This review examines four distinct Hazelburn whiskies, each showcasing the brand’s signature triple-distilled, unpeated style. Spanning a variety of ages and maturation methods, from bourbon to sherry casks, these expressions offer a nuanced look into Hazelburn’s diverse character and craftsmanship. On today’s lineup are a hand-fill release alongside 13- and 15-year-old Oloroso Cask matured bottlings and the Hazelburn 21-year-old.
Hazelburn Whisky… From Springbank Distillery
Hazelburn whisky is produced at Springbank Distillery, using a method that is very rare in Scotland, with every step – from floor malting the barley to bottling – completed entirely on site by hand. The process begins with traditional floor malting, where barley is steeped in water and turned by hand to ensure even germination. For Hazelburn, the malt is then air dried in the kiln, rather than being exposed to peat smoke, making it completely unpeated and giving it a lighter style within the Springbank family.
After kilning, the barley is milled into grist using a historic mill, and mixed with hot water in a century-old mash tun to extract sugars. Fermentation occurs in wooden washbacks crafted from boatskin larch, lasting up to 110 hours – an unusually long time compared to most distilleries – which helps develop more complex esters and a nuanced spirit. Once fermentation is finished, the resulting wash is triple distilled in three separate copper pot stills. This triple distillation process, also quite rare among Scottish single malts, produces a notably light and pure spirit.
Throughout production, the distillery avoids chill filtration and does not add artificial colouring, helping maintain the whisky’s natural qualities. Hazelburn comprises only a small proportion of Springbank’s output, highlighting the distillery’s commitment to traditional, labour-intensive methods and a deliberate choice to prioritise craft over volume.
Hazelburn Handfill For The Still Guesthouse (2023) Review
We start with a Hazelburn handfill for The Still Guesthouse, the Springbank-owned guest house used by people doing the Whisky School and the Eat, Sleep, Dram, Repeat tour, both happening over several days. This 20 cl handfill bottled only indicated a 54.9% ABV, not mentioning any vintage or cask information. This is most certainly natural colour and non-chill filtered, but with no guarantee.
Colour:
White wine.
Nose:
Neat: It opens with a lively and youthful nose, led by crisp pear, green apple, and a gentle spirit-driven sharpness that’s softened with a touch of hay, a grassy freshness and a hint of orange peel.
With water: A little bit of water clearly calms the nose down, and its sharpness has been tamed. However, it doesn’t seem to unlock new aromas, but they‘’’re easier to enjoy.
Palate:
Neat: On the palate, the orchard fruit notes remain at the forefront — juicy pear and tart apple — with supporting flashes of lemon zest and subtle bergamot. The texture is notably oily and mouth-coating. Vanilla sweetness, soft honey, and light cereals come into play, joined by a hint of milk chocolate and gentle oak.
With water: With water, the fruit character becomes more vivid, evoking the essence of a young pear eau-de-vie, and a suggestion of plum spirit, lightly kissed by oak from its brief maturation.
Finish:
The finish is medium short, focused on apples and oranges with a lingering, delicate bitterness that underscores the whisky’s youthful vibrancy.
Comments:
A little simple and probably young, but loveable anyway. Sharp and spirity when neat, reduction tames it without silencing it, and it becomes really enjoyable, bringing me to raise my initial rating to 6.5, as I had it at 6/10 when neat. Sorry for the crappy (and reconstructed) bottle picture, I unfortunately didn’t take a better one during my Eat, Sleep, Dram, Repeat tour at Springbank.
Rating: 6.5/10
Hazelburn 13-year-old Oloroso Cask (2020) Review
Hazelburn 13-year-old Oloroso Cask Matured is a limited edition single malt from Campbeltown’s Springbank Distillery, distilled in June 2007 and bottled in September 2020 after full maturation in Oloroso sherry casks. Released as part of the Oloroso Cask Matured series, only 9,900 bottles, non-chill filtered and natural colour, were produced at 50.3% ABV. You’ll have to rely on the secondary market to be able to buy a bottle.
Colour:
Clay.
Nose:
Neat: The nose weaves together ripe and dried fruits – such as plums, figs, raisins, and apricots – with nutty undertones, honey, and a touch of farmyard earthiness and subtle sulphur. This richness is balanced by nuances of caramel, marzipan, and leather.
With water: With a splash of water, the whisky reveals a more pronounced blend of milk chocolate and toasted nuts at the forefront. The signature Campbeltown character subtly emerges as well, offering hints reminiscent of well-worn machinery and smoky and old wood polish.
Palate:
Neat: The whisky is mouth-coating and with a thick mouthfeel, combining sweet dark fruits, dried apricots, strawberry jam, and bitter chocolate with notes of tobacco, leather, and a touch of the distinctive Hazelburn oiliness. Spices evolve through the palate, with nutmeg, cinnamon, pepper, and a hot kick reminiscent of cloves and jalapeño, alongside herbal notes of thyme and bay leaf. There are also hints of salt, match sulphur, and orange peel, creating a savoury – sweet interplay.
