A big one today, we'll always jump at the chance to try 30 year old, single cask Springbank (just as everyone would we imagine). We've got a bottling from Caskshare from their Collective Series.
Caskshare Collective Series 1993 Springbank 30 Year Old
Region: Campbeltown
ABV: 49.4%
Price: £1,950.00
This single bourbon cask Springbank was distilled in 1993 and laid down to rest for 30 years before being bottled in 2023 as part of the Caskshare Collective Series. Only 135 bottles were made available.
Nose
The nose opens up an abundance of orchard fruits, lots of apple and pear upfront, accented by a hint of ground cinnamon and a little bit of nutmeg right in the background. It’s buttery, with pineapple, icing sugar, old leather, fudge and golden syrup. There’s a distinctive dunnage warehouse funk here, slightly mouldy walls (in a good way), along with sea spray, almond marzipan and fondant icing. The alcohol is in perfect balance, not too strong but just sitting in the background reminding you that you’re nosing a whisky. It just smells like old whisky, lovely.
Palate
The palate opens with a meaty, savouriness alongside a gentle oak flavour, moving into hints of orchard fruits from the nose. There’s more citrus here, limeade, salted caramel, lots and lots of fudge, rum and raisin ice cream and nutmeg. There’s a gentle white pepper spice that lingers on the tongue as the dram moves into the finish. Speaking of the finish, some of the more intense flavours dissipate slightly too quickly but what is left is a pleasant sweetness, vanilla bean and mellow oak. The mouthfeel is slightly thinner than we’d like, but it doesn’t detract too much from our enjoyment of the dram.
Nose (with water)
The reduced nose brings forth more of an oak aroma - sweet oak rather than the spicy, drying oak we usually get when adding water. There’s vanilla, a slight grassy/aloeness, along with a whisper of sweet barbecue smoke, even though we understand this spirit to be unpeated. The orchard fruits have become greener, green apple and slightly underripe pear. We could sit here all day.
Palate (with water)
The reduced palate has a slight acridity, bringing out more salt, orange oil and a slightly floral sweetness too. It’s bolder, more intense, a little spicier with wood spice rather than chill spice. The mouthfeel and finish remain broadly the same, and we just wished there was a bit more here.
Conclusion
What a dram. You could bask in the nose, perfectly balanced and complex - layering aromas of sweetness, fruitiness and spice. The palate follows in a similar fashion, again with multiple dimensions coming together in harmony. For us, we’d like to see a creamier mouthfeel and a slightly longer finish, but these are very minor points in what is a truly lovely dram.
Score: 8.5/10
Value
We can’t see a world where we can recommend a whisky at £1,950 as good value.
- 10 - Perfection. One in a million
- 9 - Outstanding. Exceptional whisky.
- 8 - Great. Would seek this out.
- 7 - Good. Quality whisky.
- 6 - Above average. Happy to have a dram.
- 5 - Average. Drinkable whisky.
- 4 - Below average. Passable.
- 3 - Flawed. Noticeable negatives.
- 2 - Defective. Significant faults.
- 1 - Offensive. Pour it out.
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