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	Springbank
			Sample
O.B.	10 years	17
	10 years 100¡ Proof	19
	12 years	18 3/4
	175 anniversary	17 1/4
	Cask Strength Batch 1, 1997		17
	Longrow CV 2008
	Port Wood	17
	Bourbon Wood 12	17 2/5
	16 y.o., Rhum finish		18
	Hazelburn Fisrt Edition
	Longrow 10 years	18 3/4
	Rum Wood	18 2/3
	21 years	18 3/4
Dewar Rattray	Cask Collection 13 years - for Potstill Austria	19
Jean Boyer	Best Casks of Scotland, 1996		18
Signatory	Un-chillfiltered collection 1989	14 2/3

 

Springbank 10 years
Age	10 years
Alcohol	46%
Bottler	Official
Particularity	Non chill filtered
Price/litre

 

Unfortunately, this bottle is not to compare with the 12 years old version which is not available on the market anymore. Far from the pleasure explosions in the mouth, this bottle stays however pleasant for the nose and the palate, however a hint of acidity could be disturbing. A too short finish does not save the bottling, which remains however a good Campbeltown malt...

The nose is rather complex, from vanilla to a kind of medicinal smell (ether?). The medicinal hints remain in the palate, but are dominated by some pleasant spicy touches. The finish is rather bitter and salted. A good bottle, but not to compare to other products which mad the reputation of Springbank, one of the last distilleries from Campbeltown.

The rather smooth nose is particularly marked by coconut. It is pleasant but not exceptional.In the mouth, the first attack is both malty and slightly woody, and the coconut is still there. The finish is pleasant, rather long and prolongs perfectly the mouth.

 

Comment by J.L. Zamora

Nose: refreshing, herbal, menthol, sea air. Palate: refreshing, toffe, spicy mint and late salt as if it was a question of a spray. A complex whisky where they are and a drink that must not get lost anybody .
85/100

Comments by Johannes Sauer

C.: Very pale, white wine
N.: A very strong and zesty nose in the beginning: Almost chloroformical, biting, with a hefty spritty, alcoholic attack. Later, after leaving the glass for a short time, a very different picture appears: It's not alcohol anymore domanting the nose, this is the most oaky nose I ever experienced. Deep beneath there are layers of friuts, coconut (pina colada) and burnt sugar surrounded by the oak.
T.: Very firm, but after this nosing-sensation the first impression is a little bit one-dimensional. No caribbean cocktails anymore, it's oakwood again. After adding one drop of water, there is far more complexity to discover: Bitter herbs combined with a very flattering sweetness (creme brulée) and cocoa powder.
F.: A big herbal crescendo, medical, ! very long traces of a very cheerful bitterness (radicchio).
Not having the pleasure to try the older bottling mentioned, I can state that this is a dram very worth trying.

Comment by Henrik Johansson

Apperance: Pale straw
Nose: Quite closed to begin with but with some encouragement it lends lots of nicely balanced aromas with an interesting complexity. Warm but not very prickly. There are some fresh fruits with ground pepper and some aniseed (reminicent of Ouzo) on the background. A nice toasted oak hint is also present, reminds me in some way of a hot steaming bath and also a hint of brylcreem or possibly bubble gums. Reduced dram lends some impressions of green plants and heather flowers in addition. A second dram revealed more maritime hints together with the distinct peppery-ness.
Body: On the lighter side.
Palate: Continues the nice impressions left by the nose. Potent and mouthfilling, well balanced and pleasant. It! feels sweeter than I expected with some interesting candy-like like elements. The finish is quite long and becomes drier as it shifts from a earthy or mossy dampness to a spicy oakiness.
91/100

 

Springbank 10 years 100% Proof
Age	10 years
Alcohol	57%
Bottler	Official
Cask	Bourbon
Particularity	Non chill filtered
Prix/litre

 

 

Springbank 12 years
Age	12 years
Alcohol	46%
Bottler	Official
Particularity	Non chill filtered
Price/litre

 

Just like all other whiskies from this mythic Campbeltown distillery, the 12 years old version is not chill filtered. The whisky is extremely complex and balanced, with smoke and peat hints, but not too much. A very great whisky, just for great occasions, because such a wonder deserves to be appreciated. One of the best whiskies I ever tasted.

A second tasting completely confirmed the first one. This wonderful whisky is unfortunately very difficult to find nowadays. a great fresh and spicy whisky, remarkably complex, balanced and refined. A real monument. What a whisky! What a distillery!

