Bourbon_Obsessed_Lexington
Springbank 10 Year
Single Malt — Campbeltown, Scotland
Reviewed
October 14, 2021 (edited January 22, 2022)
Not sure how I failed to leave notes on this one. Essentially a benchmark dram for me.
Light golden color. Nose of peaches, peat, brine, ash, heather and malt. There’s a bit of grilled pineapple and chocolate as well.
Smoky and peaty with sweet resin, almond paste, grilled pineapple, slight guava and blck walnut.
Compared to the Loch Lomond 12y sample from @ContemplativeFox this has more smoke, a bit of ash and pinch of bitter walnut with less fruit overall. I think it’s a slightly more complex pour but with more peat, wood and sea spray but maybe a bit less approachable in that it’s noticeably more dry with a tannic kick. As compared to the ex-bourbon cask sample from @pkingmartin this is rougher around the edges with more astringency.
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@ContemplativeFox you have sent more than enough. your generosity is much appreciated. 🥃
@JoelyO Looking forward to finding out what you think of Highland Park 12 and Amrut Fusion then :) And wishing I'd sent you some port Charlotte or ardbeg now.
@ContemplativeFox see most of that sounds good to me and I'm feeling I'm getting more of a taste for it as I keep at it. I have a long way to go but excited about the journey.
@JoelyO That comes in fairly often, but it isn't required. You will definitely get that with Laphroaig too. It's a bitter herbal iodine flavor and it has a moist earthiness that can get a bit chocolatey. There are lots of different descriptions, but I think bitter and bold in the herbal direction with various other funky variations is a fair description. It definitely blends into smoke a lot, but it isn't necessarily smoky. YMMV
@Bourbon_Obsessed_Lexington. wow thank you! that makes a lot of sense! I appreciate the time you took to reply on this. basically it's all science but you made it relatable.
@JoelyO I’m probably unqualified to answer this but yes and no. Peat itself, possibly damp and heated, for me almost produces an earthy acidic note like hops in beer. When (I assume) they burn the hell out of it then notes if actual smoke and ash come about. The bandaid flavor seems to come from iodine and products of peat smoke, generating phenolic compounds (think throat numbing spray). So whereas burning peat is required to get that “band-aid” note you can find plenty of other peated expressions that dodge that result. Laphroaig is the most band-aid driven mainstream whisky (that I know of), Lagavulin falls short of that extreme but has a lot of ash, Ardbeg falls short of ash but is full of smoke, Talisker 10 rides the line between smoke and earth and others like LL12, Springbank 10, Highland Park 12 and Johnnie Walker Green land closer to the acidic/earthy side. Oban 14 gives you just a hint of earthy peat. That’s my long-winded treatise on peat - and only a handful of peated whiskys really hit you with that phenolic/band-aid hammer.
@Bourbon_Obsessed_Lexington okay so here comes a total noob query for you... Is peat equal to that bandaid flavor? I just thought peat was more woodsy, smoky, which I love.
@JoelyO I think this or the LL 12 are about 3/4 down peat lane, Islay is 4/4 (and sometimes 5/4) whereas Jonnnie walker Green is 2/4, Oban 14 is 1/4 and in the opposite direction you have the sherried beauties. Glenlivet, Glenfiddich and (cough) Macallan live in the midst of the no-man’s land that are neither especially peated or sherried. This is all my novice interpretation but generally helps me decide what to reach for based on my mood.
Sounds mighty tasty! I can see forgetting to write about a favorite as you were simply immersed in enjoying it every time!
Lol yeah me too but Springer is more than double LL12 most markets....Id still take it
I'd definitely take this over Loch Lomond 12 if they were priced the same.