Hazelburn 13 Year Oloroso Cask Matured

Rating: 17/23 This is my last Hazelburn sample and it's notable higher proof than the others, which were all 46% ABV. I wonder why the change. N: Mmm! Rich and brimming with flavor. Malt with nuance from dirty stills and some decadent tangerine as well. It's not the most complex nose, but it's bold and enticing. A touch of smoke comes in as well. That's really about it though. P: The proof comes through, but it doesn't taste like alcohol. I get a bit of youth from this, but not a ton. The palate is absolutely packed with dried fruit; it almost makes me think it's a cognac at times. I get lots of raisin, with some apricot and cherry notes. There's plenty of dirty still character though, bringing in waxiness with a hint of dungeness crab. There are some chocolatey notes and spices as well, with hints of rich vanilla and very subdued wood in the background. The spices never really develop much character beyond a bit of burn, unfortunately, though. A somewhat mild layer of ashy smoke sits at the base of this. As much as I like the individual flavors here though, the palate as a whole doesn't quite come together. It's great, for sure, but there isn't enough going on here. F: This is a bit of a let down. I get some clear, bitter alcohol here and some of the other bitter flavors do carry through as well. A hint of ash. - Conclusion - Although I enjoy this, it gradually impresses me less and less. I would take it over Hazelburn 12 (16/23), but not by a large margin. The margin between this an Hazelburn 10 (2019) (15/23) is greater, but still not that big since I like that yeasty Gouden Carolus vibe that the Hazelburn 10 has. Bladnoch 17 California Red Wine Cask (17/23) is a little more interesting and tasty than this. It's not a big improvement, but it is one. After all of those side-by-sides, I'm thinking that this is a 16. That's a good score, but it's such a shame that this isn't better after its delightful nose. As a sanity check, I tried this against my bottle of Hazelburn 13 (2021). The 2021 is significantly more complex and balanced than this is, with none of that excessive bitterness. The 2021 really strikes me as the epitome of triple-distilled Springbank. It's certainly not a perfect dram, but I think it's what Hazelburn should really be aspiring to be. Glenfarclas 25 (23/23) is much more mature and mellow than this is. The gap isn't as large as I'd expected though. And the 2021 Hazelburn isn't standing out as much as I'd expected either. This dram appears to be growing on me again. It's still not excellent though. Comparing my final sip against the Bladnoch, I find the two much closer now. I'm going to bump this up to a 17. It's a worthy dram, just not at the prices they're asking. Thank you @pkingmartin for sharing this with me! It's definitely one of the better Hazelburns.

Edition: 2020 I am a Springbank rookie. The few that I have had have been above average to exceptional. Pulled from a backlog of samples, from, I believe @PbMichiganWolverine. Sadly, I lost account of who sent this (all apologies, but thank you). This was the winner. For this Memorial Day weekend, it seemed like a pour to sit back and chew on this Saturday evening. A lightweight aroma greets you. There are a variety of small notes, like a 1000 piece puzzle. Perfume, floral, cedar, vanilla, milk chocolate, molasses, honey, pine resin, caramel, toasted coconut, ocean breeze. All these disparate aromas, when put together, form a coherent, cohesive picture of what the palate can expect. Like the nose, there are several flavors that form a picture. But the flavor palette is comprised of different set of colors than the nose. Some are of the same spectrum but tinted slightly richer and bolder. The body is medium-light and delivers an initial sweetness of brown sugar, vanilla and caramel. Bitterness of dark chocolate. Spiciness of ground cinnamon, cardamon, ginger and oak. Earthiness of leather. Burnt whole wheat toast. Oranges and lemon citrus. Grilled apples, pears, pineapples and toasted coconut. Raisin bran cereal fades to the finish. The finish is long with charcoal, tobacco, oranges, brine, coffee and rubber tires all with a metallic overtone, which lingers. A nice long ride out until the next sip. It’s been a while since I have had a good scotch pour. This one broke that streak. There is this George Clinton Parliament Funkadelic that just keeps the palate off beat, syncopated and dancing. The sweetness is not overblown but on the fringe. Balanced by spices and tropical spices. That is the key: balance (Daniel-son). I get a slight similarity to Glenfarclas with a charcoaled edge. Well crafted. A slow sipper that you don’t want to end. [92/100][Tasted: 5/28/22]

Found this Hazelburn 13yr Oloroso Cask at Specs. I paid $106 on sale and feel I got a bargain based on reviews Ive read...lets find out. Triple distilled sherry bomb Springbank juice. No coloring or chill filtration and 100.6 pf pot still yes please. This stuff is stacked. Poured neat/drop nose is nutty maple fudge, dark plump prune/raisin, buttercream frosting with malt and light oak. Its not jumping out of the glass so be patient. There is some prickly heat getting in the way. Oily mouthfeel brings palate of rich sweet cookie dough and dark sherried fruits with a nice malty undertone. There's some raw honey, semi sweet chocolate, quality pink Himalayan salts and leathery oak. Good complexity and depth to flavors but its a bit bright. Finish is loaded with supple leather and sweet pipe tobacco transitioning to tannic barrel and salty malt. Just a hint of smoke. This has such a crisp cleanness throughout being pot stilled and triple distilled. It gives you that special Redbreast flair with so much more flavor. You can tell there's Springbank funk in the dna but its been filtered down. That sounds like a bad thing but its not, its just a different take on the absolutely wonderful new make. Springbank is such a high quality cant miss product you can pretty much buy anything they put out. This Hazelburn (9900 bottles produced ) is no exception. I bought this because of stellar reviews by dhsilv2, pkingmartin and Jose Massu Espinel so props to them. Im just here to pay it forward..........93/100....I get an overall old-timey fabric note from this I cant quite put a finger on. Its like a vintage linen(tablecloth/napkin) or cracking the vacuum bag after sucking fibers from an antique rug. Its dusty and aged and I love it

