The latest 2021 release in the Longrow "Red" series, the series of wine cask whiskies from Springbank's dirtier, funkier variant. This one is very promising though, because of one word: Refill! But since I'm feeling generous, there's a bonus review of another wine cask Longrow to chase it!
I am a huge fan of Longrow, and I wish we saw more of it here in Australia. Aside from this annual-ish "Red" series, there's only really the NAS entry level bottling and the expensive 18-year old to choose from. The same does apply to the entire world, aside from the lucky markets who receive exclusive single casks. The reasons for this scarcity are many, but the main one is that Springbank Distillery just doesn't make enough Longrow (or Springbank, for that matter). While the distillery's theoretical annual production is over 750,000 litres per year, in reality the actual production is far, far less - well under half of that, in fact. And the long periods of pandemic-induced shutdowns during 2020 and 2021 won't hit us for quite a few years yet, but they're going to cause some problems. The same applies to the recent ramping up of production in an appreciated, but practically impossible, effort to keep up with the increased demand for Springbank whisky. The current capacity and those production numbers apply to the whole distillery though, which produces three separate spirits - the unpeated and triple-distilled Hazelburn, the namesake lightly peated and 2.5-times distilled Springbank, and the heavily peated and double-distilled Longrow. And Longrow accounts for just 10% of that annual production, as does Hazelburn. So there really isn't much of this special liquid around, and the massive increase in demand over the last year or so isn't helping the situation at all. Thankfully that seems to be focussed more on the namesake Springbank brand than it is on the distillery's other two products. And I'd say that a good portion of that "new money" investment crowd don't even realise that Longrow or Hazelburn exist! And I hope it stays that way...
Aside from the heavily peated malted barley and the double-distillation, there are two other little factoids that make Longrow special. Named after a Victorian-era Campbeltown distillery that closed in 1896, Longrow spirit only goes through the first two pot stills in Springbank's trio, skipping the third still altogether. That's important because the first of those stills, the wash still, is direct-fired rather than heated by internal steam coils, and the second still or first spirit still is equipped with a worm tub condenser, the more traditional method of condensing the spirit vapour back in to liquid which results in less copper contact and (all things being equal) a heavier, dirtier & more characterful spirit when compared with an equivalent modern shell and tube condenser. And those two facts make this quite a unique whisky. But there's a caveat with Longrow. Many peated whisky drinkers are disappointed when they first try one of these because they're expecting an Islay or Island (e.g. Ledaig) style of peated single malt. They see the words "heavily peated" or they read the ppm measurements, and they expect Campbeltown's version of Ardbeg or Laphroaig, which is not the case. That's largely due to the peat itself that is used to smoke the barley in the malting process, which comes from the mainland of Scotland rather than the islands, among other factors. In general that gives Longrow an earthy, smoky flavour rather than the heavier & deeper peaty styles of Islay, despite the ppm specifications being significantly higher than most - which is yet another reason not to pay too much attention to those figures!
There's another factor to consider though. Very rarely do we see a Longrow that has been matured solely in refill casks, or even solely in first-fill bourbon casks, particularly at a relatively young age and at cask strength. Most are either matured or finished in first-fill wine, sherry, or port casks, which while adding other flavours they can also overwhelm the lighter peat influence in this funky Campbeltown spirit. The "Red" series is a good example of this, being the most accessible higher-ABV iteration of Longrow. As the name implies, this series of nine cask strength bottlings to date is either fully-matured or finished/secondary-matured in red wine casks, or red fortified wine casks in the case of the port cask bottling from 2014. The Red series kicked off in 2012, and has employed red wine casks from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Chile, generally used for a finishing period of a few years after initial maturation in ex-bourbon or refill casks. But two of those nine bottlings to date stand out among the rest, because they've used refill red wine casks rather than first-fill - or "fresh" in Springbank-speak. They were 2019's 11-year old refill Pinot Noir cask finish, and this 10-year old refill Malbec cask finish which was bottled in late 2020. Why are refill casks significant? Well I can't yet claim to have tasted all nine bottlings in the series, despite the fact that these releases are generally "only" finished in wine casks rather than being fully-matured, the amount of wine cask influence in most of them is significant - and in some cases if you ask me, too heavy. Using refill wine casks for the finishing period preserves more of that delicious dirty, earthy, funky spirit character without imparting too much cask influence, which is a very good thing if you ask me! While I've enjoyed basically all of the Longrow single malt that I've tasted, my all-time favourite example to date was the 11-year old refill port cask bottling that I've reviewed here, which for my tastes had just about the perfect balance of cask influence and distillery character. Technically that is an independent bottling from Cadenhead's, but like Springbank and Glengyle distilleries that independent bottler is privately owned by the same company, J&A Mitchell.
The Longrow Red that we're looking at today is the youngest in the series to date, at 10-years of age. It has been matured in bourbon barrels for seven years, followed by a 3-year finishing period in refill Malbec red wine casks that were sourced from South Africa - specifically the Stellenbosch wine-producing region around 50km east of Cape Town. Malbec is a dry red wine that isn't as heavy or tannic as Cabernet Sauvignon or Shiraz/Syrah. Despite its French origins around 75% of the world's Malbec actually comes from Argentina, although South Africa's wines are also highly regarded. 10,000 bottles of this Longrow Red were released in December 2020 at a cask strength of 52.5%, which is not huge at this relatively young age, but is still more than enough! Naturally, being a Springbank product this whisky is non-chill filtered and of natural colour.
