Longrow Red 13 years Malbec

Part of the yearly crazy release from Longrow. Some years are brilliant, others are misses that didn't work so well, but when the base spirit is that good, how wrong can you get? Ok, maybe the wine clashes with the spirit, but I trust the folks at Springbank to get it right more often than not.

This bottle can hardly be found in stores, so it was a minor miracle that PY and I spotted one on a website that sells whisky here in Singapore. But they only had 1 bottle left. After an intense arm wrestling match to rock the ages, PY won the right to the bottle, and he's been generous enough to give me a dram from it.

Image from The Whisky Exchange

Longrow Red 13 years Malbec (51.3% abv)

Colour - amber, with a strong reddish hue. This is one of the reddest whisky I've seen (the Kavalan Solist Sherry cask was more mahogany and brown)

Nose - Very meaty on the nose, followed by lots of tannins and liquorice. There's a peaty character to this, though the peat is more vegetal and herbal than ashy. Cherries, prunes, and maybe some dates too. The wine is unmistakably Malbec, with Malbec's meaty character coming through. The nose is meaty, leathery, with suggestions of coffee. This is a really big nose.

Palate - Ooomph. The peat comes through more heavily, but doesn't dominate. The wine is still having a big voice here. Leathery, dark red fruits, meaty, with a slight touch of savouriness. There's some honey, and you taste the oak a little. There's quite a lot of spice on this too - ginger, cloves, pepper. Despite being more alcohol than water and fairly young, you don't feel much of a tongue-burn. Texture sits between being waxy and oily.

Finish - Spices, liquorice comes back, together with the leathery, oaky finish one gets on a good Old World red wine. Fairly long too, though the meatiness on the finish may put me off having more than 1 dram.

Overall - While not as rounded as last year's Longrow 18, this is big, rich, and more than holds its own. It's not got the velvety feel of its elder sibling, but the Malbec adds a lot of character to an already good, young whisky. Think the extra year in the wine cask (compared to the past 2 years' release) helped, whereas for some of the previous years' Longrow Reds, some reviewers say that the wine (fortified or otherwise) had too much of a say. One to sip on a day when you only want one solid dram.

Peat and More Peat - Longrow 18 2017

Coninuing on with the peat theme, here's Springbank's peaty friend, the Longrow. This bottle came as part of the gifts when my sister got married. Part of Chinese culture involves giving 2 bottles of alcohol when a girl is marrying out of the family. The other bottle was a red wine that was good while it was fresh.

Springbank is one of few distilleries that manages most of the whole whisky-making process on-site. Much of its barley is imported (with the exception of the Local Barley series), but once the barley goes into the distillery, everything stays in Campbeltown until it is ready to meet the world. I guess this qualifies Springbank as a craft distillery? A giant in the industry, and massive in scale, but in terms of its ethos, I'm guess it still retains a craft spirit. Though does a distillery that is still family-owned, and still producing on-site definitely better? Is it merely an illusion of authenticity?

I'm reading a book, Whisky and Philosophy, and it is providing lots of food for thought. What makes a whisky good? It's process? It's flavour? Our impression of it affecting our evaluation of the quality? Is the search for provenance futile? What is real though, is this bottle of liquid.

Longrow 18, 2017 (abv 46%)



Colour: Gold, turns hazy with time.

Nose - This nose changes over time...Let's see. Dustiness, then baked pastry. Apple pie, I think, with cinnamon powder, apples, pastry, and all that. Plumps too! The fruit is very well integrated into the rest of the nose, which comes across as some custard, and a faint floral note. Peatiness doesn't come across so much on the nose. Maybe a hint of salt.

Palate - A little peppery, some cinnamon. Again, the fruit isn't very obvious - some raisins and apples, but the dominant note here is actually almond peel, the kind from roasted almonds. Hmm. The peat is fairly gentle, but turns a little bitter. It blends well into the oakiness and roasted almonds though. There's a bit of wet rocks, grapefruit. Oily, but gets even thicker with time in the glass. Salted butter makes a late appearance after some time.

