Longrow CV

I picked up a bottle of this on a whim because it was very cheap and I've tried some Springbank before and loved it. It was a really interesting dram. There was so much going on in the nose and palate here that it was hard to figure out where it was going, a real sensory adventure.

I had picked up a bottle of this, now discontinued, peated expression a few years ago. Having decided I wasn't ready at the time to savor it's charms I let it grace my shelf all this while. Until last night, that is.

I have always been fascinated by Campbeltown expressions, especially the stuff that comes out of Sprinbank. They produce three expressions the year round. The unpeated Hazelburn, the lightly peated Springbank and the 'heavily' (by Campbeltown standards) peated Longrow.

For me it was a case of irrational fascination followed by a realization that these flavors were something I could really sink my teeth into. Because the Longrow can take some getting used to I tell you. But when you do it's oh so worth it.

The CV (for Curriculum Vitae - yes, you read that right) is Springbank Distilleries' way of introducing consumers to the different flavor profiles that they represent. So in the case of this Longrow the spirit inside the bottle comprises of three different vintages and four types of oak.

Six years old whisky from bourbon casks, ten years old from port and rum casks, and 14 years old from sherry casks blended together to produce this fine expression. My sample is from a brand new bottle and served at 46%

Nose: Mild peat. Lemon. Orange sweets. Hint of salt. Sweet caramel. Touch of sulphur - enough to be noticed and not enough to cause pain. Grass. Greens. Rice pudding. Husk. Cereal. Cardboard. Golden syrup. Black sesame creme brulee. It's a controlled nose. I like it.

Palate: Starts off savory. Mild peat. Rice husk. Mild peppers. Brown bread. Starts getting sweeter mid-palate. Sugarcane juice. The delivery is medium bodied and I like how it changes while still on the tongue.

Finish: Long. Peat. Ash. Soot. The finish really kicks in the charcoals much more strongly than either the nose or the palate.

I like how it journeys from mildly sweet on the nose to savory on the palate and finally quite charred on the finish. Tells me that the spirit is complex and successfully draws from it's so many influences.

This has now been replaced by the NAS Longrow Peated which I haven't had a gander at. Various opinions tell this was not a happy change but I won't comment on that until I. pick one up for my self. Till then I'm quite happy to have this one sitting uncorked on my shelf.

I am not a fan of Campbeltown but I would like to become one. I found that they have a very unique signature, but I don't know if I was unlucky but there was always a wrong note that prevented me from really enjoying my dram. This sourish herbal note could be enjoyable in the background but is, for me, very annoying when it comes forward. I had a Springbank where it was like some rotten herbs. Yeurk! So I was a bit anxious with this Longrow CV. Fortunately, that was for no reason.

The nose. First I was hit by the petroleum, then come the sourish herbal note that I associate to Campbeltown but with enough sweet to keep it in stand. So I keep nosing it and I have vanilla and a lot of hay.

The palate comes with a lot more sweet and I find the same pecan I had with Hazelburn but this time with the peat (petroleum) and a little salt at the end. If you keep it for 30 sec in the mouth, the smoke is progressively taking charge and bring new flavours like a malt with sherry notes as if there was a drop of Lagavulin 16 in the background.

The finish bring back the petroleum and the hay. Again, if you keep it longer before swalling it, the finish will be a lot more complex.

The balance is fairly good. I would not let it breathe because that brings out the sourish herbal; on the other hand, this is one of the whisky that benefit most of a good time on the tongue.

The nose on this blows me away every time. Raise the percentage add some ambergris and bingo, aftershave! In terms of bang for your buck this malt is my No. 1 recommendation.
Nose: Peat smoke, pine resin, creosote, molasses, cocoa, liquorish. One of my favourite smells. Taste: Full bodied with lots of attack, pine needles, resin, peat smoke. Like a Christmas tree on fire. Finish: Short and sweet after the main fireworks.

I feel a bit sad that this scotch is fading into the yester'sphere. It grew on me over time. Parting is such peaty sorrow.

Here are the final tweaks on my tasting notes:

Nose--Grass fire, hay, reptile musk, lovely hint of peat, virgin olive oil, ash, peppermint.

Palate--A very unconventional exchange: Lemon, pan fried rattle snake, mesquite smoke, anejo tequila, mescal, peaty goodness.

Finish--The oily and the spicy intertwine and then release with lingering peat and smoke, with a touch of oaken wood in there.

