When I bought this bottle I figured it would be a slam dunk because Springbank is a great distillery, and Cadenhead is a great bottler. Also, when you check the almost 87 points it gets on Whiskybase, you’re still good.

Of course, this introduction wouldn’t make much sense if I agreed with the stated assumptions. This is one of those weird flukes where I just can’t bring myself to like the whisky. Something’s weird and it just doesn’t sit right with my palate.

Hazelburn being triple distilled Springbank, more or less, made me highly enthusiastic about this bottle and generally I really like their releases. The same goes for Longrow and also Glengyle, although that’s from an entirely different set of stills.

Let’s just get to what’s what first.

Image from Whiskybase

Sniff:
Dry bourbon cask. Lots of very dry oak, with leafy barley oars. Straw, but also detergent, and herbs. Some hints of lavender later on.

Sip:
Again, dry herbs, almost potpourri, with lavender and roses. Quite dry with oak, some apple, straw and barley.

Swallow:
The finish is even more dry and shows a lot of fiery heat from the alcohol. A rather short finish.

Apart from the hints of detergent, this would have been quite a likable dram. However, I think the hints of fresh laundry were the only culprit in me disliking this one a lot. There’s not much else going on and all the flavors are ramped up in such a way that it all tastes rather conflicting.

A shame, but as it seems, I’m one of the few people who dislike this one. And I’ve given it lots of tries, with me going through almost half a bottle before selling the remainder of it.

78/100

Hazelburn 2005-2018, 13yo, Bourbon Barrel, 54.6% – Cadenhead Authentic Collection. Available through Cadenhead in Italy.