A quick post today about a new bottling that we’ve just got in from our sister company, Speciality Drinks Ltd, as part of the Single Malts of Scotland range – an 11 year old Springbank.
It was matured in a sherry cask, after being distilled in 1999 and bottled at the end of 2010. It’s a deep woody red, coming in at a shade darker than our recent sold out Port Ellen Royal Wedding bottling, and it’s a big and smoky beast of a Springbank.
Single Malts of Scotland Springbank 1999
We had a bottle of this on the side, so Tim and I dug in for a quick taste.
Billy:
Colour: Dark copper
Nose: Lively, with some glue, raisins, warm leather, ‘proper’ sticky cocktail cherries and a layer of woody smoke underneath it all, as a warm and meaty base.
Palate: Big, rich and spicy up front, with cigar tobacco and cedar boxes, cinnamon, clove and aniseed. It has a chunk of fruit in the middle that quickly dries out and becomes slightly tannic, with a hint of red grape skin and sour cherry jam.
Finish: Lingering dry wood and smoke, stewed cherries and eccles cake raisins. It all turns meaty as it fades, with roast beef crispy bits popping up.
Comment: A smoky, sherried beast of a whisky. One for the sherry-heads. Like me.
Tim:
Nose: Wonderful classical old-style sherry aromas – didn’t know you could still get casks like this! Gamey and rich, with woodglue and heavy sweet stewed fruit. Impressively pruney for a whisky of this comparative youth. Also quite oaky (in a good way), with treacle toffee, blackberries and autumn leaves. Delightful.
Palate: Full-bodied – big waves of very assertive, oaky mocha and bitter chocolate, then some damson jam, followed by a massive surge of sweet sherry oakiness. Serious depth, but you have to like sherried whisky, as this is pretty extreme.
Finish: Drying and still quite oaky with fading dark fruit and spice.
Comment: A monster – and at such a young age! Almost overpoweringly sherried, but a lot of fun.
There aren’t all that many bottles of it, with a total release of 83, and we expect it to disappear quite quickly, so get in now before it’s gone…
The Springbank 1999 is up on the TWE website now.
Enjoy responsibly