottling taking place in May of that year. The site was then sold to developers, with the distillery warehouses being demolished in 1997.
Tragically, the iconic tower was never registered under monument protection and in 2005 the remainder of the distillery, including the tower was demolished and replaced with a housing estate.
This 10 year old Lochside was bottled at some point in the 1980s and was the only official malt whisky bottling of Lochside distillery during its lifetime. A rare opportunity to try a whisky that is only becoming harder to find.
Lochside distillery was mothballed in 1992, completely demolished in 2005 and in the years since has become a highly sought after malt.
The whisky was bottled at 40% abv.
Our Tasting Notes:
Nose: Gooseberries. Damp orchard. Scented washing up liquid. Sour apple sweets. Vanilla custard.
Palate: Nutmeg. Candied mango. Powdered ginger. Wet leather.
Finish: Dry oak. Caramel brittle. Wet hay.
Lochside Distillery – Closed
Was it a castle? A whisky fortress? A giant-discoloured-tower-wall-thingy overlooking Montrose? Well, Lochside was perhaps all of those as well as being an excellent Highland distillery in its time.
What most people don’t realise is that Lochside’s iconic design was modelled after a classic German Brauhaus – very fitting considering Lochside was a brewery from 1786 until it was converted into a distillery in 1957.
For a period during its lifetime Lochside produced both malt and grain whisky and was responsible for coining the phrase ‘blended at birth’ – a process where malt and grain new make is mixed before maturing in oak. This technique was developed for Lochside’s own ‘Sandy Macnab’ blend, until founder Joseph Hobbs died in 1964. It is worth noting that some consider the Sandy Macnab blend to have been one of the finest blended whiskies ever created.
Unfortunately, after Lochside was incorporated into the Allied Distillers portfolio (now Chivas Brothers), it was quickly deemed surplus to requirements and was mothballed in 1992, with the last bottling taking place in May of that year. The site was then sold to developers, with the distillery warehouses being demolished in 1997.
Tragically, the iconic tower was never registered under monument protection and in 2005 the remainder of the distillery, including the tower was demolished and replaced with a housing estate.
