Longrow Peated

Springbank Tasting at The Oak Barrel, Sydney, 15 February 2023. Whisky #5. Unidentified batch (importer’s label over the number, grrr!) probably 2022. Nose: Mild, sweet peat smoke with a resinous quality – like peat smoke and fresh-cut pine combined. Olive oil, sunflower oil, green capsicum. Briny, like the smell of a pebble seashore when the tide is coming in (i.e. fresh, not like drying seaweed). Adding water amplifies the resinous and brine aromas. Palate: Sweet phenols, grilled citrus fruits, mustard and cress, gristy cereal and fresh sweet citrus fruit towards the finish. The texture is slightly oily but crisp. Finish: Medium/long. Grain, brine, lemons with paprika and a touch of vanilla smoke. There is a lingering bitter/sour aftertaste. A good whisky that is often overlooked, I think, as being just a generic NAS, but it has a lot more to offer than that. This comprises peated, double-distilled whiskies aged from 7-14 years and matured in a variety of barrels, but with the majority being refill bourbon barrels. It has a subtle complexity that takes a while to appreciate, but it is also batch variable, and I don’t think this particular bottling was as good as the one I tasted a few years ago at Springbank. That one took water a little better and I’d actually recommend this expression as a neat pour. I have a 2018 bottle of this from batch 25.04.18 18/210 in the stash and I’ll be interested to see how it compares (whenever I get around to opening it). There was a single bottle of this available for sale by ballot on the night, but at the asking price I probably would have passed if my name had come up. It used to be a bargain at AUD$120, but at $189? Nah. “Good” : 84/100 (3.75 stars) --------------------------------------------------- [Previous review, from September 25, 2017] Scotland, September 2017. Whisky #11, distillery sample. Nose: Gentle smoke, citrus and tropical fruit, vegetable water, brine, farmyard, vanilla, caramel, petrichor. Palate: Clean and crisp but full, with subtle smoke in the arrival. The development brings ginger, earthy lemon zest, brine, developing smoke and flinty minerals. The texture is lean but creamy. Finish: Long. Smoky, briny and citric fading to a semi-sweet aftertaste. Adding water mutes the nose but does not change the aromas very much. On the palate it brings out more sweetness and smoke whilst restraining the alcohol. I’d recommend just a couple of drops. Longrow is double distilled (as opposed to Springbank’s other whiskies that are either 2.5 or 3 times distilled) and the malt receives much longer smoke contact during kilning. The peat used is Islay peat (other mainland distilleries use highland peat) but its use is restrained and gentle. This creates a subtle, well integrated smoke character that allows the iconic maritime, farmyard and citrus qualities of Springbank distillate to shine through. This NAS expression may be the baby of the Longrow line-up, but it is by no means an inferior or budget malt. “Very Good” : 86/100 (4 stars) [AUD$120.0 per Bottle in 2018] ---------------------------------------------------

In short, a wonderfully complex fruity whisky with uniques medicinal overtones that blow you mind. So I’ve been saving this one. Bought it a few months ago and decided that it break it open when on vacation at my favourite spot, the Drakensberg, Kwa-Zulu Natal at the foot of The Amphitheater Mountain. Before jumping in my research found the interesting piece of information about Kavalan whisky from thewhiskyshelf.com - “Taiwan is certainly an interesting place to make whiskey given its location near the equator. In general, it’s intensely hot and humid for over half the year, creating an environment for the oak and whiskey to interact that’s different than it is in Scotland or even Japan. The more hot and humid climate also accelerates the aging process, allowing Kavalan to release younger whiskeys. This plays into Kavalan’s favor given how relatively young the distillery is. Most of the Kavalan Single Casks I’ve seen are in the 5-8 year range, making this 10 year old Kavalan Sherry Single Cask Whiskey unique.” Now onto my tasting notes. This whisky looks unique and special. It’s dark and moody liquid sets the tones that you’re in for something different. The nose is full is massive sherry notes, no surprises considering the wonderfully dark tones in this liquid. Taste is unmistakably sherry sweet in the first sip with unique herbal after tones. It reminds me of liquorice in places. It’s rich, full bodied and a bit of a handful. No need to rush this one down the hatch, it almost forces you to enjoy it over time. After a few sips the sherry-ness becomes less distracting and the whiskies medicinal qualities come through. After each sip you find yourself basking in herbal energy. Yes is definitely sherry, the herbal infusion is what kept me coming back for each sip. Then, the dram just keeps giving, the next step, the herbal base gives rise to plums, nuts, and spice. I’ve never enjoyed a whisky before whose flavour profile opens up over time revealing new notes, tones and profiles. One the first sip I was drinking a full bodied sweet sherry cask whisky, now, a few sips in, I’m enjoying a wonderfully spicy and herbal whisky with a fruit and nut base.

