Some Springbank

Springbank 10 yo 1990/2000 (43%, Blackadder, cask #102, 397 bottles)
Color: very pale, nearly new make. Nostril: new make certainly! Crushed grass, petrol, agave distillate, freshly milled cereals, vase water, clay and a barely lactic and waxy mixture. Enjoyable, however a ways from up to date Springbank. Mouth: it has this barely lactic acidic high quality on the palate, together with citrus rinds, olive oil, face cream, mineral oil. It’s slightly delicate however on the identical time somewhat chaotic. End: medium, recovers one or two factors with a properly mineral and barely mechanical high quality. Feedback: a kind of glimpses into Springbank’s ‘unlikely’ period. It’s charming distillate, however general a lot softer and somewhat whackier than we’re used to with Springbank lately.
 SGP: 441 – 82 factors. 

Springbank 8 yo 1976/1984 (43%, OB for Japan, sherry, 18000 bottles)
Color: pale straw. Nostril: clear, taut, mineral and gently coastal. Behind {that a} refined waxiness, delicate notes of hessian, motor oil, freshly laundered materials and oily sheep wool. There’s a couple of white flowers within the combine too. One other lighter shade of Springbank, however there’s far more acquainted DNA on show right here. Mouth: properly chalky and lemony with a crisp, dry profile that continues this sense of pressure and poise. Extra white flowers, some crystallised honey, extra delicate waxy notes and a few grassy olive oil. End: lengthy, somewhat sooty, mineral, nonetheless properly drying and with a peppery aftertaste. Feedback: one other delicate one, however with extra clear Springbank character. A fragile however undeniably charming tackle this period’s distillate. 
SGP: 362 – 87 factors. 

Springbank 27 yo 1992/2020 (48.4%, OB Personal Bottling, cask #273, refill hogshead, 186 bottles)
Color: pale gold. Nostril: instantly very good! Splendidly dry, rooty, turfy peat smoke, hessian canvas, beeswax, seawater, heather honey and impressions of aged mead and previous Benedictine. In all probability my favorite ‘model’ of Springbank. Mouth: as soon as once more, very good peat character, solely right here it manifests as cleaner, sharper, extra brittle and tightly structured. Dry, mineral, smokiness with many coastal inflections, ink, sheep wool, coal scuttle and seashore pebbles. Just a few hints of gorse flower and lemon peel too, all wrapped up in a really wealthy, waxy texture. End: lengthy, very barely mentholated, extra bitter citrus notes, celery salt, extra crisp and drying peat smoke. Then natural notes within the aftertaste and medicinal notes. Feedback: pristine and immaculate mature Springbank, with nearly Longrow-esque peat character at occasions. 
SGP: 464 – 92 factors.

Springbank 16 yo 1977/1993 (53.9%, OB, cask #332)
Color: white wine. Nostril: wonderful pure saltiness, hyper-coastal and brilliantly recent and sharp. Citrus juices, brine, capers after which unique fruit notes start to emerge as nicely. Wee notes of guava and kumquat. Retains opening up with recent grist, cereals and waxes. With water: muddled inexperienced herbs, white coastal flowers, pasta water, recent shellfish, lemon oil and gentian. Mouth: oilier and extra rounded than anticipated, however nonetheless with unbelievable coastal and saline qualities, beautifully sharp mineral features, lemon juice, wool, moist pebbles, chalk and terrific waxiness. With water: will get fatter, waxier, saltier, extra of those minerals, going in direction of petrol now actually. Additionally extra citrus qualities, rinds, piths, juices and many others… Magnificent distillate firing on all cylinders! End: very lengthy, nonetheless beautifully recent and salty, dried seaweed, soy sauce, a really brittle and refined peat smoke and issues like tarragon, anchovy paste and caraway. Feedback: one other degree nonetheless, I actually adore these bone-dry, hyper pure Springbanks. This one recollects that legendary OB 21yo 100 proof bottling from the Sixties we tried a few years again. 
SGP: 463 – 93 factors. 