A pleasant mix of sherry and (discrete) coconut with a very slight touch of citrus fruit (orange) characterizes a rather complex nose. The same complexity in the palate, with however a bitter feeling, probably due to the wood of the cask. Just like an older whisky. The finish is lingering and pleasant, with also some slightly acid hints and bitter woody touches.

 

 

Springbank 21 years
Age	21 years
Alcohol	46%
Particularity	Non chill filtered
Bottler	Official
Prix/litre

 

 The first impression is the good one... as it is often for exceptional malts. The hast a feast of mixing fragrances with this rather complex and well balanced whisky. The palate reveals at the same tame spicy hints, mixed with malted sweetness while detecting some peat and smoke touches. The finish is exceptionally long and pleasant. A wonderful bottling, with however a tone down due to its price. I really recommend it, but is not affordable to everybody.

The second tasting began with the same feeling: I'm in front of a very great bottle.
Some malt mixed with some salt. Exotic fruits mixed with light hints of spicy smoke in the palate. An exceptional finish, exceptional because of its length and exceptional because of the happiness it gives.

The nose detects a great freshness, with fruity notes, recalling both apple and coconut on a background of discrete smoke. A rather complex nose. In the palate, the coconut and calvados are present, with clearly spicy but dry notes. A lingering finish, where all fragrances are recalled. An excellent whisky.

A very pleasant nose, with coconut and bee wax hints, exotic fruit and discrete spices and oddly some coffee notes. The mouth is also clearly fresh and rather complex. The finish is lingering and warm with nice touches of coconut and an impression of calvados on the background. After a while, some coffee notes reappear.

 

 

Springbank 12 years Rum Wood
Age	12 years
Alcohol	54,6%
Particularity	Cask Strength Non chill filtered
Bottler	Official
Cask	Rum
Price/litre

 

The rum finish is rather rare in the world of whisky. This bottling remains perfectly in the typical Springbank tones. A very pleasant cask strength where the high alcohol percentage does not hinder the appreciation. The nose reveals immediately all the fruity and sweet touches. A perfect balance between sweet and salty fragrances characterize the taste, prolonged by a remarkably long finish. A perfect wonder.

The nose is very pleasant and rather sweet, with some fruity citrus hints. In the palate, a very complex taste, with some smoky and spicy hints, and a general marine impression, salted. The long finish is fresh and spicy, and develops a full range of fragrances. The relatively high degree of alcohol does not matter to the taste. This bottle is probably the exception to the rule which says that distilleries of the traditional importance as Springbank should not participate in the trend of wood finishes.

The nose reveals some animal, meaty notes, on a malty and earthy background with hints of citrus fruit and a touch of ripe fruit. A complex nose failing to be really pleasant. The mouth, rather dry, is first slightly acid, developing quickly on malt with chocolate notes, and a clear impression of alcohol. The warm finish keeps the memory of alcohol while it developes pleasantly on malty and fruity (prune) hints.
.

 

 

Springbank 13 years Port Wood
Age	13 years
Alcohol	54,2%
Particularity	Cask Strength Non chill filtered
Bottler	Official
Cask	Port
Prix/litre

 

 The nose reveals the port very soon. This surprising malt for a Springbank lover does not really reveal all the characteristic aromas of the great Campbeltown distillery, because they are hidden by the port. It remains a great bottling, even if I expected more "Springbank" and less Port. Do the great distilleries, producing such wonderful whiskies, really need to follow the fashion of special wood finish?

At the second tasting, the fruity and complex nose announced an excellent bottle. The palate, characterized by the Port sweetness and a little touch of bitterness confirmed the nose. The rather long and complex finish confirmed the nose and the palate and announced a great whisky. Springbank being a very great whisky, this version is just a great whisky. This port finish, even if it is very pleasant is a shame for a distillery like Springbank. But objectively, the result remains excellent.

The third tasting just confirmed the two first ones.

The rather rich, but slightly pungent nose is marked by fruits and a kind of acidity. In the palate, the high percentage of alcohol hides the flavours and the whisky misses some complexity. The finish is quie nice, fruity ant the acid hint is still present. The whole is a bit deceiving for that top distillery.

