Longrow 14 Year Old Sherry Cask Matured

A little background

Longrow is owned by Springbank and one could say it’s the tougher, Peatier big brother. Still truly a small batch whisky and done the old fashioned way – Floor Malting. Yup, that is right – a few dudes throw the barley to the ground with water and rake the heck out of it until it sprouts.

This dram is known to be polarizing – Is it taking the Springbank funk too far? Or is it catering for those who have a heavy bias towards blue cheese and mushrooms and gunpowder in the air? 

(Tasted neat from a Glencairn Glass)

Color

Dark Mahogany

Nose

Like the smell of an oily rag on an old whaling ship, seawater soaked wood and faint smell of woman’s BO. A smell of flint in the air from recent cannonball fire and oil and fat from whale blubber smoldering below deck. Slight sulphur – Blue cheese and fungal funk. Sweet and a hint of peat. Wet leather, Old leather bound books and damp firewood and campfire smoke in the distance. A damp warehouse smell truly and quintessentially Springbank Dunnage Warehousing. OH BABY! On the back of the nose, Slightly earthy. 

With water: 
A lot more raisin and fruit comes out, the sherry influence really comes to its own with water. Creaminess, custard – the flintiness subsides a bit with water.

Palate

BOOM! Super Oily on the palate and sweet. Intensity straight away like – Like Al Pacino yelling in every scene without blinking (How is that even possible?!?!) Dessert in a bottle with a tad of salinity. Thick raisin juice – It is syrupy. Fruit cake at Christmas comes to mind. Brown sugar, caramel, leathery, damp wood, leaf litter and organic matter like you are walking in the forest. A methane-like smell in the nose – damp leaf litter and like a blue cheese hitting the nostrils. Tannin is very nice and you just smell moss on stones on a rainy day!

With water:
Alcohol subsides A LOT with water. More tannin – like a very black strong tea. More spice coming through, orange marmalade, The flint is stronger with water. The Dunnage becomes robust! OMG!! LOVE DUNNAGE!

Finish

Long and satisfying finish. This whisky lingers, it stays around and progresses with every sip. Oily, viscous, Syrupy and mouth feel is great.

In conclusion

Springbank make two types of whisky – Good whisky and awesome whisky. I have never had a bad one. However, Longrow 14 Year Old Sherry Cask may not be something people get into right away. This one is a shining example, or in some cases even by Springbank lovers – can be polarizing. Because the Dunnage and the foosty, damp warehouse and leathery flinty taste is extremely pronounced. 

It may be too much for some people. But for me, it is great. It is not balanced – this whisky is far from balanced. Besides, who wants balance? You want your mouth to be smashed with flavour. No balance at all, every flavor spikes. Every nose spikes and the beauty is with every sip, you can expose your senses to evolving flavors. 

I would say it could be a session whisky if you are used to Springbank drams.