Campbeltown Loch 2021 Blended Malt - Whisky Review 149 

There is nothing more delicious than the tears of a flipper 😂 I think this is good stuff at the price it sells for. Ticks a lot of the same boxes as Shackleton but better presented. Send me a crate and I'll see about getting you some of those seagulls 😂 Cheers Jeff 🥃

It's very nice that we have something from Springbank that's available. Enjoy! 🥃

I salute your blending endeavours! You can do so much with just the tiniest drop of peated whisky 👍

It's been a long while since I've seen Springbank in stock anywhere! That's a nice touch from the distillery. Very responsible. I was thinking the other day that it'd be good if distilleries would sell us special releases unsealed to prevent resale. If you're buying it direct then it shouldn't need to be sealed and it'd mean that drinkers find it easier to buy. Of course it probably won't happen because many distilleries put sales (flippers or drinkers) above all else! 😕

very interesting, I believe that too. All experts (You, Ralfy, etc) speak about how difficult it is to find such products there in Great Britain, but here in Austria very few have the knowledge, therefore it is for us whisky enthusiasts easier to go to a big supermarket and buy some good stuff.

Wow, that’s a great price. Springbank must not care for us Americans since I can’t find the 10 for less than $110 before tax 😞

@@neilrobertson6849 Yeah, I mean... it was. I haven't actually seen Springbank 10 in stock anywhere for well over a year now though! Which makes this Blended Malt very appealing as an alternative!

That's exactly the problem. As good as Springbank is and has always been, it's no longer on the menu for many of us. I know what you mean about Blended malts feeling disconnected. I've experienced that in some more premium and more ambitious blended malts. Especially those with cask heavy components. Which is part of the reason why I stick to lower and mid tier blended malts where you quite often get better value for money. Whenever a blended malt approached the £100 mark I'm often left wondering why I didn't just buy a good single malt. That's my experience anyway. Cheers 🙂 🥃

Me too honestly. I avoided it at first because why not just have Springbank? And then when all the Springbank disappeared I avoided it because I assumed it'd be mostly Glen Scotia! But I don't think it is and it's very good! Better than expected. Cheers 🥃

@@WhiskyLock indeed

Yes it's surprisingly affordable and sometimes even available considering it has the Springbank association! I've never been able to try Springbank Local Barley. To be honest I've stopped looking. I have better things to do 😂

Thanks Alfie. It's great to see some bottles making their way to drinkers at a price that discourages the flippers. Feels like balance is being somewhat restored! Cheers 🥃

Yes I can see how they might be similar. I do really like Loch Lomond. I need to get some reviews out for their whisky soon. Cheers 🥃

@@WhiskyLock Looking forward to it. I can recommend the 5 year old Inchfad bottled by Watt Whisky if you're looking for IBs.

@@unmarkeddoor8187 I have a nearly full set of Loch Lomonds that are mostly unopened. Annoyingly I bought them a couple of months before they changed all the labels 😂 but oh well. It would be great to compare an IB though so thanks for the recommendation 👍

Yes it's got a nice dose of that Campbeltown funk 🙂 probably not a bad idea to get a second bottle of this while it's available although I really hope it's the start of a return to availability for these distilleries 🤞 Cheers 🥃

@@WhiskyLock yes I bought 2 😂

Cheers Andy!

For my next act I'm going to read Diageo's price list 😂 Ledaig Rioja is wonderful stuff. And does a great job of keeping between you and the 18 😉

I am to please 😂 much like a seagull...

I salute your integrity! Flippers and gougers don't need any more encouragement 👍

I didn't consider batch variation at all when putting my notes together for this. Because they didn't put a batch or year on the label (only in the bottle code printed directly on the glass) I assumed it would be fairly consistent. Everything is a batch release after all. Turns out that consistency was low on the agenda with this though. Interesting! I shall have to add the year of mine to the video name. The one I had was 2021. Quite pale and I didn't taste much, if any, Kilkerran. Shame because I've often preferred Kilkerran to Springbank or younger Longrow and I imagine it would probably change my verdict noticeably. Not that there's anything wrong with the 2021 that I had. I haven't had any of the LL blended malts. Tempted but I have far too many Loch Lomonds in my queue already 🙂 a nice problem to have... The presence of JW Green at the OSWAs always surprises me a bit. I like it well enough, even if it's not what it was, but the poor presentation makes it a £25 whisky for me, which is a rare discount. Yet another Diageo product with wasted potential!

Thanks! The rare times I look at the auction sites I'm usually looking through the stuff nobody else is bidding on. I can't bring myself to stuff the coffers of flippers. Especially when there are unloved bottles in search of a good home 😉

In the time since I recorded this review it's become more available here too. Slightly more expensive than what I paid at auction but still worth it 👍 Dependable stuff!

Yeah it's a little odd that they don't make the batch number easier to find when they're releasing entirely different whisky every time. Not that there's anything wrong with batch variation. Did you enjoy all the batches you had?