But that's not all, folks - there's a chaser review of another Longrow as a bonus, and it's not one to miss! Both of the samples for these reviews came from a generous friend over in New Zealand, where they have access to more Springbank - and at far better prices - than we do in Australia. Let's get to it!
Matured for 7-years in bourbon barrels, finished for 3-years in refill Malbec red wine casks from South Africa. Bottled December 2020. Non-chill filtered, natural colour.
Colour: Bronze.
Nose: Surprisingly fresh & inviting to start with, and a good balance between cask & spirit. Dried raspberries, damp leather, muddy clay and fennel (think aniseed but milder and vegetal/green). Black cherries in dark chocolate, and black pepper. Hints of balsamic vinegar and earthy, spicy peat, and tobacco. Becomes lightly acidic/sour as it breathes - and I like that in a whisky!
Texture: Medium weight. Earthy, dirty, lightly acidic. Slight touch of heat but not an issue.
Taste: More leather, black pepper, and a pinch of solventy, diesel-like Longrow "funk". Drier here than the nose suggested. Touches of rubber & plastic - but in a good way - and more dried raspberry. Becomes a little sweeter towards the back. Touch of cocoa powder too.
Finish: Medium-long length. Touch of petrol, then turns acidic & acetic with balsamic vinegar, black pepper and leather again, and black cherry with dark chocolate again.
Score: 4 out of 5.
Notes: Delicious. As expected, the refill wine casks have done a great job here. If you ask me the best of the Longrow Red series have some refill casks in the mix - yes there are only two examples so far, but I stand by that statement! Refill wine casks over a longer finishing/maturation period generally gives a better balance, preserving more of that "funk" and spirit character. Which is exactly what I want in a Longrow! There's still plenty of cask influence though, as you can probably tell from those tasting notes. But instead of overpowering the spirit it's been more subtle and more supportive.
Despite its dirty, funky & rich character the Longrow spirit does seem to be relatively delicate when it comes to heavy cask influence. Susceptible to cask influence might be a better way of putting it. By that I mean that it doesn't seem to take a huge amount cask influence to quieten/dull-down the smoky, earthy and dirty spirit character & distillery character, tipping the balance to casks that are too assertive. But when that doesn't happen and the cask & spirit work in tandem - in a refill cask, for example! - that's when the magic happens!
And now for the chaser!
Unfortunately, this next Longrow is something that most fans will never get to taste. This is actually a Cadenhead's independent bottling of Longrow that was offered during the Cadenhead's Warehouse Tastings in Campbeltown, and it was only available to visitors who took part in said tastings. They're cask samples really, a similar idea to the legendary cage bottles I suppose, although in this case you do have the chance to taste them before purchasing, and the entire cask is selected for bottling rather than just a bottle or two being taken from cask during maturation. I haven't yet had the chance to do a Cadenhead's warehouse tasting, since I've only visited Campbeltown once and it was a whirlwind trip, but they certainly seem like a great experience. This Cadenhead's offering is a 16-year old Longrow that was distilled in October 2001 and bottled from late 2017 to early 2018 at a cask strength of 56.0%, but there's a major difference here. This Longrow has spent around 10-years being finished / secondary-matured in a Chardonnay cask! A white wine cask Springbank is an extremely rare thing, very occasionally seen as part of a larger vatting with other cask types, or perhaps as single cask bottlings that are sold to specific international markets. In fact a white wine cask Scotch whisky of any sort, and particularly one in peated form, is quite the rare beast! Despite the rarity, that and the owner's generosity told me that this whisky just had to be reviewed! Something also tells me that it'll be rather special...
Distilled October 2001, bottled late 2017-early 2018. Finished in a Chardonnay white wine cask since 2008 (10-ish years), part of the Cadenhead's Warehouse Tasting experience in Campbeltown. Non-chill filtered, natural colour.
Colour: Amber gold.
Nose: Buttery, spicy, dirty. Soft old leather, fresh boot polish, touch of mint around the edges which is surprising. Toasted buttery oak, a little whole passionfruit and cream, black pepper, and floral laundry detergent powder/granules - yes, really!
Texture: Medium weight. Rich, oily & buttery. Lightly acidic and smoky. No heat at all.
Taste: Buttery & oily, with vegetable oil and melted butter, and spicy peppery peat. More passionfruit & cream (but not sweetened), some bitter, dry smoke with a touch of ash, and dry leather. Buttery toasted oak and lightly-sour white fruit.
Finish: Long length. Minerally - that laundry detergent powder again, and some chalkiness, and a touch of dry gravel. Touch of acidity again with that passionfruit & cream, and white / tropical fruit. Ground black pepper and buttery oak behind it.
Score: 3.5 out of 5.
Notes: Fascinating! Not really what I expected, with far less white wine / cask influence than I expected given that decade-long finishing period. Those creamy notes, and the acidic passionfruit & white fruit would have to be coming from the chardonnay cask, and they're not something that I've found in a Longrow before. But this whisky is also quite medicinal in a floral, dry, powdery, chalky way, which is remarkable, and again not something that I've found in a Longrow before. Some will probably struggle with those notes, but I find them very interesting. I can see exactly why this cask would've been chosen for the warehouse tastings, it's fascinating!
So, two very different Longrows here. One refill red wine cask finish, and one first-fill chardonnay cask finish, but where the finishing period on the first whisky was only three years, the secondary maturation period on the second was somewhere around a decade - hardly just a finish! Both though are nicely balanced between cask influence and spirit/distillery character, which is not always the case with Longrow and is great to see. We need more refill cask Longrows please Springbank, and also more first-fill bourbon cask Longrows for that matter!
Cheers!
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