Whisky Review: Loch Dhu 10 Year Old The Black Whisky

Loch Dhu 10 Year Old The Black Whisky by Mannochmore is a polarising dram. Its deep black colour, which is created by an unusually large amount of caramel spirit, has made this bottle a collector’s item.

Online tasting reviews of this bottle are very mixed, with some praising the whisky as “caramel smooth” and others specifically commenting on a burnt caramel flavor. Either way, we know the caramel is there.

Serge Valentin, also from WhiskyFun, presented the award to Loch Dhu 49 points about his last tasting in December 2004, he said: “the nose is quite interesting, but the taste is truly disastrous.”

Not only does the whiskey have mixed reviews, but it’s also at the forefront of a long-running industry debate over the use of spirit caramel. Spirit caramel, also known as E150a, is a supposedly tasteless liquid used to change the color of whiskey. It’s most commonly used by blenders to achieve color consistency in their products. In small amounts, it has no effect on the taste of the whiskey, but in large amounts, some claim it can change the taste and texture of the whiskey.

As such, the debate has split between whisky purists who believe that no additives should be added to whisky, and E150a defenders who argue that additives have always been an integral part of the whisky industry (e.g. paxarette) and that spirit caramel is useful as it increases brand awareness and loyalty.

The question is, which side of the debate do you fall on? Loch Dhu 10 Year Old The Black Whisky is of course a very extreme use of caramel spirit and is not representative of all uses in the industry. However, it does provide an insight into what can result from such extreme use.