Springbank CV

Springbank distillery is located on the southern Kintyre peninsula and produces three distinct types of single malt: Springbank, Longrow and Hazelburn. Springbank is lightly smoky, Longrow is very smoky and Hazelburn is not smoky at all. The Springbank CV version was first released in 2010 and, as is the case with the Longrow CV and Hazelburn CV, the “CV” stands for “Curriculum Vitae” since - according to Springbank's Kate Wright - "it contains whiskies of a variety of ages...". The Springbank CV is a marriage of whiskies matured in bourbon, sherry and port casks.

The nose is sweet, light and grassy. It is all a bit non-descript, with notes of lemon and apples faintly coming through but only just faintly. There is also an oily touch (like in olive oil) a whiff of smoke, rather subdued as in very weak coal smoke. Not an impressive beginning, to say the least.

The palate is light-bodied but quite peppery. Apples and vanilla now make a more accentuated appearance, together with notes of caramel.

The finish is of medium length, with brine, pepper and more smoke coming through.

I was a bit taken aback by the nose which I found to be both bland and confusing. Things improved with the nose where, I suppose, the sherry and port casks made themselves felt. In my opinion this is a likeable but by no means an impressive single malt.

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