This 1995 Sovereign Springbank 22 Years was my birthday bottle back in March of 2020. An ominous month in human history, but instead of 2020, I want to focus on 1995. I don’t know about you, but when I think about the number in the abstract, it doesn’t feel that long ago… but it was almost 30 years ago now! 27 to be exact.
In 1995 I was 14 and my family moved to a tiny town in Wyoming. Cobbled together out of trailer parks, horse corrals and out-of-place new construction this mining town would be my life till I turned 18 and left. To pass the time between 95 and 99 I spent as much time as possible fishing at the Green River.
I hated living in that town and I hated being in school, it was that awkward angst-filled time of life and being in a small boring town didn’t help. While I was fishing, catching crawdads and focusing every spare thought on just getting the hell out of that place, the folks at Springbank were distilling this. Two timelines that would eventually converge in LA.
25 years after distilling, this whisky and I would meet for the first time while quarantined in my apartment in Los Angeles during a global pandemic. Purchased as my splurge-worthy birthday bottle, and it was worth it. From LA, this bottle would be moved to Lake Arrowhead in the San Bernardino mountains and then to DC.
And here, in my new apartment in downtown Washington DC, the 1995 Sovereign Springbank 22 Years meets its end while I’m writing these words. 1,900 miles, two decades and a lifetime away from 1995.
Let’s get to drinkin’!
1995 Sovereign Springbank 22 Years – Details and Tasting Notes
Whiskey Details
Cask Strength | Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color
Style: Single Malt (Scotch)
Region: Campbeltown, Scotland
Distiller: Springbank
Mash Bill: 100% Malted Barley
Cask: Refill Hogshead (ex-Bourbon)
Age: 22 Years
ABV: 52.5%
Cask: HL15295
Bottle:105/108
1995 Sovereign Springbank 22 Years Price: NA – Auction, Specialty Store or Private Seller
Related Whiskey
Springbank 10 Years
Springbank 12 Years Cask Strength
Springbank 15 Years
Springbank Local Barley 16 Years
1993 The Bottlers Springbank 16 Years
1995 Sovereign Springbank 22 Years Tasting Notes
EYE
Golden honey
NOSE
Waxy honeycomb, vanilla, malty sweetness, complex orchard fruit, banana, caramel, roasted nuts and touches of cinnamon, funk and smoke.
Crisp and warm, I don’t want to stop sniffing this Scotch, it’s elegant and fun.
PALATE
Honey, cinnamon, oak, orchard fruit, roasted nuts, smoke, citrus peel and caramel with touches of clove, Canadain Mint, funk and nutmeg.
This is one of the most spiced (baking) Springbanks I’ve ever had, it’s wild.
FINISH
Long -> Banana chips, oak, baking spice and malty sweetness fade to vanilla and caramel.
BALANCE, BODY and FEEL
Fantastic balance, full round body, and a heavy oily feel.
1995 Sovereign Springbank 22 Years – Overall Thoughts and Score
Damn… this is good. There is nothing at all wrong with this whisky, it’s a near-perfect Springbank, the only thing missing is that all-too-familiar funk. It’s there, but it’s so light it’s easy to miss and I kinda miss it. It’s a funk I’ve called out in numerous blind tastings and is the distillery’s calling card. This whisky is complex, fruity, earthy, sweet and a touch savory, but it isn’t funky and I want the funk.
This is so dang close to a 5/5, but I just can’t bring myself to give it that score and if I have any doubts I don’t hand out the ranking. Though there is no doubt about saying this is an absolutely stellar whisky and among the best Springbanks I’ve ever had. If you were lucky enough to score a bottle of this 1995 Sovereign Springbank 22 Years I hope you enjoy it slowly over many years like I was lucky enough to do.
SCORE: 4.5/5 (very good, highly recommended ~ A- | 90-93)
1995 Sovereign Springbank 22 Years Review $NA
Overall
4.5- Nose (4.5)
- Palate (4.5)
- Finish (4.5)
- BBF (4.5)