Springbank - Local Barley - 9 y/o (2019)
Photo taken somewhere in Stuttgart
We cannot recall ever paying so much money for a 9 year old whisky while getting such a crappy packaging
But we kinda love that, it's almost punk, telling us to forget about the fu**ing package and to try the liquid! So Springbank-y.
Nose
Wow, this one wakes the dead! White pepper, marcipan dipped into seawater, menthol oil and grandmas camphor balm for muscle pain (all tensions are gone now). Also lost drops of gasoline at the petrol station, melted butter and some olives. The complexity here is furious but still balanced and under control. After a while in the glass we get some leather combined with an indescribable earthiness.
Water: Getting less wild and much more delicate now, with hints of lemon and vanilla cake. Even some sour apples show up. You can use water here like a regulator that can be switched according to your desire.
Palate
The first impression is so dense, heavy and austere that we need some time to unravel the bunch of aromas. First there is white pepper, vanilla sweetness and a very fine lemon bitterness. Second there is marcipan, fresh cut grass, heather and liquorice (those black Haribo gummy bears children don't like and give to their dads).
With water: Less austere, more delicate, but still very powerfull.
Finish
Sticking on the tongue forever like a tick on a dog. What an intense aftertaste, like biting into a grapefruit peel that accidentally fell into a plastic jerrycan with gasoline (how often does this happen again and who eats that?!)
Rating
The guys from Whiskyfun once described the Lagavulin 12 as "Bauhaus" Whisky due to its perfect simplicity and straightforwardness. Speaking in design language this Springbank is an "Industrial/brutalism" masterpiece. And no, we are not talking about those rosegold wire-rimmed Hipster Ikea lamps, we are talking about listening to a smashing Nine-Inch-Nails track that throws you in a LeCorbusier Chair!
Simple Equation:
Only 9 Years in Refill (maybe third fill) Casks + still astonishing complexity and ballance = Brillant destillate + distilling mastery
