Side by side: A pair of Loch Lomond Single Casks

Over the last few years it's been more and more difficult to get hold of single cask releases from @LochLomondMalts in the UK, but in the last month 2 have been released!

Let's see what they are like, as good at my all time favourite Cask #40?

As we all know Loch Lomond Distillery is a bit of a Willy Wonker style factory and can produce a wide variety of spirts from it's four different still types:

But it's really quite simple: the Continuous Grain Stills produce their grain whisky for blends; the Continuous Malted Barley Stills produce their Malted Barley Single Grain whiskies; and their Straight Neck and Traditional Swan Neck stills produce their single malt whiskies. Their different expressions are simply a marriage of the different style using unpeated and/or peated barley. Simple!

With single casks what you get is one of these styles and in the two I am trying today we have something of a rarity an unpeated swan neck distillate and a more common unpeated high collection strength straight neck distillate:

Cask 2011 #1758 was distilled on 28th April 2011 in a 'traditional' swan neck pot still with the new make collected at 70% ABV, this was then matured in a first fill ex-bourbon cask for 11 years.

Cask 2012 #4021 was distilled on 3rd September 2012 in a straight neck pot still, with the cooling ring on, with the new make collected at a high collection strength between 80% and 90% ABV, this was then matured in a refill ex-bourbon cask for 9 years.

High collection strength? Cooling rings? What are you on about Brian?

Loch Lomond's straight neck pot stills necks are 4 meters high, they contain rectifying plates (1 in their wash stills and 17 in their spirit stills) which slow down the vapours and increase the reflux as it flows up the neck. This gives better separation of flavours as they pass through the still and allows more control over using cut points to select the flavours wanted in the new make.

They can work in two ways: with the cooling ring near the top of the neck turned off a more full bodied fruity spirit is collected from 90% down to 60% ABV; or with the cooling ring turned on, cooling the vapours passing through the rectifying plates even more, the spirit is even lighter and is collected from 90% down to 80% ABV.

Enough science (or is it art?) let's get on to the whiskies:

Dram	2012 9yo Single Cask #4021	2011 11yo Single Cask #1758
Characteristics	59.3% ABV Refill Bourbon 190 bottles Loch Fyne	58.4% ABV First Fill Bourbon 250 bottles The Whisky Shop
Distillery notes	Unpeated, straight neck pot still high collection strength spirit distilled 03/09/2012 and full maturation in a refill bourbon barrel original cask Opens with sweet golden syrup and lemon sherbet, before crisp green apple and caramel. Then there is ripe pear and clementine before spicy ginger to finish.	Unpeated, swan neck pot still distilled 28/4/11 and full maturation in 1st fill bourbon barrel. Expect fresh vanilla pod and lemon posset on the nose. On the palate there is red apple and sweet caramel sauce before leading into the sweet finish full of candied citrus peels, peach, and sugared almonds.
My thoughts:
Appearance
	Light gold in the glass, swirls cling as thin lines form small beads and fall as slow thick legs.	Light gold in the glass, swirls cling as thin lines form small beads and fall as slow thick legs.
Nose	A little closed to start with the ABV making itself known. Golden syrup, orchard and tropical fruit notes and a hint of toffee. Water adds some oak and enhances the tropical fruit notes.	Much more open that the 9yo. Lemon zest, vanilla and a little tropical fruit. Water intensifies the lemon notes and adds some charred oak.
Palate	Creamy arrival, golden syrup, honey, tropical fruit, vanilla,  ABV is quite hidden now but the lips are tingling. This is basically the 12yo Inchmurrin on steroids! Water enhances the tropical fruit and sweetness.	Thick sweet arrival, more mouthfeel than the 9yo. Lemon bonbons, meringue and drizzle cake with a big bite of ginger spice. A few more sips offer toffee, malt and some tropical fruit hints. Yummy! Water adds to the sweetness - honey and brown sugar. More toffee notes too.
Finish	Short and spicy, ginger with a little lemon zest.	Long sweet finish, lemon zest, honey and ginger spice.
Overall	The 9yo was pretty much as I expected, I've had a few straight neck pot still high collection strength single casks - quite simply Inchmurrin on steroids - a very nice dram! The 11yo was a bit of a surprise, as I said earlier it's unusual to see LL swan neck pot still whisky in it's 'raw' state, it's nearly always married with straight neck. For me it had a better mouthfeel, maybe the lower collection strength (70% rather than 90%-80%) or being First fill rather than refill having an influence? It really was a very lemony dram and if you like that kind of think you'll love it. I look forward to trying some more!