Loch Lomond's Golf Releases

Golf and Whisky - two of Scotland greatest exports:

Loch Lomond create some great whisky and have partnered with a number of golf tournaments to release special editions - let's have a look at some of them.

In 2018, Loch Lomond secured its first major golf partnership, agreeing a 5 year deal with the R&A, as sponsor of both The Open and AIG Women’s British Open. In February 2020 they agreed a deal with the Professional Golfers’ Association (The PGA) to become a ‘PGA Partner’ and the title sponsor of the Scottish PGA Championship. In June 2020  they became Official Partner of the European Tour’s UK Swing.

Loch Lomond have used these partnerships to launch a number of special edition whiskies, usually releasing an Open Course Collection bottle (around £150) using the name of the championship, a Special Edition (around £40) and some single casks. There's also been some collaborative releases with famous golfers - let's try some.

In 2018 the 147th Open Championship was played at the Carnoustie Golf Links in Scotland, Loch Lomond released five bottles.

The 1999 Open Course Collection Carnoustie was a limited edition single malt honouring the Carnoustie Golf Links in Angus, the site of Scottish golfer Paul Lawrie’s historic win.

The Open Special Edition was a NAS single malt bottled at 46% abv, some of which had been created from spirit distilled from wine yeast fermentations that’s been matured in first-fill ex-Bourbon barrels and recharred American oak hogsheads.

A 1999 vintage was also bottled to honour Lawrie’s victory with both bottle and outer packaging featuring the golfer’s signature.

A single cask bottling was also released:

Selected by Scottish golfer Colin Montgomerie who has become an ambassador for the distillery, this single cask single malt was recharred American oak cask #1912. It was laid down in May 2004, just 324 bottles were produced at 51.2%.

A Travel Retail exclusive single cask was also released:

Distilled in May 2008 and laid down in May 2018, Single Cask #7 had just 246 bottles produced at 57.7%

In 2019 the 148th Open Championship was played at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, Loch Lomond released five bottles.

The Open Course Collection Royal Portrush, was made to honour the return of the Open to the golf club for the first time in almost 70 years. "The 19-year-old single malt created in collaboration with Portrush-based Darren Clarke who choose casks from the distillery’s on-site cooperage."

The Open Special Edition 2019 NAS was made from "a mixture of four different spirit styles to ‘deliver the distillery’s distinct fruity character underpinned with a gentle hint of peat and smoke’ in collaboration with Colin Montgomerie, who added his signature to the green ‘golf-inspired’ box that encloses the bottle."

Two special bottlings were also released in conjunction with famous golfers:

Three Wood was named after Montgomerie’s famous winning shot of the 1997 Ryder Cup contest between Europe and the US, made using a three wood club. The whisky was initially laid down in refill American oak casks before undergoing secondary maturations in a combination of first-fill Limousin French oak and ex-oloroso Sherry casks for up to six months.

The Loch Lomond Single Malt Vintage 2002 were matured in American oak casks before undergoing secondary maturation of 6 months in French oak Pinot Noir barrels from Cristie Kerr's Napa Valley winery.

A Travel Retail exclusive bottle was also released:

A 2008 Loch Lomond Inchmurrin bottling marrying four single casks using the spirit from their straight neck pot stills with 1,000 bottles straight from the casks at 55.8%

In 2020 the Open Championship was due to take place at Royal St George’s in Kent but due to the Covid-19 pandemic it was postponed, the first time since WWII that the Championship didn't take place. Loch Lomond released a single bottle.

The Open Special Edition 2020 was a 12 year old single malt was produced entirely from Loch Lomond’s straight neck pot stills using a Chardonnay yeast fermentation. This process helped to develop bright, zesty fruit notes in the whisky’s flavour profile.

After the European Tour was cancelled five courses hosted a six week long UK Swing, Loch Lomond released a set of five bottles named after each venue.

The Wales Open Single cask was matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in a first-fill Oloroso Sherry Butt creating a single malt filled with dark chocolate, wood spice and peat smoke. 

The UK Championship Single cask was matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in a first fill Tawny Port creating a single malt filled with red berry fruits, spiced cinnamon and lingering peat.

The English Championship Single cask was matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in a first fill Rum barrel, creating a single malt filled with tropical fruit flavours and a spiced pepper finish. 

The Hero Open Forest of Arden Single cask was matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in a first fill Sauternes cask creating a succulently sweet single malt filled with notes of vanilla custard, dark fruit and brown sugar.

The British Masters Single cask was matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in first fill Limousin oak, creating a full-bodied single malt with a sweet fruit character.  