METAPHORICAL MUSINGS & MARGINALIA This whisky is a bit strange, although I have tasted tequila-like and/or mescal-like influences in other whiskies from time to time. Such overtones are not unheard of, certainly, but rare all the same.

The way tequila interacts with oak is different than the way scotch does--usually. In this case, with such a relatively young whisky that shouldn't have any wood flavor in it, there is some. Why? How? What?

I have to speculate that Springbank mixed in few funky oldish casks into the CV, along with a decidedly young Longrow. The grotty, sugary youth and burn is in there, but it has been mellowed by something that is magically unique and yet deliciously grimy, all the same.

Is the new white labeled Longrow Peated more consistent, producing a more expected end on the taste buds?

Yes, I should think so . . . and yet . . . sometimes the unexpected is worth trying, or even becoming accustomed to.

Over the past year, I have gone back a few times to the Longrow CV with better and better results. Like Oliver Onions' "beckoning fair one" of gothic literaria, L-Row CV has intoned my name through long, dark corridors of the soul.

Did I answer this Dark Passenger, you ask?

Hell, no. Never provoke a ghost, or a sociopathic scotch. If anyone sees you whispering into your glass, there's always the chance you could find yourself locked in a safe house with padded walls and nutters for company.

Suffice it to say that Longrow CV has an ethereal quality best appreciated without too much fuss and bother. It is an eerily strange dram, the sensory trappings of which might have been somewhat passable one hundred years ago, or might still be hundred years into the future . . . a Customer in Black, it is, that sits quietly in the corner of the pub, brooding like, sipping, brooding some more . . . that CIB SOB who comes in late when nobody seems to be watching, orders his drink from the bartender (who can't seem to recall serving him) and then somehow disappears right before last call, leaving the door open behind him, and his empty glass on the table.

In the case of the CV, I wish I had carried on a conversation with this "weird peat-head in the corner" . . . alas, it is gone, never to be purchased again.

Hear, hear: "The Longrow is dead, long live the Longrow."

"enough, or Too much!"

Signed, Yr. obt. servant Theobaldus of Tarland

When I was in Chicago a while back I picked up the Springbank Trio of CV’s. Basically, this was three bottles of 200mL each of Springbank CV, Longrow CV, and Hazleburn CV. Here is my impression of the Longrow

Nose: Wonderful sweet peat. It could easily be mistaken for an Ardbeg. What gives it away is the lack of sea salt with substituted earthiness. This has a wonderful earthy peat quality with a bit of salt on the side – you just don’t get the ocean lapping at your face. Peat, earth, mossy logs, and smoke. With a bit of time you get lemon grass, citrus, and hay. = 5

Taste: Very sweet peat on the fore, but with salt, peat, earth, and lemon on the back.

Finish: Huge peaty smoky finish with tons of wet steaming earth and mulch. It is like a hot humid day watching the steam rising from the mulch, and fresh steaming over turned earth. Certainly a long finish. There is some tar and rubber tire at the end, but that is the first I saw of it.

Balance, Complexity: I would say a wonderfully balanced peat monster. It has the peat and smoke along with some complexity to match. Certainly better then many other inexpensive peated youngsters.

Color, Body, Aesthetic experience: Same light gold as the other three. Almost indistinguishable from the Springbank. As I said before I love the Cambeltown thing (ncf/no coloring/ high ABV). Wish there were more expressions of this stuff that were affordable. This is probably the most affordable peat monsters outside of Islay (and one of the tastiest).

Conclusion: I really liked this bottle. Easily the best thing I have tried from Springbank (not saying much). I hear it is one of the peatiest Longrows that has been put out . . . which makes me sad. I also hear it has been discontinued (I hope that is wrong) and in its place is a new white label bottle simply titled “Longrow.” Not sure if it is suppose to be the same thing or not. Either way, I hope to pick up a bottle of the CV before it is gone.

First distilled in 1973, Longrow is a double distilled, heavily peated single malt and its my first Campbelltown Scotch!

The barley used in the production of Longrow is entirely peat dried. The full production line, from barley to bottle, is done by Springbank distillery and only local barley is used. They even still use coalfire to heat the copper stills. Longrow CV is the latest addition to the range, complementing the existing 10 and 14 year old bottlings.

€36,- at the local shop, from 2010

Appearance: greenish orichalcum:p while turning the glass, a razorsharp edge appears and very slow legs follow. Seems like quality stuff.

