Loch Lomond 10yo Deep Creatures of the Lake & Cameronbridge 14yo Call to Submission

Loch Lomond 10yo Deep Creatures of the Lake

Region: Highland

ABV: 58.1%

Price: £67.50

First up today a 10yo Loch Lomond release that's been matured in a 1st fill bourbon barrels. 425 bottles were released.

Nose

The nose opens with... not a lot. It's dusty, musty, old paper, pencil shavings, along with the faintest hint of peach. It's a very tight and restrained nose. Digging deeper, we're getting peanut shells, sandpaper and lemon balm. It's a bit like the inside of a woodworkers workshop, with a sprinkling of fruit here and there.

Palate

The palate opens with creme brulee, vanilla custard, light fudge and nutmeg. There's some pickling spice, white pepper, varnish and a tingle of lime zest too. The mouthfeel is relatively good, there's a sugar syrup quality to it which is pleasant. The finish has a medium length with mostly oak tannins, spice and light vanilla flavours lingering. 

Nose (with water)

The reduced nose mirrors the original nose, with a touch more citrus. We're finding the lemon balm has moved to the front, alongside a little bit of zest too. There's a bit more bourbon cask influence coming through in the form of fresh croissants, but that's about it.

Palate (with water)

The reduced palate has a touch more upfront spice, but this masquerades as more of an acidic punch of freshly squeezed lime juice. There's also some fudge and caramel, a bit of cream too. There's also still a peppery spice that lingers into the finish. 

Conclusion

Loch Lomond can be hit or miss for us. This is a little simple and uninspiring. The nose is too closed off, without enough cask or spirit showing. The palate improves on this, however its quite one dimensional. We read that this is peated, however we're not really detecting any. There's things to like here, a good mouthfeel, some nice bourbon notes on the palate but overall we'd not rush back for another dram

Score: 6/10

Value

While not our favorite whisky it is at least priced reasonably for a 10yo from a smaller indie bottler.

Cameronbridge 14yo Call to Submission

Region: Lowland

ABV: 50.3%

Price: £56.50

Next up a 14yo Cameronbridge single cask release that's been matured in a 1st fill PX Sherry cask. 296 bottles were released.

Nose

The nose opens with incredibly prominent cream soda notes, along with marzipan and fudge. It's very clearly a grain whisky, but there's an even sweeter top note here which gives it a real creaminess that we haven't experienced on a grain before. We're also finding biscoff spread, cinnamon, cooking chocolate and toffee pieces. There's not much alcohol spice coming through, it's quite well balanced.

Palate

The palate opens with a punch of sweeter sherry, cinnamon sticks, caramel drizzle, almond butter, milk bottle sweets and white chocolate mice. Again, the grain spirit shows through on the palate, a little too prominent but it's understandable given the age. The mouthfeel is reasonable, there's some viscosity but it's not particularly textured. Saying that, the flavours really do jump out the glass and the finish lingers on for a good while, mostly caster sugar, oak spice and a tinge of orange zest.

Nose (with water)

The reduced nose brings forward more of the sherry at the expense of the confectionary, and we're finding more leather bound books, raisins and caramel drizzled over a sticky toffee pudding. It's interesting how the nose has changed so much with only a few drops of water.

Palate (with water)

The reduced palate loses a bit of mouthfeel, which is a shame as its now feeling quite thin and insipid. There's still a lot of sticky sherry-forward flavours, dates, prunes, caramel and fudge brownies.

Conclusion

Interesting. A very confectionary-forward nose, quite unique and relatively complex for a younger grain whisky. The palate follows suit, with more of the sherry maturation making itself known. Sherry matured grain isn't often seen, and for us this is an experiment gone right. It's missing a bit of mouthfeel, and some of the grain spirit can be harsh in places, but we're going with a 7.5/10.

Score: 7.5/10

Value

Value: On par price wise or cheaper than other similar other indie releases.

• 10 - Perfection. One in a million
• 9 - Outstanding. Exceptional whisky.
• 8 - Great. Would seek this out.
• 7 - Good. Quality whisky.
• 6 - Above average. Happy to have a dram.
• 5 - Average. Drinkable whisky.
• 4 - Below average. Passable.
• 3 - Flawed. Noticeable negatives.
• 2 - Defective. Significant faults.
• 1 - Offensive. Pour it out.

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