In 2021 the 149th Open Championship will be played at Royal St George’s in England, Loch Lomond released three whiskies.

Loch Lomond's Open Course Collection Royal St Georges, a 20-year-old single malt, is again a collaboration with Darren Clarke finished in specially commissioned English Virgin Oak to bring out the signature fruit character created by the innovative stills at the Loch Lomond Distillery.

The Open Special Edition 2021 was again created in partnership with Colin Montgomerie and matured in three types of American oak casks before being treated to a partial finish in Virgin American oak.

A special bottlings was also released in conjunction with a famous golfer:

We are delighted to partner with pro golfer, Lee Westwood on this exclusive single cask whisky. Distilled in 1996, this limited edition has matured for 25 years in refill American oak, and the result is a luxuriously smooth and fruit single malt with burst of fresh ripe beach, orange zest and caramel sweetness.

In 2022 the 150th Open Championship is due to be played at St Andrews in Scotland, Loch Lomond released ten whiskies:

The Open Course Collection 2022 is crafted to hero all of the courses, from the 1st ever at Prestwick in 1960 throughout to the 150th in the home of golf, St Andrews. This 22 year old single malt is aged in American Oak casks and finished in the finest Haut-Medoc Claret Barriques.

The Open Special Edition 2022 is crafted in celebration of our partnership with The Open & our golf ambassador Colin Montgomerie. Aged in American Oak casks and finished in Claret Red Wine this single malt is of exceptional character with soft fruit, creamy fudge sweetness and oak spice. 

Loch Lomond 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch - Louis Oosthuizen Special Edition For The 150th Open Championship in celebration of Louis becoming the Champion Golfer at St Andrews in 2010.

There were also six 10yo Limited Editions, at 46%, to commemorate different UK courses.

An exclusive US release a 1993 29yo with a Japanese Mizunara Finish.

So then let's try some of these releases:

First of all the first four Open Special releases

Dram	Open Special 2018	Open Special 2019	Open Special 2020	Open Special 2021
Characteristics	NAS 46% NCF, Natural colour 30% Wine yeast	NAS 46% NCF, Natural colour	12yo 46% NCF, Natural colour 100% Chardonnay Wine Yeast	NAS 46% NCF, Coloured 30% Virgin oak finish
Distillery notes	Created from a combination of 4 spirit styles, some distilled from wine yeast fermentations, to deliver a single malt packed with fruit character and subtle peat. Matured in  American oak casks to ensure the perfect balance of vibrant peach and pear, creamy vanilla oak and maple syrup acting as a background sweetness before the subtle peat smoke emerges.	Made from a combination of spirits from our straight necked pot stills, delivering the underlying fruity distillery character with a touch of smoke. Matured in 3 types of American oak casks. On the nose we find soft fruits such as peach and pear with a hint of vanilla. The palate combines a sweetness with fruity notes, hints of honey, orange citrus and creamy vanilla leading to a finish which delivers a touch of smoke.	Produced entirely from Loch Lomond’s straight neck pot stills using a Chardonnay yeast fermentation. This process adds a lively, almost effervescent mouthfeel, with additional fruit characteristics. Grapefruit citrus and vanilla syrup  lead into sweet honey with tart green fruit of apple, pear and kiwi. There is a warming cinnamon spice before a long finish with powdery sherbet and lime juice.	A combination of spirits from both our unique straight neck and more traditional pot stills have been selected, delivering an approachable single malt of exceptional quality. As with all Loch Lomond Single Malts the underlying fruit character of the distillery shines with a gentle hint of smoke on the finish. The spirit has been matured in three types of American Oak casks before a final finish in Virgin American oak.