 

 

Springbank 12 years Bourbon Wood
Age	12 years
Alcohol	58,5%
Particularity	Cask Strength Non chill filtered
Bottler	Official
Cask	Bourbon
Price/litre

 

I am definitely  not a fan of wood finishes from mythic distilleries whose traditional products are from the highest quality. This wood finish, even if it gives a good result, does not give the same happiness as a traditional bottling of Springbank. This malt smells really nice, is complex, mixing malt and citrus fruits, and the taste, dominated by the alcohol (this bottle has an alcohol degree of more than 58%) is pleasant without being comparable with other versions (in the tradition) Springbank uses to produce. The finish is a little bit too short as well.

The Bourbon finish is more discrete than others. But I immediately detected the sherry, despite the announcements of the producer. The bourbon brings some smoothness, but I still prefer the traditional Springbank. The finish remains very short, but the quotation is better than the first time.

The nose feels first some tingling's due to the high degree of alcohol. But after a while, a nice complexity appears, revealing the traditional Springbank coconut hints together with some sweet pleasant touches. In the palate, a kind of roundness with coconut hints mixed with some woody touches is rather nice. A beautiful and rather long finish too.

The nose is merely marked by malt, a touch of smoke and hints of fruits with something like a cloud of coconut smell above. The mouth is rather different, and the malty smoothness disappears and make room to some acid impression and the alcohol is very present in the palate. This acidity is quite aggressive, not just like nice fruity acidity. The finish is long and very marked by alcohol too, and the acidity dominating the mouth is dimming, leaving some room for nice coconut hints. Some remains of the sweetness of the nose come back too. This whisky is not really nicely balanced. The unbalance feeling between nose and mouth is rather unpleasant. A deception.

A nice fruity nose, with pear or peach fragrances. Some dry cut grass as well (just before it becomes hay), some acid notes and a touch of smoke on the background. Later some plum jam. Nice sensations. And later some discrete coconut touches. The mouth is rather fruity too, lots of taste and freshness. Apple alcohol. Or more precisely alcool and apples, as the alcohol impression dominates the mouth clearly. The finish is quite long, but merely marked by the memory of alcohol rather than by the extension of the whisky taste. Later on it developes on fresh fruit aromas, the same which already were present in the mouth and the nose.

 

 

Springbank 175 anniversary 12 years
Age	12 years
Alcohol	46%
Particularity	Non chill filtered
Bottler	Official
Price/litre

 

 After having tasted some marvels of this distillery, this version appears a bit poor. The nose is discrete and the taste poor. Mixes of citrus fruits with slightly smoked honey are the essential of the taste. We are far away from the taste explosions of the ole 12 years version. The finish is pleasant but too discrete. Not really what I expected from this exceptional distillery.

A second tasting made me change my mind over the generally negative impression from the first one. A greater complexity is revealed, marrying the slightly acid hints with the smoky traditional touches of a classic Springbank.

The nose is marked by some acid hints (citrus fruit) with a slight hint of smoke on the background and a kind of nut smell above. In the palate, a rather great variety of tastes, from the citrus acidity to malt through some light chocolate hints, a kind of sweetness and a kind of acidity. A rather long and sweet finish with a mix of vanilla and chocolate on a acid background.

A nice clear nose, spicy and rather strong. Pepper notes, fruits, appel or pear, a touch of peat and some smoke. The mouth is dry and slightly bitter, with some acid hints too, developing slowly on citrus acidity. The finish is relatively long and warm and leaves an impression of a slight woody bitterness as a memory.

 

 

Longrow 10 years
Age	10 years
Alcohol	46%
Particularity	Non chill filtered
Bottler	Official
Price/litre

 

 The happy few who can buy a bottle at this price can expect a marvelous product. They will not be deceived by this peaty version of Springbank. A wonderful bottling. A non chill filtered whisky with a very long finish, an unequalled aromatic complexity may be a little dominated by the peaty smoke (which is not spoiling). A whisky for great occasions. A pure wonder.

A complex nose dominated by the peat and some more subtle hints going from malted barley to citrus fruits. An extreme complexity in the palate too. A whole world between malted barley and peaty smoke, passing through the freshness of light spices and marin salt. A very beautiful finish where the peat hints keep coming back. An excellent bottle.

A very nice nose, a mix of malt and peat with some coffee touches and citrus fruit hints. In the palate, a spicy mix of exotic fruits, coconut and malted barley with some citrus again (giving the whole some freshness), on a peaty background. A nice finish, where the peat remains near nice fruity notes.

