Review 288. Hazelburn 15 year old

With autumn now in full swing, whisky to me starts to serve a bit of a different purpose. Or rather an extra purpose. While it always and first and foremost is a case of chasing the flavour (which is why, generally speaking I lean towards those whiskies that allow for a nice balance between spirit character and cask influence), with the autumnal drop in temperature and the weather elements becoming increasingly harsh, whisky becomes  - literally- a heartwarming sip. Something to warm the bones, if you will. External conditions (like the weather) will likely have an impact on what I look for in a dram. So when it’s cold, windy and wet outside, I look for something robust, firm and punchy in my glass. I‘m sure many of you can relate. This time of year, those sherry cask matured whiskis start to become more appealing. Vice versa, when temperatures are mild and the weather tends to be sunny, I’ll easily overlook those sherry cask matured whiskies as (refill) bourbon cask stuff will almost always steal my attention.

More particular to today’s review, I feel Springbank, like its sister distillery Glengyle, has the ability to produce spirit that will turn out beautifully, pretty much regardless of what casks it is matured in. In fact, 3 of my most memorable whiskies ever come from Springbank: their bourbon cask matured 14 year old, their 17 yo Madeira and one of their their 21 yo expressions (which had rum casks in the mix). All of them utterly brilliant whiskies, but so, so different in terms of profile, character and flavour while all of them  unmistakably still had that Springbank DNA running through them. Above all, both are very much 'all season distilleries.'

Hazelburn 15 year old (2022), Oloroso cask matured. 54.2% ABV. 9000 bottles but mostly sold out (secondary suggests anywhere between €180 and €250).

When it comes to their triple distilled Hazelburn branch, I get the idea that Springbank is feeling less ‘adventurous’ when it comes to maturation. I’ve already mentioned how 3 different Springbank expressions all had different casks involved, and with the peated Longrow they also tend to mix things up in terms of casks (specifically the whole ‘adventures in wine casks’ thing  from the now discontinued Longrow Red series). However, when it comes to Hazelburn, by and large I feel as if they tend to stick with sherry casks. As such, there’s of course a rather wide variety of sherry ‘styles’  to pick from (the nutty and dry Manzanilla, the dry fino, the richness of an oloroso, the semi dry, semi rich amontillado, the crisp Palo Cortado, the sweet PX …), and when those casks are still lively enough, they will have a (significant) impact on the whisky as well. But, and this needs to be said, all within the certain, typical  ‘flavour spectrum’ of fortified Spanish wine. So when sticking to sherry casks, I’ll argue that, if not a ‘conservative’ approach, then surely a more traditional approach is maintained. I fancy my chances of  the good people at Springbank knowing best what works (and what doesn’t) for their whiskies. And so, if I were to bet, I’d say they choose to do so because they discovered a long time ago that Hazelburn – still firm bodied but somewhat lighter in style – works best when being put to rest in ex sherry casks?

Nose

A lovely mixture of fruit notes (oranges, cherries, stewed apples…) alongside confectionary,  almonds and ‘heavier’ notes the likes of leather, hints of polish, cold coffee and liqueur bonbons. A spot on combo of light, almost playful elements and deep, rich and ‘profound’ notes.

Palate

An absolutely flawless ‘transfer’ from nose to palate! Pretty much everything that made the nose so alluring and convincing returns: the fruit and confectionary as well as those deeper notes of leather, treacle and coffee. Just like on the nose, the balance is excellent and the mouthful is full without being dense or chewy, and neither viscous nor dry. Perfectly palatable neat but should you add a few drops of water, I found an echo of that Campbeltown funk just showing itself in the shiest of ways. Mostly, though, I found the heavier notes of treacle and coffee becoming more dominant.

Finish

Long, warming and lingering with spices and a very satisfying salinity that goes on and on.

Final thoughts

An absolutely cracking dram! I still think Hazelburn tends to be ‘the overlooked one’ in Springbank’s lineup. And while indeed it perhaps tends to have less of a  ‘typical’ Campbeltown flavour profile (a lot less ‘funky’ than Springbank and definitely not as bold as the peated Longrow) due to it being a bit more mellow (that triple distillation makes it perhaps smore reminiscent of a  Speyside or Lowland style in terms of character and flavour), you can’t argue with the fact that it works  really well for what it aims to do. The almost understated and often underappreciated  ‘standard’ 10 year old is a more than decent whisky any day of the week in my book. However, when you add an extra five years into the equation and present it at cask strength, like what we have here today, it really becomes a bit of a super hero. This is on another level and, if I were to hand out scores, I feel as if it would be flirting with the 90/100 zone. Much obliged, Joe, this is an absolute gem!