Springbank Longrow 1998 Cask #343

This official Longrow single malt, a 15 year old Campbeltown malt from 1998, drawn from cask 343 and bottled at 48.1%. Only 186 bottles were released. The Springbank distillery, in Mitchell family hands since 1828, is still owned by the Mitchell family, five generations on. The cult around Springbank has made it one of the most collected of all malts.

The make was double distilled from heavily peated, floor malted barley, then condensed through worm tubs. Maturation in a fortified wine cask lent red and dark fruit. Around the mid teens the malt gains depth while keeping its oily salt. Coastal warehousing gives the malt its briny, mineral lift. The open larch washbacks are a rare survival in modern Scotch. The distillery has become a place of pilgrimage for whisky enthusiasts. Kintyre's damp, mild climate suits a long and gentle maturation. The old town of Campbeltown once rivalled Speyside as Scotland's whisky heart.

At a natural 48.1% it is full and oily. Smoke, tar and an oily maritime depth meet raisin and a caramelised nuttiness from the cask. A coastal salt and an orchard fruit lift it. It closes long, oily and salty. This is a tarry, coastal Campbeltown malt.