2020 edition - 50.3% So I've never reviewed one of these and I have a few. So why not? Well, sherry bombs are tough to review imo and just haven't gone there yet. Nose - It's an interesting nose. A nice springbank under baked cookies and bread with old world european oak notes and light sherry elements. As it opens up the sherry comes out more and more, giving way to these dunnage warehouse elements, dark berries, earthy elements, and just straight up raisins. Taste - That raisen note on the nose gives way to the most intense raisin note on the taste ever perhaps. It's just straight brown sugar and raisins and soaked alcohol rum with sea salt and rich well aged oak elements. This drinks older than 13 years and yet it's vibrant grape juice and raisins and it lasts on the tongue. Yeah I'm a bit confused by the 50.3 as that feels like they watered it down randomly. None the less the fresh sherry is so good on this one. It's a poor man's version of my springbank 19 CS single cask and my god everyone deserves a poor man's version of that at a reasonable price and this is just that. 150 bucks is a big step up from year's past thanks to tariffs but it's completely fair. This is a hitter and one of the best sherry bombs under 200 bucks sold in the US, if not hands down the best one. Buy 3 and know you're getting the best sherry bomb that isn't a single barrel for the money in the US. 4.0 and I might be factoring in value here but I'm doing it anyway. Please note this review is for the 2020 edition, I do think it's better than the other 13 I've had and the 14. But I haven't done a side by side and I don't remember which year the other 13 I had was.

Oh my god this is one good whisky. This review is actually for the 50.3%abv, 1 out of 9.900 bottles, a Hazelburn 2007, 13yo oloroso cask matured. Hazelburn was once an individual distillery, located in Campbeltown which was the capital of scotch whisky in the past. Back in 1925 when it was mothballed, this distillery was one of the biggest of the 27 of the region. Nowadays there are only a handful number of distilleries in Campbeltown and one of them is Springbank, who owns Longrow and Hazelburn. The three "brands" are distilled at the same place. Bottled at 50.3%abv, chesnut color. On the nose; it is absolutely gorgeous. If you were blindfolded and you nose it, you would definitively think it is a 100% cacao Dark Chocolate. The note is so accurate and clean, it is unmistakeable. Cocoa; cocoa butter; vanilla, strawberries and oranges. It also gives you this aroma of a leather wallet, brownies and slight saltiness. It is all about dark chocolate in all of its forms. The palate was delicious as well. Starts with chocolated bathed cherries, almonds, cocoa and dark chocolate. A second sip gave me Toblerone almond chocolate, tobacco and creamy vanilla. Aftertaste was bitter and amazing. Sulphur, pepper, salt; dark bitter chocolate and tobacco leaf. Very buttery, strong and long finish. Overall, this mantains my invented rule of "if the bottle is ugly, the whisky is got to be good, because it doesn't need marketing"; it was actually one of my favorite drams of this 2021 year, and i am sure it is going to be on my yearly top ten. Instant favorite, my score for it is a well deserved 100 over 100. Go buy it.

Nose - date, raisin, spiced honey, spoiled orange, flint, lemon, vanilla, toffee, raspberry jam, allspice, rich malt, sweet oak, white pepper, dark chocolate, walnut, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - raspberry, orange zest, lemon, raisin, black cherry, vanilla, flint, pineapple, rich malt, ginger, brine, light peat, honey, chocolate, moderate alcohol bite, finishing long with spoiled dark fruit, flint, chocolate, and rich oak. Aged for thirteen years in fresh oloroso casks, this is a completely different animal from the standard 10 Year. While the younger is rather timid and subtle, there’s nothing shy about this one. The nose is beautiful. Overripe jammy fruits, toffee, sulphur, and that oily, dirty funk that’s a hallmark of Springbank whiskies. The palate is mouthwateringly delicious. Salted dark fruits, juicy citrus, chocolate, and more of the funk. The mouthfeel is oily and the finish is lusciously long. By now you can probably tell that I like this. It’s outstanding whisky and one of the best bottles I have in my collection. Better yet, at the $130 I paid for this last year, it’s the best value top tier whisky I own. It’s easily worth double that. The only thing holding this back from a perfect score is a slight youthful brightness which doesn’t detract from the experience, but it’s worth mentioning if I’m being especially critical. Still, if you see one and have a proclivity for the Campbeltown experience, buy one. You won’t be disappointed.