AN INTRODUCTION TO LOCHLEA
FORGET WHAT YOU THINK YOU KNOW ABOUT LOWLAND WHISKY.
Lochlea is an independent, family-owned single estate distillery based in the heart of Ayrshire, quietly creating some of the most compelling single malt in Scotland today. With full traceability over every ingredient and a spirit style that defies the ‘Lowland’ expectations, Lochlea is one of only two Scottish distilleries to grow 100% of its own barley on-site - and they do it not for show, but for flavour.
Barley has long been part of life at Lochlea Farm.
What began as carefully calculated trials - testing grain varietals and soil potential - soon became something much bigger: the creation of a single malt distillery. By 2018, the distillery was commissioned in a converted steading, with the old cattle sheds reimagined as bonded warehouses, and farming seasons integrating whisky production.
Lochlea’s production works in symbiosis with the land - part of a new wave of Scottish distilleries, like Nc’nean, who are championing preservation alongside creation. Laureate barley is grown in rotation with cover crops. A borehole aquifer beneath the farm provides water. Food miles are minimal, with everything processed and matured on-site. Even the barley straw is repurposed - baled for neighbouring farms and returned as natural fertiliser. It’s a circular system that supports biodiversity, improves soil health, and produces grain rich with starch and flavour.
This isn’t just sustainable - it’s traceable.
Every element, from field to glass, is accounted for. By growing their own barley and using their own water source, Lochlea achieves full ingredient traceability, tighter quality control, and a whisky that’s 100% its own.
And that shows in the distillery character: elegant, biscuity, and bright. It’s a spirit that’s naturally textural, one that plays beautifully with a wide range of cask finishes without losing its orchard fruit, core character.
Today, the creative direction of Lochlea’s whisky lies in the hands of Jill Boyd.
One of the most respected blenders in modern Scotch, Jill made her mark at Compass Box; her blending style is precise, expressive, and deeply flavour-driven, and she brings that same clarity of vision to Lochlea. As Master Blender, Jill is responsible for overseeing all new releases and core range expressions. She's already putting her stamp on the distillery's next chapter, and it was Jill herself who hand-selected our Heart Cut cask.
Lochlea may still be a relatively young distillery, but it’s one with deep roots.
In the land, in process, and in the belief that great whisky doesn’t begin in the stillhouse. It begins in the soil.
Other Lochlea expressions we enjoy
Their flagship, everyday single malt. Inspired by their barley grown on Lochlea farm, the whisky is bright and full of fruit, aged in 1st fill Bourbon, Oloroso and STR casks for depth and complexity.
The third in a series of annual limited-edition bottlings,
Batch 3 is a big, bold blend of Oloroso butts and ex-Islay casks. Think cherries, molasses, and BBQ smoke, with layers of ginger cake and rose petals.
