This bottle was the first one I emptied this year. Of course, it’s only been a week, but still. This also means I’ve not done anything on this blog that has been a staple since the beginning, with end-of-year lists of whisky, other booze and music. I’ll try and make up for that with a pending ‘what was good in 2019’ post.

Anyway, yet another Springbank Society thing that has gone up ridiculously in price. And yet another good one. Sorry, spoiler alert…

Springbank is a bit sketchy with it’s sherry casks over the last couple of years, with some misses, but luckily still mostly good ones. These casks were re-charred, which means they got a new coat of charcoal on the inside. This doesn’t happen often, or at least isn’t disclosed often.

Sniff:
Sharp, fresh sherry. Orange, apricots, almonds. Bitterness, with smoke and salinity.

Sip:
Quite sharp, but not as sharp as I expected. Fruit on a very coastal backbone, with quite some dry smoke. Smoked oranges, apricots, dates, bitter almonds.

Swallow:
The smoke comes to the front, suddenly, with rather heavy sherry and fruit. Salinity, oak, and a lingering smoke.

Honestly, it’s a cracking Longrow. The smoke is noticeable but not as much to the front as some others, almost like it’s in between regular Longrow and Springbank. The orange notes on the nose made this hugely interesting from the start, and with the added bitterness it just works fantastically.

89/100

Longrow 11 years old, 2007-2019, Refill Re-charred sherry butts, 56.9%