Nose without water: sweet wet wood, not so smoky vegetal peat, wet dark forest, some lime peel, not so spicy but more earthy and mineral, lovely already:)

with water: bit more vanilla, chamomile, freshly baked bread into roasted nuts and more flowers and wet grass, cannabis? and then the sweet buttery barley comes back... its a little wild at first meeting but it it keeps evolving as it goes sweeter and gentler, I get some white wine too, and then it goes into coastal smells again and motoroil... :p Its a real sniffer and it takes a few drams to figure out, its complex!

Steady arrival, the flavours come in slowly but surely and it feels quite light and clear. Loads of sweet barley, dense dry and wet peat smoke, seasalt, some bitter/sour lime notes, it evolves in a nice thick smoke n' oak with some red sherry in the back, dark fruit and creamy frangelico. Fabulous :)

Finish: Long! a gentle,warm kick coming down, wood bitters, smokey dryness, green peat, creamy barley, salt and finally some iodine:) The finish kind of summarizes the main flavors in the whisky.

This, for me, is just the right whisky at the right time. Its a bit mysterious; every time I put it to my nose or in my mouth I get something different. Because of different casks and the varying age of the whiskies used, you not only get the young, feisty green Ardbeg-ish notes, but also the complexity from the older casks used. Wonderful, Fantastic, Great, Genuine class product. If you like complex, peaty, traditional ánd affordable Scotch, get it! Goes very well with a light cigar too. Cant wait to get more from Springbank. Expedition Campbelltown is on!

Proost!

Tasted a glass of the CV tonight at the pub. It is perhaps a flawed dram in terms of the way all of the elements comingle in the glass, but I was charmed by it. The smoke is quite nice and I was surprised that I enjoyed the tequila-like overtones. Yes, they are in the dram, but they don't overpower.

Neither was I off-put by the phantom hint of rubber, which is very minor and not any sort of problem to me. It is so minor, in fact, that I shall not list it in my tasting notes.

Nose: Grass fire, hay, reptile musk, lovely hint of peat, virgin olive oil, ash, peppermint.

Palate: A very unconventional exchange: Lemon, pan fried rattle snake, mesquite smoke, sea salt caramel, anejo tequila, mescal, peaty goodness.

Finish: The oily and the spicy intertwine and then release with lingering peat and smoke, with a touch of oaken wood in there.

This whisky is very strange, although I have tasted tequila-like and/or mescal-like influences in other whiskies from time to time. Such overtones are not unheard of, certainly, but rare all the same.

As a result of the glass I tasted at the pub, I have managed to acquire a bottle of this whisky even though it is hard to come by where I live. The Longrow CV is not something I would stockpile, certainly, but one bottle is a welcome and eccentric change. For me, it is the elusive "reptile" of whiskies.

LCV may not be the "lizard king" as such, and it may not be able to do "anything," as Jim Morrison once crooned, but it is nonetheless charismatically cunning in its reptilian ability to charm the receptorssssss of sssssome humanssssss, like myself.

I find this whisky to the be, in many respects, the anti-thesis of most bourbons, which are sharp where this is dull, sweet where this is spicy, and high where this is low. Be this as it may, there are some herbal notes in the LCV, such as peppermint, that are certainly also present in some very good bourbons. I have yet to taste the HIgh West Campfire, however. With that, I suspect all bets are off.

Springbank distillery is located on the southern Kintyre peninsula and produces three distinct types of single malt: Springbank, Longrow and Hazelburn. Springbank is lightly smoky, Longrow is very smoky and Hazelburn is not smoky at all. The Longrow CV version was first released in 2008 and, as is the case with the Springbank CV and Hazelburn CV, the “CV” stands for “Curriculum Vitae” since - according to Springbank's Kate Wright - "it contains whiskies of a variety of ages...". Longrow CV is a vatting of 6, 10, and 14 year-old malts, each aged in different types of casks.

The nose is distinctly peaty and quite fruity with apples and vanilla. There is also a grassy element to it. I had not expected the amount of peatiness but, frankly, this is very good.

The palate is smooth and peppery at the same time, astonishingly peppery in fact. There is the vanilla again, this time hand in hand with lemon notes. This is not overly complex but hugely enjoyable nevertheless.

The finish is long and peaty, with some ginger notes right at the end.

I was very pleased with this whisky. Although not very complex I felt captivated by the very distinct peatiness and the underlying sweetness. In fact this tasted so good that I did not even try it with water. A great single malt and very good value for your money.

