Springbank 10 Year

Meh. Much ethyl and not much else. I don't get the hype.

An excellent mix of peaty and spicy, very warming and intense, but not offensively so. (Most standout drink from 2017 Regina Whiskey Night)

Sometimes, it seems as if everyone who's serious about the whiskey hobby has to be a Springbank fan. In my view, people tend to love it because of the romantic image of a non-corporate distillery, and the fact that Springbank makes a number of different styles helps them find purchase among a few different niches in the scotch world (I personally prefer their more heavily peated Longrow line). Springbank's signature feature to me is minerality, meaning a slightly bitter, medicinal, metallic, effervescent feature that's kind of like what I imagine most whiskies would taste like if watered down with Badoit or San Pellegrino. Aside from the minerality present, if not dominant, in all three phases, the core flavor here is a well-composed apple-honey body and a curl of smoke at the end. My wife, who was not feeling in a generous mood to these whiskies, described it as "fish scales in apple juice." Well, there you go. There are not many whiskies that taste exactly like Springbank, so I highly recommend trying it to see if its unique flavor profile hits the spot for you.

Tingle in the nose. Salty up front, oily texture, some fruity notes that get overpowered towards the finish by some smoke and peat. Touch of spice accompanies the smokiness on the finish. Decent offering.

8.5/10 sweet, spicy especially with too long in the mouth, then coconut at the finish if you swallow quick enough