Campbeltown Loch - Blended Malt Scotch Whisky

Campbeltown Loch

Blended Malt Scotch Whisky

700ml, 46% abv

Our friends at Springbank created this expression, which they describe as follows:

“All five malts from the region’s three distilleries have been used to produce this Blended Malt. Matured in a combination of Ex-Bourbon and Ex-Sherry casks, vatted and bottled at Springbank Distillery, Campbeltown.”

The five malts they refer to would of course be the three brands made at Springbank Distillery itself (Springbank, Longrow and their triple-distilled variant Hazelburn), plus the other distillery that is owned and (for only 3 months a year!) operated by Springbank’s staff — the Glengyle Distillery, producers of Kilkerran single malt, and last but not least the great Glen Scotia Distillery. So this is a blend of those 5 different single malt Scotches, and some of those — notably Longrow — are Peated, adding some peat smoke flavor to this expression.

BTW, not everyone is immediately clear on what “Blended Malt” means — confusingly for many, it is different than a “Blended Scotch”. A “Blended Scotch” is a combination of single malt Scotch with grain whisky (usually made of corn or wheat, distilled on a column still often to a higher percentage of ABV). In contrast, “Blended Malt” (formerly referred to as “Vatted Malt”) is simply a blending of different single malt Scotches (so, no grain whisky, and all made on pot stills).

As the newer Campbeltown distilleries come of age (presumably the Machrinhanish Distillery will be the first new distillery in the region to release a single malt), it will be interesting to see how this project evolves. But for now this is a darned tasty Scotch, especially for the price.