After reading all of the glowing reviews, and seeing it had a comfortable $50.00 price point, I decided to give this a go. And am I ever glad I did. Not because it is a new favorite...It is not. But because I finally understand what peat is. The smell on this whisky is straight up quality Mezcal. If you have ever had Del Maguey Mezcal, you know this to be true. I got some of this aroma from Bruichladdich An Turas Mor. I wrote it off as "buttery" because I had not made the connection that this was what peat smelled like.

But wait a minute. I have had multiple expressions of Laphroaig. Several Ardbegs. Lagavulins and Taliskers. Aren't they all heavily peated whiskies? Why had I not picked up this aroma on them? I have no idea. They all tasted coastal: briney, salty. Iodine, medicinal, smokey. Not this.

This is Mezcal. This is vegetal. This is fusal. Is this, actually, PEAT???

Anyway, once I get under that aroma, there is some buried sherry sweetness, and a bit more of the iodine-like burn that I associate with Islay whiskies. The finish is moderate.

I still cannot get over the idea that I am drinking Mezcal. I have poured a glass of Del Maguey Crema RIGHT NOW. I am drinking them side by side. RIGHT NOW. And brother, were it not for appearance, I could no tell you which was which. If anything, the Mezcal is fruitier, sweeter, fresher, and the Whisky drier and more subtle. If I did not know better, and had these side by side, I would have thought the CV an Anjeo version of the Del Maguey Crema.

So, wow. A revealing whisky for me.

Springbank Longrow CV was recently recommended to me and I like it, a LOT! I think the nose is its strongest feature. Smoke and peat but not like Ardbeg, much more grassy and yet coastal. Don't add water! I did and I didn't like it as much. There is an almost lemony nose to it as well. The taste is spicy and oily with smoky peat and a bit of heat sitting at the front of the tongue. As good as it tastes it does smell better. It finishes dry and peaty with some spice. I'm happy with the finish and balance but I could honestly just nose this whisky all night, never drinking it and still be very satisfied.

Longrow is the heavily peated whisky from the Springbank distillery on Mull of Kintyre. This Longrow CV has no age statement, but apparently consists of 3 types of whisky: a 6 year old bourbon cask, a 10 year old port and rum cask and a 14 year old sherry cask. The CV is rumoured to stand for Curriculum Vitae (although Springbank’s Jenny told us it meant Chairman’s Vat). Be that as it may, this bottling was clearly meant to show off the different characters Longrow can produce. It was first released in 1973, but my bottle dates from 2010.

The nose offers sweet peat, working in harmony with vanilla and yellow apples. A touch of wine gums and some silt. Very creamy and peppery.

It becomes much more assertive on the palate. Again fruity, but now with a lot more citrus and the white pepper puts its foot down. Nice sweet peat, again. A lot of ginger. Less outspoken salty. Not very complex, but very quaffable.

The finish on oak and ginger, might have lingered a bit longer in my opinion.

This is a wonderfully balanced, young whisky with a wonderful profile. Very affordable.

It’s mid-priced and arrives with no bells or whistles. It’s lesser known in this age of malt mania, and its region is sadly way past its whisky-making prime. It’s medium yellow appearance in the glass and lively, but buttery nose with a hint of malt is alarmingly similar to a $20 blend; it’s light to medium body belies the approaching storm…

Sweet honey on the tip of the tongue furthers the intrigue, but then, look out…the onset of earthy malt and smoked peat severely changes up the plan; now, we’re on the coast, and it’s getting choppy indeed; the balance that appears a tad lopsided on first pull due to the contrast between the top end honey and the bottom end malt makes more sense in time, especially in the glow of the intense, eye-crossing second half. The finish is of oak, malt, and seaweed, and has its foot on the neck of the sweetness for good measure.

I’m really feeling this whisky, and the feeling is that this is really good stuff. I’ll have another and report back…

(Note: The report is damn good.)

Nose: Lime, brine, strawberry shoelaces, undertones of leather, with water: peat Taste: Lime marmalade, mint (spicy) slight peatiness, bacon chops, Finish: Fairly long, sweetness and peatiness collide

Last autumn, I went on holiday to Scotland (photos here – totally check them out and come back). It was a glorious week, perfect weather, amazing environment and, while there, I even managed to drag my girlfriend to a whisky distillery. We visited the Springbank distillery, in Campbeltown, which also has a very nice second hand bookshop specialising in SF and Fantasy. Anyway, Springbank is:

"… the oldest independent family owned distillery in Scotland. Founded in 1828 on the site of Archibald Mitchell’s illicit still, the Springbank Distillery is now in the hands of his great great great grand son, Hedley G. Wright. Owned by Mr Wright’s J&A Mitchell & Co Ltd, Springbank is the only distillery in Scotland to carry out the full production process on the one site. 100% of the traditional floor malting, maturation and bottling is done at the distillery in Campbeltown. It produces the most hand made whisky in Scotland, with traditional production methods being used throughout the process, and human involvement at each and every stage."

