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John Campbell leaves Lochlea
Ayrshire-based Lochlea Distillery has announced the departure of production director John Campbell.
Campbell joined Lochlea in 2021 from Laphroaig, where he had worked for more than 25 years. At the time, Lochlea was yet to release its first single malt.
Posting on Instagram, Campbell said: “Lochlea is a brand, and a company, going from strength to strength. Over the past two and a half years, we’ve progressed the distillery, seen developments in bottling and warehousing. We’ve won awards for our liquids and have created a pipeline of sure-fire award-winners to come. We’ve developed our people too, building a strong, driven and collaborative team.
“I am very proud of what we’ve achieved at Lochlea under my tenure, and will always be a champion, and supporter, of the brand. So, it is with a heavy heart that I am announcing my departure.
“For those who know me well, decisions are mulled over for a long time, and this was not an easy one to make. As always, my reasons for change are driven by my own need to grow and learn. I still have dreams to fulfill, projects to make happen, and places to see – and I want to drive those ambitions on.
“I have no doubt that Lochlea will flourish in the next stages of development, and there is a great leadership team in place to support the strategy. I wish the team every success.
“More to come soon on what’s next for me…”
Under Campbell, Lochlea created two series of its seasonal range, with the third and final currently in progress.
The distillery also launched its flagship expression, Our Barley, a cask-strength whisky and its first age-statement single malt.
Lochlea released a statement on Instagram: “For the past two and a half years, production director John Campbell and his team have been dedicated to developing a high-quality spirit and building a portfolio of award-winning whiskies.
“As John now moves on to focus on his own independent projects, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude for his significant contributions – not only to our whisky but also to our team. We wish him the best of luck in his new ventures and look forward to seeing what he achieves next.
“As for Lochlea, stay tuned – we’re excited by the candidates already applying to become our new master blender!”
In January, The Spirits Business spoke to Campbell about his journey with the distillery.
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