The new Springbank 17 Year Old Madeira Cask is composed from spirits distilled November 2002 and matured for 14 years in a combination of rum and bourbon barrels, followed by 3 years in fresh Madeira hogsheads. Springbank works well in a Madeira cask, check the Springbank 1996 from Sansibar for instance.
Springbank 17 yo ‘Madeira Cask’ (47,8%, OB 2020, 9200 btl.)
Nose: starts on a sweet and sour theme, Verdelho style. Lemon rind, sour plums, strawberries, walnuts, whiffs of verbena and smoked tea. Ginger cake. Sweet dried fruits in the background. Classic wet sheep wool and engine oil. Mint and furniture polish. A distant balsamic note as well. Quite beautiful.
Mouth: rather fruity actually, with the sweet and sour theme taken further. Plums, oranges, sour cherries, nicely balanced by light caramel. Then a dry leathery note and hints of tea leaves, tobacco, hessian cloth, ginger and something vaguely oriental. Some waxy touches towards the end.
Finish: long, still very balanced, orangey with soft spice. Just some light tannins in the very end.
I really like this one, the Madeira acidity is not entirely classic but works really well alongside the usual Springbank funk. I’ve seen it appear in stores just before the week-end, but as always they’re going really fast. Sold out already from major online retailers like The Whisky Exchange, be sure to check your local store.