And it was all you’d expect of a independent operation: full of character and charm. As an aside, TV Food and Drink connoisseur, Oz Clarke, actually visited the same distillery a few days after we went there, and I was rather chuffed to see it again on the TV.

Longrow is one of three whiskies distilled at Springbank (the other two being Springbank and Hazelburn), and this is the heavily peated single malt they produce.

So, the Longrow CV, then, which was the one we tasted in the shop as part of the tour.

On the nose: a whiff of the harbour, gentle coal fires, something buttery and syrupy there, too, and with the faintest touch of Pernod. The peat hits on the mouth in the most silky of ways; that butter is still there, a little creamier. Medicinal, perhaps, but not quite like the Laphroaig 10. A warming, peppery spice. The smoke stays with you afterwards, certainly, but it never dominates the experience.

All in all, a very nice dram – especially for £30. It’s just the kind of thing to have when you can’t quite look an Ardbeg in the eye, and you could easily mistake this for one of the finer Islay malts.

Depending on your source, Campbeltown is one of the major regions of Scotland. Longrow CV is distilled by the Springbank distillery in Campbeltown, which lies near the tip of a southwestern peninsula of Scotland named the Mull of Kintyre. According to the distiller’s notes, in the 1800s there were at least 37 distilleries in Campbeltown, but now there are only three (Springbank, Glen Scotia and Glengyle). For orientation, the island just to the west is Islay, which is the home of the notorious and popular peated whiskies.

You might enjoy the compact and edifying history of whisky, and Springbank in particular, on the distiller’s website: www.springbankwhisky.com/note/

Longrow whisky was first distilled in 1973, as an experiment to see if they could produce an Islay-style whisky in Campbeltown. Longrow currently has a 10 and 14 year offering, with CV as the latest edition. CV stands for Curriculum Vitae, which in Europe refers to a summary of ones significant work experience, and which somehow also refers to a blend of Longrow whiskies of various ages. Springbank used to offer a CV … because they lacked a mid-range, they just mixed the young and old together.

Color: I usually do not comment on color, but Longrow, as with its sibling Springbank, is a golden yellow, accented with an olive greenish tint … resulting in a somewhat light olive oil or motor oil interpretation. This off-color is ultimately mysterious and alluring, and indeed boosts the Longrow experience. And finally, there is no extra coloring added and it is not chill-filtered.

Bottle Nose: Like steam escaping from a pressurized tank, removing the cork releases a captivating bouquet of essences of oily peat, glue, rubber, brine, marzipan, banana, and caramel. This is already quite a lot to deal with.

Glass Nose: A more subtle sweet, fruity, briny, peatiness. This is not of a smoky character, but rather the sweet, aromatic, peaty essence of Springbank. Water had no effect for this review.

Palate: There is a deep oily texture that delivers an engaging rich and creamy, sweet and peaty brininess, along with some cinnamon, spice and sweet almonds. There is so much going on here, that you really should allocate a bit of extra time to ponder and contemplate this experience.

Finish: Medium, nicely warm, a bit spicy, slightly drying and satisfying … a wrap-up of the engaging complexity you just encountered.

Conclusion: Longrow CV is neither a fine, elegant nor reserved whisky, but rather it is engaging, intriguing, complex, colorful, flavorful and memorable. Longrow is gregarious, and more fun than most of its neighbors from Islay. This is a colorful, folksy and happy whisky, and while the fine popular Islays have a place in my cabinet, they are usually quite one-dimensional and reserved compared to Longrow (I was going to say “boring”, but I didn’t).

The peaty character of Longrow (and Springbank) is that of a sweet sulphur, rubber and maybe bacon character, as compared to the Islay fire pit smoke (in my opinion). This is not fireplace, road tar, auto shop or seaweed, but rather an intertwined sweet, briny and peaty composition with numerous flavor harmonics. If you like Springbank, you may like Longrow CV even more.