I'll lead by saying this really does better for me from a tighter Glencairn - I have a few that are a bit wider, somewhere in between a Glencairn mixing glass and standard Glencairn, and this loses both nose and flavor with the added air in the mixer. Nose is gentle and polite-no matter how deep I go I never get a burn-and smells of a fantastic flower garden by the sea. Most Scotch for me smells of campfires, or wet beach, or fruit orchards, or hay, but this is lilacs and tulips and marigolds and honeysuckle, with a briny backdrop. Time in the glass brings out red delicious apple and something nutty like marzipan or almond butter. Very unique, and also quite enjoyable. Palate starts creamy smooth and borderline oily, with apples, honey, vanilla and cereal grains (oats?) lining up in orderly fashion before a dash of wood tannin keeps it from going too sweet, and directs it to the warm, briny, slightly ashy close that I associate with Springbank. I really like this Scotch. It's balanced, smooth, interesting and also unchallenging. I don't have to spend 20 minutes waiting for Sirius to align with Mars before the flavors all come out to play. If i could find it in America at anything near the UK price, I'd have it on the shelf year round and it would be my house sipper. And therein lies the rub: I bought this at the Whisky Shop in Aberlour for $42. I've seen it in the states exactly twice, at over $100, and at that price there are countless other whiskies that are far better. I don't know why Springbank chose an importer that hates America, but it hurts me because I know i won't have another bottle of this until I get back to Scotland next year. And then I'm going to ship a case home.

N: Peat - and lots of it, landing somewhere between the medicine of Laphroaig and the perfume of Lagavulin - earthy, bit of petrichor, tar, maybe pine. Not getting much beyond the peat. Some caramel, some lemon citrus, peach, and pear. P: Caramel, sweet red fruit, vanilla, citrus, earth, pine, heather, dried flowers. F: Fruity, some tropical notes, vanilla cream, dried flowers and herbs, dash of oak. Late lingering wood spice with a touch of unexpected heat (unexpected this late). This doesn't quite live up to the classic Islay whiskies, but it's close. It's quality and a bit of a change of pace from the Islay bottles. The stone fruit nature of it is a nice change from Lagavulin's lemon notes. And this isn't as aggressively medicinal as Laphroaig (but what is, I guess). It's also got some of the flowery/heathery notes of a Highland Park, but lacks the punch of their drams, for better or worse. I guess I don't know how to think about this except in comparison to other peated Scotch. That said, it's not on par with the classic Springbanks - their originals are better than this Islay knockoff. Is what it is. ____________ Please come join an unofficial Distiller community on Discord: https://discord.gg/VSmCvzAQfH. We chat spirits (and other things) in real time while being a great resource to each other for recommendations, finding deals, and generally enjoying the journey together. (If the link is expired, please post a comment and I will provide a new one.)

Nice but simple Springbank-y packaging. Rose gold foil lettering is unique but undermined by generic eggshell white sticker labels. Simple by design, but parchment labels would have added authenticity and a tactile elegance. Medium straw with an orange tinge. Thinner body but just on the proper side of watery. Floral smoke dominates the nose. Bright and fresh. Heather. A touch of proof spice. Asian pear and a smidge of jasmine. Smoke is clean and elegant. Beechwood, or maybe alder. A thread of rose water. After an initial, gently sweet, floral+tropical lychee, the peat arrives and a saccharine smoke crashes the palate. Creamy vanilla custard, but tangy. After, the flavor settles into an extended salted caramel apple. Overly toasted pie crust rounds things out and loops back to the lingering smoke. Really nice whisky and well executed, but rarity drives the price point - IMO equivalent experiences are available on the shelf right now at $70… instead of rarely available and $100+.

The nose feels like an inverse triangle of peat. All the malt and sliced off, leaving just an inverted cone of sharp vegetation funneled up into your face. Maybe some lemon zestin there too. I guess it's younger than other offerings from Springbank, but it seems to have far less oil and viscosness. Yep, the palate is sharp too. Cutting and biting across the tongue. Smoking more like a steam-burn than a campfire. It's still got the organic streak that Springbank does like no one else, but it's random. Undisciplined. A bit like the 12 year old who only behaves when his dad is in the room. Honeycomb. Salt. Moss. And cold sunshine. Fun on occasion. But mostly makes you remember his older brothers.