Springbank 28 yo 1966/1994 (55.6%, The Bottlers, cask #1018)
Color: deep gold. Nostril: orange marmalade and polish, in the perfect sense! Resinous fir woods, camphor, beeswax, cedar wooden packing containers stuffed with unlit cigars and Vegemite. A severely umami and resinous model of sherry cask. Continues to open up with extra mentholated notes of eucalyptus and dried mint, linseed oil, extra hardwood resins, extra camphor and cheng pi aged orange peels. With water: orange liqueur, natural cocktail bitters, a high class Outdated Usual cocktail! Additionally some hints of stem ginger and apricot jam. Mouth: highly effective arrival, very punchy, powerfully on dried oranges, bitter marmalade, quince jelly, some very previous Armagnac after which wooden spices and a barely tannic edge that appears like sturdy brewed Darjeeling. Superb orange notes all through, however the wooden does exert fairly an affect. With water: massive and emphatically waxy and peppery now, some pure tar extracts, wooden resins, camphor, putty and lime leaf. End: lengthy, peppery, waxy, barely medicinal and a few darkish fruits stewed in previous Armagnac. Feedback: given the pedigree of each the distillate and the bottler, our expectations have been most likely set somewhat excessive. That is on the wooden aspect, but it surely has some spectacular moments. Ach, who am I kidding, whereas it might not be up amongst the perfect Sixties Springbanks, it’s a terrific dram nonetheless. 
SGP: 462 – 90 factors.

Hazelburn 15 yo ‘On-line Tasting Week’ (54.9%, OB, Oloroso sherry casks, bottled 2021, 1174 bottles)
Color: amber. Nostril: a slightly ‘Springbank’ model of sherry, which is earthy, ruddy, stuffed with pickled walnuts, motor oil, sport meats and humorous issues like mint tea, pork scratchings, liquorice root and previous Madeira. It’s good although, I like this fairly natural and meaty profile. With water: rounder, drier and extra cohesive now. Pretty earthiness coming via, bitter darkish chocolate, prunes in Armagnac and black pepper. Mouth: slightly sweeter than anticipated, Bovril with bramble jam, ha! However certainly, it does have a slightly jammy high quality, cherry distillate with raspberry cordial, cassis and touches of boozy trifle, then with verbena and underlying notes of bitter herbs and a contact of gentian root. All of the whereas there’s this background buzz of leathery, gamey sherry with many walnuts, rancio and balsamic notes. With water: glorious, gathers somewhat balancing dryness, extra crushed walnuts, previous balsamic, marzipan, wormwood, camphor, nutmeg and extra massive notes of prunes, date molasses and clove. End: lengthy, earthy, many tertiary notes of roots, herbs, strongly brewed darkish teas, liquorice and mulch tobacco leaf. Feedback: not all Springbank sherry casks are on the mark, however this one works very nicely. Love the evolution with water. 
SGP: 561 – 89 factors. 

Hazelburn 8 yo 1997/2006 (59.2%, OB Personal Bottling, cask #1037, sherry)
Color: deep reddish amber. Nostril: wow, actually a giant mess of Bovril, Maggi, raspberry liqueur, chocolate sauce, mole, freshly sawn rosewood and plenty of evolving tertiary notes similar to previous Burgundian Pinot Noir, mushroom powder and wintergreen. Extraordinarily spectacular! With water: somewhat juicer but additionally a slightly thrilling salty aspect emerges too. Fantastically umami, with bouillon, honey roast greens, extra Maggi and sport salami. Mouth: what a cask! Magnificent arrival, extraordinarily textural and mouth-filling, darkish chocolate sauce, date molasses, raisins, darkish fruit compotes, cassis, pure tar, salted liquorice and treacle sponge pudding. This one actually strikes the right stability between these jammy, fruitier elements and the deeper, darker, earthier and gamey qualities that appear to current in Springbank’s sherry casks. With water: good stability of dryness, salinity and plenty of darkish fruits, additionally preserved citrus fruits, eucalyptus, menthol tobaccos and extra treacle. End: lengthy, extra darkish chocolate with sea salt, prunes, very previous Fins Bois cognac and extra treacle, Maggi and a rising rancio within the aftertaste. Feedback: some form of miraculous sherry cask, and a really fortunate cask proprietor! What’s nice is that you simply nonetheless really feel some Springbank/Hazelburn character coming via. Little doubt bottled at precisely the best age. 
SGP: 562 – 90 factors.