And, to share with you, the west highland trio, that I have recently been pleasantly enjoying, you need to have Springbank 10, then Longrow CV, and finally Ledaig 10 (from Mull, just up the sea). These all seem to share the same genes with increasing levels of depth and intensity. And, too bad my Jura Superstition and Bruichladdich Rocks are all gone, as they would somewhere belong in this picture as well. I also plan to soon publish a review of Ledaig 10 … hopefully before that bottle is gone !

Finally, I feel it is fair to disclose that I did not yet read the many other reviews on Longrow CV, so as not to be influenced. But now I can hardly wait to see what you other Connosrs wrote about this whisky ! Isn’t his is one aspect that makes Connosr so much fun :-)

Score 92/100 in this peated, non-wine-finished category.

Twice distilled, unlike Springbank’s 2.5 (or, really, 2.8) and Hazelburn’s thrice distilled, Longrow is the more heavily peated of the Springbank brands of Scotch malt whisky. The CV expression—CV meaning ‘Curriculum Vitae’—is meant to represent the style and range of the various Longrow expressions, though how ‘representative’ it is comes down to the choices made by the blender, of course.

Upon opening the bottle and pouring my first few drams, I found a touch of burnt rubber and something slightly metallic on the nose, but thankfully these both faded quickly and have not reemerged. Instead, I find that wonderful, milky Springbank malt, reminiscent of rice pudding, alongside salt, peat, ginger, vanilla, coconut, cherries, and raisins. It is sulfured, but—and I want to stress this—only mildly so.

The palate is sweet, round, and a touch spicy. It is again malty, with notes of ash, campfire smoke, salt, marshmallow, coconut, and light sherry sweetness. Cocoa rounds out the finish nicely. The Longrow CV is yet another solid offering from Springbank.

Very interesting whisky this... I've bought a 20cl bottle, poured a measure and allowed it to settle. On the nose I'm getting a light woody smoke, white pepper with citrus notes, light honey and sea spray. The arrival is very subtle, watermelon, apple then light peat and then an unexpected full smoke and peat explosion finishing with a surprisingly long ginger, and woody-peppery tingling burn in the mouth with citrus after taste. Light ginger, pepper and honey-citrus.

As a Springbank fan I didn't know quite what to expect from this stable mate, much lighter, not the same depth of syrup viscosity, but a spicier peppery finish than say the 10 yo. A touch of water expands the flavor, pepper finish and nose but as a personal taste (purely personal) I would prefer a bit more depth and syrup.

I would make room for this malt in my whiskey time capsule easy! If you have necer had Longrow before, this is the one to start with. It is an ambassador for the Cambletown (what's left of it) region that represents itsself with style, finess and power. A peaty, briny beauty of a malt, that is surprising in its complexity and a real revelation for me.

So Springbank gets the job once again based on this CV!

Awesome!

Nose, Taste, Finish and Balance are graded out of 2.5 each:

Nose: Despite being the heavily peated sister of the much loved Springbank, Longrow nonetheless shares a similarly deft and refined touch on the nose. A soft wave of light peat and brine, infused with warm rhubarb and vanilla-poached peaches, seduces you into total infatuation before laying you down on a bed of drenched citrus-scented grass. 2.0

Taste: A silky sheet of light-bodied oil coats the palate, releasing a soft cloud of spice and brine, that gradually descends before precipitating a vanilla and ginger flavoured cream, nourishing the underlying bed of dry smoke and lemon sorbet. Quite a hypnotic little ecosystem. 2.5

Finish: Rhubarb and ginger mingle together in a thick fog of peaty spice, until finally they are completely enveloped in an oaky smoke and no longer visible. 2.0

Balance: Given that this whisky is made from heavily peated malt, thus diversifying it from the delicate Springbank, one immediately assumes a dram of robust character, that brashly wears its heart on its sleeve. None of it. This is a whisky of rare elegance, that despite a slight letting loose of the reigns on the finish, manages to restrain its power and harness it to propel a sleek vehicule of great complexity. 2.5

Nose is iodine and some sour cherry fruit. Flavours are muted, some bright fruitiness at the start, moving toward little peat, little malt, little wood (the General Arts degree of Scotch). Spicy oak finish.

This is one of the Springbank whiskeys that I had a change to taste at the distillery. This one has a very butter scotch nose. There is a hint of peat to come, like smoke in the fall air. After a taste this smokiness rounds on your taste buds. That is why I bought a bottle of it at their store and brought home.