With water: Reduction brings a little more spices and herbs, whilst the fruitiness is slightly toned down. Ginger infused chocolate blends light sourness to bitterness – light as well.
Finish:
The long, lingering finish highlights a dry, spicy character driven by ginger, oak, and balsamic undertones, with lingering notes of coffee beans, dried berries, and hints of chestnut and juniper.
Comments:
The first time this whisky was tried, from a bottle gifted years ago by the children (who wanted to present a whisky for Father’s Day but wisely avoided breaking their piggy bank), initial impressions were somewhat disappointing; the sherry maturation felt a bit overwhelming and the whisky somewhat austere. However, with time and repeated tastings, allowing for aeration and revisiting the dram, it gradually evolved into a much more rewarding experience, as reflected in these current tasting notes. Since most reviews are based on samples, they often capture only a single moment in the whisky’s life, lacking the perspective gained from bottle ageing and aeration, and extended exploration. This limitation applies to the other three whiskies reviewed today as well. Expanding reviews to include bottle-aging observations could provide richer insights, even though many drams are tasted from samples. Credit goes to Dramface and its writers for their dedication to reviewing whiskies primarily from bottles – a practice highly recommended to anyone wanting a fuller appreciation of a whisky’s evolution.
Now back to this Hazelburn, with the bottle level still just below the shoulder, it reveals itself as an excellent whisky. The sherry maturation is well balanced, complemented by the distinctive Campbeltown funk and a notably restrained sherry cask sulfur that Springbank enthusiasts appreciate… when it’s not overwhelming. Having spent more time with it, this is a dram I find myself eager to return to much more often.
Rating: 7.5/10
Oloroso 15-year-old Oloroso Cask Matured (2022) Review
Hazelburn 15-Year-Old Oloroso Cask Matured was distilled in December 2006, and matured for 15 years exclusively in fresh first-fill Oloroso sherry casks before being bottled in April 2022. This bottling is non-chill filtered, non-coloured, and released at a cask strength of 54.2% ABV. Nine thousand bottles were produced. Expect to pay at least €215 for one.
Colour:
Nose:
Neat: The nose opens with an inviting fusion of leather and damp forest floor notes, accompanied by ripe and dried fruits such as blueberries, raspberries, blackcurrants, figs, and chocolate-covered raisins. Delicate hints of cinnamon, orange blossom, and mint add complexity, while subtle aromas of wood varnish and rancio create a refined rustic character.
With water: Reduction brings some wood varnish, but also some unfortunate sharpness, even though this stays moderate. Orange peel joins the orange blossom with a very light heather smoke.
Palate:
Neat: On the palate, this Hazelburn is full-bodied and oily, offering a harmonious blend of rich fruits, including strawberries, plums and currants, intertwined with leathery tobacco, mocha, and nutmeg spices. The sherry maturation brings forward toasted almonds and caramelised brown sugar undertones balanced by a gentle bitterness and soft woody notes, underlining the whisky’s inherent Campbeltown character.
With water: Peppered butterscotch appears, joined by ginger infused chocolate and nian gao (a Chinese New Year sweet rice cake), a bit more spices, as pepper joins the nutmeg and a light smoke.
Finish:
The finish is long and warming, lingering on hazy heather and humus, with traces of tobacco, oak, and a hint of smoke (even though this is completely unpeated).
Comments:
Another stunner from Hazelburn’s Oloroso Cask Matured range, even though the usual Campbeltown funk felt for me less evident than on some other Hazelburn whiskies. But this Hazelburn 15-year-old has everything: a brilliant nose, palate and finish, a perfect mouthfeel. It just screams ‘’’’’pour another one’ when you’ve finished your glass. Unfortunately, I just had a sample, and looking at primary and secondary market prices, it will probably stay that way.
Rating: 8/10
Hazelburn 21-year-old (2022) Review
This Hazelburn 21-Year-Old was bottled in April 2022. It aged 21 years in a combination of 70% sherry casks and 30% bourbon casks. The whisky is bottled at 46% ABV, with a total of 3,600 bottles released. Expect to pay at least €400 (or CHF357) in the few shops still listing it.
Colour:
Tawny.
Nose:
Neat: Even though the sherry is ‘just’ 70% of the cask composition, its influence is very clear. Plums and greengages, dates, grapes and orange peels. And a few raspberries as well. Warm spices with some cinnamon and some tobacco leaves. Vanilla pods, acacia honey and financier cake.
Palate:
Neat: Slightly spiced orange marmalade, with cinnamon, pepper and cumin amongst the warm spices used. Then, some apple caramel on tarte tatin, vanilla ice cream on the side, warm varnished wood, and some peppermint.
Finish:
Peppered orange marmalade, leaving a lovely warmth on the gums and tongue, and slightly drying. Cinnamon, granny Smith apples, and a little touch of wood, for a long finish.
Comments:
This whisky delivers a superb experience, notably lacking the typical Springbank or Campbeltown funk – or at least, it remains subtly in the background. It achieves a well-balanced harmony, where neither the sherry nor bourbon cask maturation dominates, resulting in an elegant and refined dram that stands confidently on its own merits.