@@WhiskyLock they are from OK (11/2022) to great (2023). Still have a 7/2022. I didn't look up the tiny code... I got the all for around 40 Euros. the 2022 is still worth it compared to the competition and the 2023 is a league above that and has way more Campbeltown character.

@@Eunegin23 Thanks for the info. The price does seem very fair and it's great that they're actually in stock (unlike Springbank!). Cheers 🥃

I know what you mean. There was a time when I could go online and buy a Springbank 10, 12, 15, 18, Longrow 18 and three different Hazelburns whenever I wanted. And Ralfy would big up Springbank as no nonsense, quality whisky at a fair price. I'm not sure if we'll ever get back to that point but it does seem like things are improving a little.

@@WhiskyLock I hope so. It's no longer even available to order in my state, and the 10 is a $99+ bottle here now, at retail. It's gone the way of bourbon. I'm ready for some change. 😅 Thankfully 4-years-ago-me had the foresight/poor judgement to bunker a crapload of Springbank bottles, so I'm weathering the storm.

Feathery little thieves 😂

Good call! I have a sample of that somewhere 🤔

Yeah I think that's around x1.5 what I normally see it for. The Springbank hype isn't over yet and it's a shame for those who just want a quality dram.

It's a worthwhile purchase IMHO when you're looking to put some Springbank back on your shelf. I haven't tried Gauldrons yet actually. I think it's the only one of the current Douglas Laing products that I haven't had but I've really liked all of the others. Great range.

I just tasted the Campbeltown Loch (bottled 9/23) against the Gauldrons batch 002, have to say I liked both bottles, anyway the Gauldrons is a more sherried expression, less peaty and a bit more elegant while the Loch is more peaty and more clise to the Springbank style. I would actually currently prefer the Campbeltown Loch, even it was lower in price, but both are very nice whiskies for sure (I reordered both 😀) and good alternatives to hard to find Springbanks.

Live and learn my friend 🥃

@@WhiskyLock jep, good motto :) no shame in doing it wrong so long as you don't do it again :)

I'll bring along a sample of the bourbon 2022 version on friday so you can compare with the sherried one.

The 2022 batch apparently is alot more sherry driven. I didn't get to try the 2021 but considering I'm not a Sherried fan, I absolutely love it

Yeah I occasionally see Longrow NAS pop up. Definitely the most available of the true Springbank products. This Campbeltown Loch is much cleaner than that Longrow. Less peat, more fruity malt. I prefer it to be honest. I've always thought that Longrow (and Springbank) are better with a bit more age behind them.

I admit that Loch wasn't remotely on my radar back in the 'Springbank availability' days. I remember seeing it and thinking why bother when it's a similar price as SB10 so I never tried it. The ignorance of youth 🙄😉 I do have a fair selection of Springbank, Longrow, Kilkerran and Hazelburn from 10+ years ago though. So perhaps one day I'll do comparisons of that against current bottles. Perhaps when current bottles reappear! Cheers 🥃

@@WhiskyLock Your review seemed fairly positive for the Loch. How does it compare with your other springbanks that you currently have open? Have you tried the new Loch 21?

@@kirks.1854 brighter and less peated than SB10, Longrow and Kilkerran. Less sherried than SB15. Obviously less mature than the 18+ expressions. But very good and worth the money (RRP). Never tried Loch 21, what do you think of it?

@@WhiskyLockI've only tasted the really old Loch 21 from like 2009. It was F ing amazing. Super good.

The label is actually on my pinboard already and the glass long since recycled 😬.... but I found the original auction listing! And it says 08.12.2021

Agreed! I paid under half that which makes it much easier to justify. For $85 I would look elsewhere too.

Two companies, three distilleries, five labels 🤷‍♂️ close enough!

Correction: I just found a single place in NYC which has Campbeltown Loch for $90! 😂

I think I voted for Orchard House as well. It's a very good blended malt and great that it's available all the time at a reasonable price. To be fair though I think both of these really showcase what's great about Blended Malt done properly. Teaspooned Glen Scotia is what I always assumed this would be. It would make sense. After trying it though I don't think so. IMHO it seems better than most young Glen Scotia I've tried. My guess would be Glen Scotia, Springbank and maybe a little Hazelburn. Yes Hazelburn and Longrow are essentially triple distilled unpeated and double distilled peated Springbank respectively. You could also argue that Kilkerran is double distilled Springbank because the distillery is very close by, owned by the same people and run by the same staff! At least that was the case when I visited a few years ago. If I said "five distilleries" etc I obviously meant five marques / labels. I blame J&A Mitchell for making things more confusing than they need to be 😉

Ouch 😂 I think I'd pass!

@@WhiskyLock I think I phased that awkwardly, I meant to say that I read that it's Springbank teaspooned with Glen Scotia, not the other way around. Which makes entirely no sense to me other than it might have to do with some tax issue.

@@WhiskyLock ... And yes, Kilkerran is a defacto Springbank IMHO, but it is a separate distillery.