My thoughts:
Appearance
	Mid gold in the glass, swirls leave a thick line which immediately starts falling as slow thick legs.	Very pale gold, almost wine, in the glass, swirls bead up immediately and fall as slow thick legs	Pale gold colour. Swirls form a hairline crack, bead up and fall as slow thin legs.	Mid gold in the glass, swirls form a thin line, bead up and fall as slow thin legs.
Nose	Orchard fruit, citrus and a hint of milk chocolate. Pears, apples, apricots, a little sweet orange peel, some barley sugars and a hint of smoke.	Stewed orchard fruit, citrus and smoke. Loads of stewed apple and pears, warm and sweet. Lemon juice note - some grass and biscuit with a hint of ash.	Orchard / tropical fruit, vanilla and cereal. Sweet stewed apples, pears, apricots covered in vanilla custard. Hints of pineapple and mango. Some malty cereal, sour citrus and wine notes.	Tropical fruit, vanilla and a hint of milk chocolate. Dried pineapple dusted in icing sugar, fresh juicy mango.
Palate	Thick, creamy, sweet arrival, orchard fruit from the nose and maple syrup sweetness combine with a fizz of citrus and some milk chocolate notes. A little peppery spice and a gentle note of dry peat smoke is left as the liquid disappears.	Lovely smooth arrival - lots of fruit from the nose - apples, pears, apricots but with the citrus note coming through more strongly - a slightly sour grapefruit note - YUMMY! It's very drying in the mouth, a little biscuit and an icing sugar quality. A little smoke note in here - more noticeable than the 2018.	Smooth sweet arrival - tropical fruit and a gentle peppery spice. Dried pineapple and kiwi. There's a huge lemon fizz on the tongue and a drying icing sugar note. Very warming - suggesting an ABV higher than it's 46% The liquid disappears with a little peppery spice leaving a lovely sour grapefruit note in the back of the throat.	Thick, creamy arrival, barley sugars, tropical fruit - pineapple, mango, grapefruit giving a sour citrus edge. Very drying - icing sugar and vanilla notes with a big spicy oaky note. There's a little hint of smoke here but not as much as the 2019.
Finish	Long lingering dry smoke with a little fruit and peppery spice.	Long and fruity, there's the dryness from the palate and again a hint of smoke - lovely dram!	Medium length toffee and gentle peppery spice - drying citrus.	Long lingering fruit with peppery spice and a little citrus.
Overall	When I spoke to Michael Henry about these releases he reminded me of the huge range of spirit styles they create at Loch Lomond, when you add different types of yeast the number grows exponentially, the 2018 for example was a combination of 7 spirit styles. The complexity shows through - the fruity distillery character and a little hint of smoke is reminiscent of the 12yo - but there's a little more citrus fizz here. The 2019 is more smoky, has more citrus and is a lot dryer. I compared the 2018 to the LL12yo, you'd think this might be an Inchmoan but it's not - it's less spicy and a little fruitier. For me it's not quite as good as the 2018. The 2020 is a different beast altogether - aged rather than NAS like the rest of the series, a limited edition of 3,000 bottles (in a round tin rather than square box!) and a little more expensive.  This is a special bottling being created from 100% Chardonnay Wine Yeast spirit giving a effervescent mouthfeel. This is the first unpeated release and for me it stands out as the best of the series, it's a more lively whisky with citrus fizzing on the tongue and into the finish. If you can find a bottle buy one! This years release for 2021 goes back to the NAS status quo, brings back the gentle smoke, and adds a big kick of spice with the 30% virgin oak finish. It's completely different from the previous releases, the fruity distillery character is a little subdued with the spice taking centre stage. If my arm was twisted I'd go 2020, 2018, 2021 and 2019 but they are all good!

