Whisky: Hazelburn 13 Year 2020 Edition

Country/Region: Scotland/Campbeltown

ABV: 50.3%

Cask: Oloroso Sherry

Age: 13 Year (Distilled June 2007, Bottled Sept. 2020)

Nose: Fruit, nuts, and spice. Dried fruits, sultanas, and a hint of roasted nuts led into cinnamon apple and pear hard candies. Undercurrents of minerals, wet mossy rocks, dogwood buds, and mild sherry-leather funk.

Palate: Medium to light body with fruit, spice, and leather. Crisp lemon-lime citrus soda infused with ripe berries, peaches, plums, and an assortment of stone fruits. Sherry funk came through on the mid-palate with overripe apricots and honey. The end was all leather and heady oloroso notes of milk chocolate and coffee candies.

Finish:  Lingering tannic astringency with dried fruit and leather.

Score: 5

Mental Image: Hard Candies and that Old Leather Chair

Notes:  It took me quite a while to try a Hazelburn. I was not sure I would enjoy it, it sounded pretty far off from what I usually want, so I avoided Springbank’s lighter unpeated label for quite a while. It was better than I expected and reminded me of Bushmills, Auchentoshan, and other triple distilled malts with a light body and slightly spicy profile. It is not my style, but I can see how this would appeal to fans of the Redbreasts and Glenfarclases of the whisky world.

This Hazelburn was nowhere near as bad as I had feared— in fact, it was pleasant. It appeared pretty cask-driven with the fruity profile and just a hint of spice that gave the dram an almost effervescent quality when it first hit the palate. There was a lovely transition from fruits upfront to classic oloroso leather, chocolate, and coffee at the end. With more time to breathe, more sherry funk appeared around the edges and lingered toward the finish.

Overall, this Hazelburn was a great introduction to the label. I do not think I will be revisiting soon as my selection bias tends to carry me more toward earthy, maritime, or peated drams. Longrow remains my go-to for Springbank labels, though I will keep Hazelburn in mind when I am looking for a lighter dram.

Image Credit: Plump Jack Wines