Yes, spring is tomorrow, but I will not have a chance to taste, tomorrow. Besides, someone tells me in my ear bud that the equinox happened today at 3:06:21 GMT. What better way to celebrate the return of spring than with two Springers? And not just any Springers...
Springbank 34yo 1967/2001 (40.9%, Hart Brothers Finest Collection): nose: hee! hee! From the first second, one knows one is in for a treat. A generous treat, at that. Rose-petal jelly, stewed physalis, candied papaya cubes, cherimoya, and some berries too, less identifiable (probably strawberry jam), but they add to the big picture. The moment one thinks one can spot a red tractor in a field (International?), one is slapped back onto fruity territory, ready to meet lychee and dragon fruit served on a slate. In fact, it is lychee with a splash of Grand Marnier, to be precise. There is a delicate wood note behind it all, rosewood or suchlike, refined and softly flowery. Dip your nose into the glass again, and it is yet another fruity slap, given with renewed force: following the white tropical fruits, we see a parade of ripe berries (raspberry, strawberry, white raspberry, cloudberry), and plums, dusted with sugar, though not quite jam yet. Later on, it is a lemon-mint paste that comes out on top, the natural conclusion to the above, rather than a competing power. The second nose is just as staggering, a punch of fruity, almost chalky, white wine. Not sure why it comes across as chalky, by the way, because the grapes that said wine carries are reminiscent of Cotton Candy, but it does. A clearer chalky character emerges over time; crushed dextrose tablets, perhaps, and a remote hint of vine. Mouth: mild, at this natural low strength, and more drying than anticipated, this is anything but weak. It delivers a bit of kick, actually, with cracked green pepper providing some excitement. Of course, it is still fruity, even if much less than the nose promised. Carambola, guava, kaki (the crunchy type from Korea), served with a sprinkle of dust from a stonecutter's workshop. There is a gentle bitterness too, green-grape pips, or not-quite-ripe hazelnuts. The second sip has a drop of nail varnish (HEMA Bare Panties -- who comes up with those names!?) with the texture of melted milk chocolate, for a moment, yet chewing immediately focuses on fruit trees of an exotic kind (calamansi, kumquat, tangerine, orange, carambola), which is to say it has a slight wood bitterness, probably, behind all that funny fruit. Finish: gentle and refined, this is the perfect breakfast dram. We find a custard-y concoction that contains a dollop of green-hazelnut paste, greengages, and carambola, including the waxy skin that can be a little bitter. It is not the longest finish (unsurprisingly, perhaps), but what lingers for a while is the dry residue in an empty glass of green-citrus tonic. Would that be close to dried lime or pomelo zest? Why, yes, it would. The second gulp heads in the same general direction, yet it appears more custard-y, while simultaneously more acidic. We are not talking fierce lime juice; simply a more-pronounced acidity in the custard. 10/10 (Thanks for the sample, DS)
Springbank 30yo b.1996 (50%, Signatory Vintage for Milroy Associates The Milroy Selection Golden Strength, 96/1731): nose: quieter and almost austere, by comparison, this has a much more mineral profile, without being monolithic (see what I did, there?) Here are quarry chippings and stone-cutting dust, lichen on granite, and chalk, cut and pummelled into a dusty mess. It is not long before fruit surfaces, and we see greengages, damsons, carambolas, and green-pomelo zest so dry it may as well be rock salt (there is a margarita joke, in that sentence, I reckon). Soon, we are in the rain forest, cutting a path through dense vegetation, namely the giant dark-green leaves of unknown species of trees and plants. There may even be cactuses in the mix. In any case, we quickly go back to rockier ground, lichen on granite, and rock salt on limestone. That said, it also has caster sugar turning green with mould (yes, sugar does not turn mouldy, I know), and white-pepper powder. The latter grows in intensity. In the long run, this becomes a greener number, with citrus foliage aplenty, and 1970s interior plants (yucca plant, ficus plant, cactuses). The second nose is much more concentrated, with an alcohol so punchy one can almost smell smoke. More accurately: the fumes of a machine running white-hot. In fact, it develops a metallic trait; the image in tOMoH's mind is of a circular stone saw cleaned with green-pomelo juice while still hot from being used in anger. Engine fumes also become more discernible, as does heated cast iron. The operator of that machine is obviously smoking blonde tobacco too. Mouth: despite the huge ABV shift, this feels almost softer on the tongue, with melted greengage sorbet and baked courgettes or cucumbers. Well, it has baked carambola too, to be sure. This one is fruitier on the palate than on the nose, yet it still keeps that mineral side, with granite chippings offering support to not-exactly-ripe pomelo, Kaffir lime and yuzu. The second sip is drier and more austere, hot metal and quarry dust (limestone more than granite, now). That is quickly joined again by fruits and their foliage -- especially their foliage: mandarine, bergamot, lime, grapefruit, and orange leaves. Then, we see jams and marmalades left too long in the open and turning rock-hard. It could as well be crystallised citrus, come to think of it. Finish: unctuous, long, comforting, and citrus-y to the max. Ugli fruit, kumquat, Buddha's hand, yellow tangerine augment a lovely vanilla pudding. It is definitely on the sweet side of citrus, juicy, and none too aggressively acidic. Even the bitterness of their skin is here very subdued, a mere instrument amongst a myriad of others, rather than a distracting force. Repeated sipping reiterates an overwhelming citrus-custard impression, a custard that would be poured on carambola for a snack at the quarry. Further sips prolong that snack break, and augment it with marmalade on bread that is starting to grow patches of mould, and chewy candied pomelo segments. 10/10 (Thanks for the dram, JS)
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| Bliss. |
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