Next the European Swing releases, these would traditionally have been known as Single Casks, but as they were finished in a different cask e.g. Port or Sherry; SWA rules say they can't be called 'Single' anymore - so Loch Lomond call them Exclusive.

Dram	2006 13yo Cask #18-476-9 English Championship	2006 13yo Cask #18-478-1 The Hero Open Forest of Arden	2006 13yo Cask #18-476-6 British Masters	2006 13yo Cask #18-550-10 Wales Open & Celtic Classic	2006 13yo Cask #18-550-14 UK Championship
Characteristics	55.2% ABV Rum finish Dec '06 Refill Bourbon Sep '18 1st fill Rum cask Jun '20 bottled	54.7% ABV Sauternes finish Dec '06 Refill Bourbon Sep '18 Sauternes cask Jun '20 bottled	55.1% ABV Limousin finish Dec '06 Refill Bourbon Sep '18 light toasted virgin Limousin oak Jun '20 bottled	52.3% ABV Heavily Peated Oloroso finish Mar '06 Refill Bourbon Oct '18 1st fill Oloroso Jun '20 bottled	53.4% ABV Heavily Peated Tawny Port finish Mar '06 Refill Bourbon Oct '18 1st fill Tawny Port Jun '20 bottled
Distillery notes	Matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in a first fill Rum barrel, creating a single malt filled with tropical fruit flavours and a spiced pepper finish.	Matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in a first fill Sauternes cask creating a succulently sweet single malt filled with notes of vanilla custard, dark fruit and brown sugar.	Matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in first fill Limousin oak, creating a full-bodied single malt with a sweet fruit character.	Matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in a first-fill Oloroso Sherry Butt creating a single malt filled with dark chocolate, wood spice and peat smoke.	Matured in our finest American oak casks and finished in a first fill Tawny Port creating a single malt filled with red berry fruits, spiced cinnamon and lingering peat.
My thoughts:
Appearance
	Pale gold in the glass, swirls bead up slowly and fall as fast thin legs.	Mid gold in the glass, swirls bead up slowly and fall as slow thick legs.	Mid gold in the glass, swirls leave a hairline crack in the glass. Beads form slowly and fall as slow thick legs.	Mid gold in the glass, swirls leave a hairline crack in the glass. Beads form slowly and fall as slow thick legs.	Dark reddy gold in the glass, swirls leave a hairline crack in the glass. Beads form slowly and fall as slow thick legs.
Nose	ABV hits you initially then huge sweetness -  the tropical fruit develops - pineapple and mango with a hint of ginger.	Again a big kick from the ABV, this is sweet but gentle sweetness, some tropical fruit and a little oak spice.	Orchard fruit, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla custard, a little citrus and peppery spice - this is like the LL 14yo but on steroids!	Thick musty dunnage warehouse notes, red fruit, peat smoke and a little honey sweetness.	Peat smoke and berries to start on this one - not as smoky as the oloroso. A little orchard fruit and some seaweed notes.
Palate	Thick very sweet arrival - dried pineapple, a little poached pear and spicy ginger on the tongue. A little floral, some honey and toffee.	Thick creamy arrival, a little tropical fruit, brown sugar and vanilla cream. There's a lovely ginger spice, some citrus and some toffee.	Loads of orchard fruit - apples, pears, apricots with toffee, cinnamon and a little citrus peel. Drying icing sugar and peppery spice.	Thick sweet arrival - loads of berries, sherry and peppery spice - then the spoke arrives blanketing everything. Dry brown sugar note and a hint of citrus.	Thick sweet smoky arrival, berries, orchard fruit and a big dollop of peat smoke - more than the nose suggests. There's the salinity from the nose and a citrus note.
Finish	Long drying spicy finish with sweet honey and pineapple.	Medium sweet finish with brown sugar and a little spice.	Long dry fruit and spice. Yummy!	Long dry spicy smoky finish.	Long dry smoked berries and a little peppery spice.
Overall	The Rum cask was just far too sweet for me, not a fan. The Sauternes was also sweet, but much more gentle, a nice bite of spice and a hint of citrus - a lovely dram! The Limousin was superb - much like the Lock Lomond 14yo but on steroids - Inchmurrin with a citrus fizz and spicy finish. Yummy! The Oloroso is a peated sherry bomb - huge musty dunnage notes and huge peat smoke notes - the 18 months in the sherry cask completely changing the character of the spirit. The Tawny Port, although from the same batch as the Oloroso, doesn't have the same smoke influence. Berries shine through. For me the Limousin probably just edged the Tawny Port, then the Oloroso and Sauternes but I wasn't keen on the Rum. A bit of a departure for Loch Lomond who tend to concentrate on their spirit styles rather than the cask finishes. All of these were from their Straight Necked Pot Stills. The first three taken at a Narrow Cut - High Collection Strength - Inchmurrin to the rest of us! The last two taken at a Wide Cut - Low Collection Strength from 50PPM barley.

Finally, for sake of completeness, my notes from the Loch Lomond @TweetTasting of the 2019 releases:

