Springbank whisky – Campbeltown

Springbank distillery information

On the southern part of the peninsula of Kintyre, we find the Springbank distillery in the city (and whisky region) of Campbeltown. Founded by John and William Mitchell in 1828 on the site of an illicit still (ran by Archibald Mitchell), the distillery prides itself on using traditional methods throughout its production process, with every step of the whisky production (malting, distilling, bottling and maturing) taking place on-site, and the whisky is non-chill filtered and without any caramel addition.

The washbacks at the Springbank distillery in Campbeltown

No less than three different brands of whisky are produced at the distillery: Springbank, Longrow, and Hazelburn. They are all produced in the same stills, but using different distillation cycles.

Named after a now defunct distillery, Longrow uses the regular two-distillation cycle, where the wash is distilled in the wash still, followed by a second round that sees the low wines distilled further in the spirit still. It is also heavily peated.
The oldest of the brands produced at the distillery,Springbank has perhaps the most curious distillation cycle, as it’s distilled 2.5 times. This means that some of the low wines from the first distillation are collected and again distilled with the feints. Thus, part of the end product has been distilled twice, others 3 times, causing it to be called a 2.5 time distillation cycle. It is lightly peated. Springbank has been known for experimenting with different types of casks.
Finally, Hazelburn, which like Longrow, is named after a former distillery, uses a triple-distillation process, and is non-peated.

The distillery is in the hands of an independent family, rather than owned by a major whisky corporation. It is, in fact, owned by descendants of the same Mitchell family that founded it all those years ago, making it the oldest independently owned distillery in Scotland.

Springbank Whisky

Springbank

10 Year Old, matured in Bourbon and Sherry casks
12 Year Old, Calvados wood finish
12 Year Old, Cask strength
15 Year Old, matured only in Sherry casks
18 Year Old, like the 10 Year Old, matured in Bourbon and Sherry casks
Springbank CV. A no age statement whisky, which has matured in a variety of different cask types and sizes

Longrow

Longrow; A no age statement whisky, matured in a combination of Sherry and Bourbon casks.
14 Year Old, matured in Sherry casks
18 Year Old

Hazelburn

8 Year Old, matured in a combination of Bourbon and Sherry casks
12 Year Old, matured in Sherry casks
Hazelburn CV. A no age statement whisky, matured in a combination of Bourbon and Sherry casks

The distillery also sells blended whiskies from their own produce:

Campbeltown Loch. Aged for 5 years, this is a blend of Springbank and Longrow.
Mitchell’s Glengyle (a reference to the Glengyle distillery, which is also owned by the Mitchells).
Machrihanish Niblick, a blend of Springbank and Longrow with grain from Girvan.

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Springbank Distillers Ltd
9 Bolgam Street
Campbeltown
Argyll, PA28 6HZ

+44 (0) 1586 552009

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Images courtesy of the Springbank distillery.