An interest in science and an inherent desire to explore new possibilities led Michael Henry to start brewing his own beer from home while studying for his biology and chemistry A-levels. That, paired with an upbringing in a Northern Ireland community where whisky is woven into the fabric of everyday life, set him on the path to becoming Master Blender at Loch Lomond Whiskies, one of the most imaginative distillers in Scotch whisky.
Henry gained his first taste of distilling at Bushmills, his local distillery in Northern Ireland. He worked there during his summer holidays when he was studying Brewing and Distilling at Heriot-Watt University, before taking jobs at the Bass Brewery and Tennent’s Brewery in Glasgow.
“Science definitely influenced my interest in flavour and the many ways it can be created, which has been a constant throughout my career,” he says. “I spent more than a decade in the beer industry after I graduated, where I gained a deep understanding of flavour creation through fermentation and malted barley.”
Henry joined Loch Lomond Whiskies’ blending team in 2007, at a point when the whisky industry was growing fast and he saw the chance to have far more influence over the blending process at an independent distiller.
Today, Loch Lomond Whiskies is one of the fastest-growing single malt brands in the world, leveraging its innovative approach to whisky making to create a diverse and distinctive portfolio. A true trailblazer, it is a distillery driven by genuine determination to do things differently – a style which suits Michael’s own curiosity.
“Working on Loch Lomond Whiskies gives me the freedom to use my imagination and shape the whisky’s flavour from the very moment of distillation,” he says.
That freedom comes, in part, from Loch Lomond’s willingness to look beyond the conventional Scotch whisky playbook. Rather than being bound by established approaches to distillation, the distillery has built its process around the question of what else might be possible, using its unusual stills, long fermentation times and extensive production capabilities to explore flavour from a different starting point.
“We’re the only Scotch distillery to use both traditional swan neck stills and our unique straight neck stills, and the latter is fundamental to the character of the whisky we create here,” says Henry. “Unlike many distillers, we don’t rely solely on maturation to define the final flavour profile. Instead, we balance the influence of the cask with the character created in our straight neck stills, giving us greater control over the spirit from the outset. It’s this combination that helps create Loch Lomond’s signature style, with its distinctive notes of fruit, honey and soft smoke.”
That versatility is a defining strength of Loch Lomond. Its ability to create an exceptional breadth of new make spirit styles, from peated to unpeated, and from single grain to single malt, is unmatched. Yet for all the variety in the spirit it produces, there is a clear thread running through the portfolio, with every whisky created being unmistakably Loch Lomond.
“It’s what we do best,” he says. “Thinking outside the traditional Scotch playbook, and leveraging our distilling capabilities to create surprising, flavour-forward malts that make people excited to drink.”
For Henry, imagination is therefore more than a personal trait. It is part of the distillery’s approach to whisky making, experimenting with what the equipment can do and putting flavour ahead of convention.
Asked to name his favourite Loch Lomond expression, Henry doesn’t hesitate. “Loch Lomond 12 Year Old Perfectly Balanced would have to be my favourite, as it’s the most representative of the distillery and is the best example of our signature distillery style.”
That signature style can be traced back to the straight neck stills first installed at the distillery in 1966 by its original owner, Duncan Thomas. Six decades on, they remain at the heart of Loch Lomond’s spirit of innovation and exploration.
To mark the milestone, Loch Lomond Whiskies will launch Golden Week from 7 September – a global celebration inviting whisky drinkers around the world to discover the distillery’s boundary-pushing approach to whisky-making for themselves.
Promotions are running all week for Loch Lomond fans. To find out more about Golden Week visit www.lochlomondwhiskies.com
Read the full article at Meet Michael Henry, the Visionary Rewriting the Rules of Scotch whisky