An exceptional nose, mixing peat notes with nice floral ones. Hints of those flowers used to make perfume... Lets add some citrus hinst, and the whole announces a very good bottle. In the mouth, the first impression is recalls some bitter wood, but the peaty notes appear very soon, together with salted and spicy hints. A very nice finish, lingering and pleasant, where the memory of peated malt carries on for long minutes, mixed with those of citrus and little whiffs of alcohol.

 

Longrow CV (2008)
Age	no age statement
Alcohol	46%
Particularity	Non chill filtered
Bottler	Official
Price/litre

Hazelburn 8 years First edition
Age	8 years
Alcohol	46%
Particularity	Cask Strength Non chill filtered
Bottler	Official
Price/litre

 

Springbank 1989 Signatory's Un-Chill filtered Collection
Age	12 years
Alcohol	46%
Particularity	Non chill filtered
Bottler	Signatory
Price/litre

 

The nose does not announce a malt from one of the most mythic distilleries, last survivor of the most mythic area... I did recognize none of the remarkable qualities of a Springbank. Nor of those of a whisky from the Signatory Un chill filtered collection. A great deception which will be confirmed by the taste in the mouth, far from the pleasant complexity so characteristic of the wonderful distillery. A poor finish as well. A bottle to avoid. It is the exception which proves the rule...

The second tasting did not deny the first one. A neutral smell, followed by a taste without depth and ending by a finish leaving no memory...

The nose is rather rich, marked by citrus fruits, with a kind of bitterness and a remote hint of sherry. In the palate, the alcohol is a bit too present, and the citrus notes are first rather dominant and make room to sweeter fragrances after a while, malty hints and vanilla. The finish is short and does not leave any unforgettable remembrance... The impression left at this third tasting is however clearly better than the two first times.

 

Springbank Cask Collection 13 years
Age	13 years
Alcohol	57,3%
Bottler	Dewar Rattray
Price/litre

The first nose is a subtle mix of sherry and coconut. Spices and fruit (plum jam and exotic fruits) come soon.
In the palate, a pleasant balance, continuing precisely the nose impressions is the first feeling, followed by some gentle malty notes before developing on some clearly alcohol notes,with an obvious presence of wood.
The finish is again the perfect extension of the mouth, and both wood and alcohol impression continue to develop in a kind of crescendo, before coming back on superb sherry notes, and after a while, coconut reappears as well. What an amazing finish.
Whiskies whose finish pleasure is greater than mouth and nose ones are quite seldom. This is a perfect example...

Springbank 1996 Jean Boyer
Alcohol	46%
Bottler	Jean Boyer

Springbank 16 years Rum finish
Alcohol	54.2%
Bottler	Officiel

What a nice coconut nose with some peppery and fruity hints on the background. (Discrete) citrus fruit touches, green apple and plum jam as well. Very engaging nose anyway. The domination of pepper mixed with coconut improves with the time.
The first mouth is very pleasant as well, at least when the burning effect of the alcohol has been forgotten. Nice presence of coconut as well. Perfect balance between nutty notes, slightly acid (citrus) hints and spices.
The finish is long and prolongs perfectly the mouth. Hints of pepper, coconut and slightly woody notes prolong the pleasure for long minutes.

Springbank 1997 Vintage
Alcohol	55.2%
Bottler	Official

The nose is marked by nice peppery notes and the traditional coconut is not far behind this dominant spicy hints. But there is not so much more. However the nose is very pleasant.
The first mouth is quite acid and marked by the alcohol before developing on ... alcohol. The acidity dims after a few moments, but is not really replaced by something else. One could expect quite more from a Springbank.
The finish is rather long and develops strangely on fruity notes which were clearly absent in the mouth

Longrow 100 Proof
Age	10 years
Alcohol	57%
Bottler	Official
Price/litre

Comments by Johannes Sauer

C.: Bight, clear, golden, straw
N.: In the beginning a sharp whiff of Terpentine, but very soon mellow and softer notes add a very soft touch giving the whole picture a beautiful balance. There are bitter chocolate, caramel but also very interesting spicy and floral notes: Freshly mowed grass, cinnamon, vanilla cookie, soft wooden smoke. Very smooth peat lingering in the back
T.: Full, overwhelming, but not at all hurting. You don't need any water to sense a symphony of different aromes: Citrus peel, Grapefruit but also the dark chocolate mentioned above. Salt and mild green pepper. A drop of water reveals more smoke, peat and on the other hand, brown sugar. Much less fruits.
F.: Very very long. The fruits disappear slowly, smoke and peat keep on dancing twosteps on the palate.