Springbank 2001 Rundlets & Kilderkins

The Rundlets and Kilderkins. A special bottling of the Springbank 10 year old which has been aged in 60-80L barrels (much smaller than Laphroaig quarter casks to put it in perspective) for added depth and flavour.

While the quality of the whisky is ok unfortunately (in my opinion) the bottle is really really ugly, a full copper springbank emblem. Not what i want to see from any distillery let alone a natural craft distiller who relies on the intrinsic quality of their product.

• Nose: sweet, rich caramel toffee, light phenol and tar. Usual Springbank malt and complexity is there

• Pallet: easy drinking, clean feel, nuttiness with huge pepper, wood spice and a waft of smoke at the back

• Finish: spices from the wood and pepper continue

• Mark: 7.7/10

Im not a huge fan of these small cask whiskys. For me the cask strength 10 year old Laphroaig is better than the quarter cask and again for me i prefer the 10 year old Springbank to this small cask option. For me there is too much wood and spice to appreciate the quality of the liquid (which im sure is there). However if you love the quarter cask and enjoy Springbank, this may be right up your alley

What a odd name! They are old types of casks (60 and 80 litres respectively) used in the 17th and 18th century. Like the quarter casks from Laphroaig or the Octaves used by Duncan Taylor, they are used to speed up maturation, due to the added surface contact with the wood.

Springbank Rundlets & Kilderkins was distilled in November 2001 and bottled in January 2012 at 10 years old.

Nose: starts on hay and nutmeg and gets then more syrupy with hints of dried fruits, toffee and honey. Hints of nougat, roasted nuts and milk chocolate. There is some pepper and herbs but it’s certainly not woody. Nice to find a couple of coastal notes as well, even a very soft farmy / medicinal veil.

Mouth: oily and pretty smoky now, really nice. Great balance between honeyed sweetness (rhubarb, peach jam, raisins) and spices from the oak (pepper, cinnamon). Hints of caramelized apple. Tobacco and leather. Full-flavoured, really good.

Finish: medium long, sherried, with pecan nuts, toffee, liquorice and a lingering maritime edge.

A very rich and well-made Springbank, taken out of the casks at the perfect moment. I’d be happy to see more experiments like this, or even a regular “small cask” release in the core range?

Nose: brine, toasted oak, vanilla and chocolate. lots of toffee but with a lemony tang. Fresh as well. It’s very much like having ‘Werthers Original’ candy on the beach.

Palate: Bam! What an entry sweet Cocoa. Brine, peat. Creamy. Lots of toffee candy engulfed with chocolate

Finish : Creamy, chocolate covered fudge.

All in all an excellent whisky, from Springbank, quite different than the other versions in the same age, sweeter, and much more chocolaty and toffee, but without giving away the briny salty notes we so like in our Springbanks. Feels much older than it’s 10 years of age. I love it. true greatness in a bottle. Keep it coming!