Springbank 18 Year

Quality classic sherry cask elements. Need to dig into this again.

2018 bottling Nose: Musty warehouse, motor oil, seashore, hints of vanilla, caramel and mixed berries. Palate: Oily, savory and spicy, this feels substantial, a proper scotch. Notes of seashore and umami, hints of caramel, anise, tropical fruits and lemon. Finish: Long, mildly spicy and salty, umami hangs on to the end. This may be sacrilege, but based on the sample bottles, I prefer the 15 year. Thanks to @ctbeck11 for the sample

2021 edition - not sure why we haven't moved these towards year or batch numbers but here we are. This one is 50:50 sherry and bourbon. Nose - Old school sherry giving off grape notes which I adore on sherry casks. Gives me vibes of old world sherry. The springbank is turned back, still sea salt and light baked sugar cookies come through but they're pushed back for clean vanilla and that amazing just outstanding sherry. Taste - The bourbon casks really jump out here. You get sherry and vanilla heavy bourbon and then more sherry. Grapes, figs, raisins, chocolate, perfect oak enhancements, goodness...I can't express how great this is. This takes the second batch from 2020 which was this dirty old school springbank funk bomb and goes the opposite. Almost old school macallan or cadenhead HP sherry casks. Sadly this isn't 100% those epic sherry casks but perhaps we're being saved from our own stupidity as the bourbon plays wonderfully here. Anyway 4.0. Springbank is just getting better. Sadly god knows how many people are going to just buy these to invest.

화사함. 딸기가 있고 짜고 스모키한 피트가 은은하게 뒤에 있다. 전체적으로 스파이시함

Butter and short bread. Slight smoke with floral notes.

Nose - lemon meringue, charred orange, oily peat, pineapple skin, vanilla, butterscotch, green apple, chocolate, honey, pear, apricot, powdered sugar, cinnamon, cashew, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - orange, tangerine, lemon pith, brine, ginger, oily peat, apple, fig, honey, allspice, caramel, vanilla cream, sweet oak, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with oily peat, honey, orchard fruit, and bitter citrus flavors. Next up on the Springbank train is this 18 Year bottled in 2018, notably with a 100% bourbon cask maturation. When I first opened the bottle over a year ago, I remember it being hot, bitter, and bland. Let’s see if time and oxygen have made a positive difference. The nose is sweet and tropical with the classic overripe, charred citrus and oily peat, but it’s a rather light touch here. The palate is similarly sweet but also pithy and bitter. More honeyed orchard fruits are in the mix with a briny, gingery zing as well. Overall this is great whisky, but I wish it were better at the $250 I paid for the bottle. At 18 years old, I think it tastes younger than it should. My personal preference would be for a sherry component to add more depth and intrigue to the profile. I’d love to try a different 18 Year and compare them side-by-side, but I won’t be shelling out for another bottle anytime soon.