Finish - Fresh pine leaves, mint, smoke. The almond skin sticks with you too. Fairly long. A little peppery. Eucalyptus oil? Mm. Yum.

Overall - I really like this. It really helps that the bottle came as a gift. But honestly, I don't think it is expensive for an 18 year old limited release from Longrow. Good whisky, good marriage. Good.

Two Unrelated Malts - Hakushu Sherry Cask and Longrow C.V.

The second part of the four whiskies that were tried last Friday at Auld Alliance - the Hakushu Sherry Cask from 2013, and the Longrow C.V. Both whiskies are rather different, if that's not too much of an understatement. One is roughly 20 times the price of the other on the market nowadays, if not more. So, incommensurable drams, if not for Auld Alliance making it possible.

Hakushu Sherry Cask 2013 (48% abv)

Colour - Much darker than usual Hakushus. The sherry cask has left an indelible imprint upon the whisky. Not quite mahogany, but looks like...some kind of cognac.

Nose - Raisins, cherries, and some fresh berries. The sherry influence is rich. This smells very sweet and pleasant. Behind the sherry lies some more traditional Hakushu scents - green pine forest and clear mineral water (trust me, mineral water has a scent. I know because I can compare it with the tap water in Singapore, which contains several [helpful] chemicals). A little butterscotch richness as well, or maybe that's closer to...caramelized sugar. Mm. A nice, soft gentle oak. But while the Hakushu is still in there, the sherry is dominant. A drop or two of water should help.

Palate - Tastes very much like a standard sherried whisky at first, of the ripe and sweet oloroso variety. Ripe red fruits, very much like the nose. Raisins and berries and cherries, in that order please. The richness of the sherry covers up the Hakushu base a little, I feel. A little spicy, maybe cloves and nutmeg. Oaky tannins, without going into drying territory. This is very smooth, and rather sweet. With some time and water, the Hakushu spirit comes out a bit more. Pine and soft butterscotch notes. This is good, but I think its average age is younger than the Hakushu 18.

Finish - Medium length, with a little more spice, a little oak tannin, a bit more of that butterscotch smooth sweetness, and a bit of damp grass. Smooth, as expected.

Overall - Ok, to be honest, this is great whisky. Perhaps I would have liked it more with a stronger Hakushu presence, and a sherry overlay, but this works too. Sweet, smooth, and very well crafted. A stronger Hakushu presence would have made it awesome, as, in my opinion, Hakushu best showcases what I find to be most representative of Japanese culture and whisky. Green, fresh, complex yet subtle. The sherry treatment masks some of that a little too much, I feel. Also, the biggest sticking point with this is the price. Limited yearly release, but at prices of 3000 to 4000 in Singapore, I can buy maybe 5 to 8 great bottles of similar quality, with more distinct character. Great whisky, but not value for money. Far from it.

Longrow C.V. (46% abv)

This one is a double distilled Springbank (which is distilled 2.5 times), and, I believe, more heavily peated. Went out of production some time back. Should be good.

Colour - Fairly light gold. Not quite white wine, but close.

Nose - Mmm. The peat isn't anywhere near Ardbeg levels. Which is, in my books, good. Something that smells like...oil - slightly acrid but yet warm. Odd but comforting. Minerals, and a touch of...lemon?

Palate - The peat is a little more assertive here. Close to...cigarette ash? Let it sit for a while, and the peat retreats to reveal more lemon and lime (the stone, not the fruit). It is a little yeasty, giving it a slight sour, doughy feel. Barley sweetness if you hold it for a while.

Finish - Not long, but packs a spicy and oaky punch. Some tea tannins, from black tea, I think.

Overall - a good entry level whisky. Great introduction to Longrow, I feel. The Springbank distillate's character is there, and maybe a little "dirtier" with some darker chemicals suggested. But all's good and frankly, rather enjoyable. Great buy if you can still find it at a reasonable price.