Dram	The Open Course Collection Royal Portrush 19yo	25yo Three Wood Matured	Kerr Cellars Vintage 2002
Characteristics	50.3% ABV Claret Wood Finish	46.3% ABV	48.1% ABV Pinot Noir Finish
Distillery notes	Portrush is a combination of three unpeated styles - swan neck stills, straight necks collected at 65% and straight necks at 85%. Individual spirit styles were distilled between 1995 and 2000. All were filled into refill bourbon for their first maturation. The casks were selected and batted together before being filled into red Bordeaux wine casks from a chateau in the Medoc region for a six month finish. This finish in ex-claret casks is a ‘homage’ to the Open Championship trophy and in recognition of Portrush as home to two winners of the Claret Jug.	Selected in partnership with Colin Montgomerie. The spirit is unpeated and is 100% from straight neck pot stills collected at low strength.  The spirit was first matured in refill bourbon barrels before being finished in a combination of 1st fill oloroso and new Limousin oak casks. This is a cask strength whisky from a set of 500 bottles	Created to celebrate Cristie Kerr winning her first LPGA tour win and becoming a Loch Lomond whisky ambassador. Michael Henry used 100% unpeated spirit from straight neck stills collected at 85% from 2002 stock. It was finished for 4 months in Kerr Cellars supplied 2016 Calera clone Pinot Noir French oak red wine casks.
My thoughts:
Appearance
	A lovely winey pink in the glass, swirls bead up slowly and fall as thin slow legs	A lovely gold in the glass with maybe a hint of orange? Gravity defying swirls eventually fall as slow thin legs.	Dark gold in the glass, swirls bead up to form a crown and fall as slow thin legs.
Nose	Toffee apples around a bonfire - very earth but with notes of vanilla, black cherries and sawdust - dunnage warehouse anyone? Getting a citrus note in there too - a little grapefruit again like the first dram?	Apple strudel with thick vanilla custard, with spice notes and orchard fruit. Hints of red fruit, orange peel, dark chocolate & nuts. 25 years maturing in 3 different cask types giving a complexity that takes time to unravel!	A packed bar of milk chocolate - it's got raisins, orange peel, strawberry pieces, dried pineapple and so much more! There's also hints of citrus and cappuccino - wonderfully complex.
Palate	WOW - unexpected thick arrival, loads of ginger spice and an instant dryness in the mouth. There's a hint of orchard fruit but loads of red berries, black cherries and dates.	Thick but watery arrival - tropical fruits and spices vi for space on the tongue. There's pineapple, figs, dates alongside ginger and chilli. Faint hints of citrus and red fruit too. Nice but can't help feeling a higher ABV would have made this better?	Loads of fruit and spicy ginger to start, again really drying in the mouth. This one has the sour citrus note from the Director's Cut. There's a little strawberry, red grape and a woody oak note.
Finish	Fruity, the sour citrus note comes back on the finish along with a little hint of smoke. The spice is subdued a little from the palate but balances nicely with the fruit. YUMMY	Like the palate - fruit and spice vie for attention - the icing sugar dryness and sour citrus note that I think is a bit of a house style comes through more.	Very drying, again a balance of fruit and spice. The grape skins really come through. There's no smoke on this one like the previous two. Nice dram!

Casks of Royal Portrush in the warehouse at Loch Lomond (Photo LL)

Geeky Stuff

List of all releases:

Year	Name	ABV	Age	Cask
2018	1999 Vintage Autograph Edition	50.8%	19	Ex-bourbon
	The Open Course Collection Carnoustie (1999)	47.2%	19	Ex-bourbon
	The Open Special Edition 2018 (30% CWY)	46%	NAS	Ex-bourbon
	Single Cask #1912 (Colin Montgomerie)	51.2%	14	Ex-bourbon
	Single Cask #7 (TR)	57.7%	10	Ex-bourbon
2019	The Open Course Collection Royal Portrush (Darren Clarke)	50.3%	19	Claret finish
	Three Wood Matured (Colin Montgomerie)	46.3%	25	Limousin & ex-oloroso finish
	2002 Vintage (Cristie Kerr)	48.14%	17	Pinot Noir finish
	The Open Special Edition 2019	46%	NAS	Ex-bourbon
	Inchmurrin 2008 (TR)	55.8%	10	Ex-bourbon
2020	The Open Special Edition 2020 (12yo CWY)	46%	12	Ex-bourbon
	European Tour - Wales Open & Celtic Classic (2006)	52.3%	13	HP Ex-oloroso finish
	European Tour - UK Championship (2006)	53.4%	13	HP Tawny Port finish
	European Tour - English Championship (2006)	55.2%	13	Rum finish
	European Tour - The Hero Open Forest of Arden (2006)	54.7%	13	Sauternes finish
	European Tour - British Masters (2006)	55.1%	13	Limousin finish
2021	The Open Special Edition 2021	46%	NAS	Partial American Virgin Oak finish
	The Open Course Collection Royal St Georges (Darren Clarke)	50.2%	20	English Virgin Oak finish
	Lee Westwood 25 (1996)	55.3%	25	Refill American oak
2022	The Open Special Edition 2022	46%	NAS	Claret Red Wine finish
	The Open Course Collection 2022 (150th St Andrews)	48.2%	22	Haut-Medoc Claret Barriques finish
	Exclusive Cask Limited Edition (150th St Andrews)	52.8%	29	Japanese Mizunara Finish
	Louis Oosthuizen 12yo	46%	12	Ex-bourbon
	Royal Troon Edition	46%	10	Ex-bourbon
	Carnoustie Edition	46%	10	Ex-bourbon
	Royal Birkdale Edition	46%	10	Ex-bourbon
	Royal Liverpool Edition	46%	10	Ex-bourbon
	Royal St George's Edition	46%	10	Ex-bourbon
	Royal Lytham Edition	46%	10	Ex-bourbon

Key:

TR : Travel Retail

HP : Heavily Peated

CWY : Chardonnay Wine Yeast (Yummy!)

My 400th Blog Post including my 995th whisky review! Thanks to all those who read it!