Review #542 - Lochlea Ploughing Edition First Crop
The Winter season release from Lochlea's limited seasonal series: this is the Ploughing Edition, specifically the First Crop, meaning that it came in the first year of releases. While the other 3 seasonal releases arrived in 2022, this final season came in the winter at the beginning of 2023.
Lochlea uses unpeated distillate in their whiskies, but for their Ploughing Edition, they created a peated whisky through the use of peated casks. The whisky is matured in ex-Islay barrels and peated quarter casks; at the time of release, Lochlea's master distiller was John Campbell, famed for his near 30 years at Laphroaig. Because of this relationship, Lochlea was able to source the peated quarter casks from Laphroaig, as those casks are used in great quantity at the Islay distillery for their Quarter Cask release.
Lochlea Ploughing Edition First Crop
Scotland/Lowland - Single Malt
Price: USD 69 (2025)
Age Statement: NAS
Strength: 46% ABV
Cask Makeup: Ex-Islay barrels and peated quarter casks
Details: Not chill filtered, no color added; bottled 2023
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 1 time; bottle 50% fill level at time of review. Tasted in a nosing glass, rested 15+ minutes
Nose: Soft and light to start - vanilla, dry wood, a bit of salinity. The peat arrives with some ash; it has a mild to medium influence, and it's accented by a bit of black pepper spice. With time, we get a hint of balsamic vinegar.
Palate: A medium thickness mouthfeel; hot peppers and medium peat give a nice Islay-style influence, and the spirit behind that is light and fresh, a bit young. White pepper and vanilla are also contributed by the ex-bourbon casks.
Finish: Creamy, with light malt and vanilla; the peat smoke is quite soft now, but it still brings a bit of ash. The aftertaste brings more white pepper spice.
Final Note: Nice whisky - surprisingly peaty considering there's no peat in the distillate itself, but those Laphroaig casks contributed quite a bit of smoke. Other than the peat, it's a somewhat simple single malt with some classic ex-bourbon flavors; the strength is good, too.
Value is decent here - about on par with a lot of releases from young distilleries in this market, including other releases from Lochlea.
Our Average Rating: 7.0 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 6.83
About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.
Check out our other Lochlea reviews:
Review #541 - Lochlea Harvest Edition First Crop
