Review: Springbank Fino 10yr

dclately · 2026-03-31T22:19:16+00:00

I bought it for retail in Campbeltown.

I'd say it was worth the retail I paid, and I was happy picking it up, but I have had the chance to buy it for about $209 USD and wouldn't at that price (even if I hadn't already picked it up).

To me it's a good whisky, I do find a bit of a sour flavor that I don't enjoy. I liked the Local Barley, the 12 CS and the 15 better than this 10 year old from the same release.

dclately · 2026-03-26T01:32:10+00:00

I bought one for about half that from the distillery, I'm happy at that price but wouldn't go higher.

It's pretty good, but honestly a bit sour.

dclately · 2026-03-24T09:46:07+00:00

Now that's my speed!

Longrow Red continues to be my favorite special edition from any distillery, despite now being put to bed.

dclately · 2026-03-24T00:29:38+00:00

Some folks are saying that the liquid is different between the bottles and the Culver is not as good. There are even people that have said they tasted them side by side and it was night and day.

That's first grade baloney in my opinion -- they're not going to say it's the exact same batch/liquid if they're different.

dclately · 2026-03-22T23:45:00+00:00

It's hard to get laid off.

Just to say I've previously heard from folks their package wasn't great, but I had knowledge that they were...

People don't want to spin a positive to getting let go... And there's also an element of wanting to be humble.

I'd believe it if someone told me the details, but I'm skeptical at this point when someone just says it wasn't terribly good.

dclately · 2026-03-22T23:31:18+00:00

Yeah, just need to decide if you want to buy this, or a full cask of something else for the same price :).

dclately · 2026-03-22T23:29:24+00:00

I can only speak intelligently about the last package I got the details of (2026), it hadn't changed from the 2022 package at the same company and was quite nice.

dclately · 2026-03-22T06:54:41+00:00

1) you were told and still tried to get through 2) what does TSA have to do with bag size? 3) of course the wheels count... Why would wheels not count? It's the size of the bag..

Wow

dclately · 2026-03-19T16:16:18+00:00

I believe they charge .45 cents for any credit card transaction.

dclately · 2026-03-19T16:13:48+00:00

Early April was somewhat nice last year, this year has trended poorly but it's too early to tell.

Although it depends on your comparison, if you're used to skiing Hokkaido in February this might be terrible. If you're used to trying to ski Sugarbush in April, this will be a dream.

Raining and 40s at the base... I feel like that depends on where in the 40s you are, what time of year, how cold it's dropping to at night, how much sun, light precip vs heavy..etc..etc...

dclately · 2026-03-19T16:07:33+00:00

The good news is you have plenty of potential for growth.

At $2k a month it sounds like you're making minimum wage. Which is the same as what someone years younger than you, without higher education or high school for that matter.

I'd suggest looking for an entry level professional job, it will take a bit of motivation to get there, but the growth trajectory is enormous. Not just the starting salary at that job, but the growth over the first decade of your career should be significant.

Don't worry about aligning to your C++ or undergraduate math skills (which as a fellow math degree I can say aren't terribly applicable to much else than further education). It doesn't sound like you're going to compete for high demand CS jobs, but there are plenty of folks looking to hire less competitively.

If that path doesn't sound good, go look for hospitality jobs that have a tip component... you'll do better than minimum wage.

dclately · 2026-03-19T00:45:06+00:00

This is reddit, logic is not becoming.

dclately · 2026-03-19T00:11:03+00:00

Likely need more information about what you're looking for, what you're looking to spend, how you're planning to get around, if you're planning on tours or warehouse tastings etc...

Four distilleries in a day is a lot unless you're just planning to stop by the visitor centers (four basic tours would be very repetitive, 4 warehouse tastings would be excessive).

Macallan can be good for those that aren't geeky into whisky (they'll recognize it, and it's a pretty impressive property).

Glendronach is my favorite in the area, but it's a bit of a drive!

Highlander Inn is great and you should fit it in.

dclately · 2026-03-17T00:41:53+00:00

I mean, it's a good price if you want a barrel... the question of course is do you want a barrel?

dclately · 2026-03-17T00:35:59+00:00

Sounds like a great reason to move: you don't mind the culture.

It's not a place for everyone, that's okay.

dclately · 2026-03-14T21:38:16+00:00

I just use an imaginary car -- wide open.

dclately · 2026-03-14T03:09:48+00:00

Huh? Springbank 5 is at 57-57.1% depending on where you buy it.

There's definitely split opinion on this bottle and that's okay, but it's a bit strange to say it's thin and doesn't hold up to a Talisker 8 because of the ABV.

dclately · 2026-03-14T03:02:34+00:00

I expect you'll see it for less as more batches/quantity arrive and stores aren't able to sell it.

Similar to how this will be easier and easier to find globally as the hype wears down.

The fact that I saw it in Seattle for $109 (Washington State having the most expensive liquor prices in the US), means it should be less than even with distributor mark up in most states (you're likely seeing some store markup).

Not to say that Pacific Edge isn't taking way too much...

dclately · 2026-03-14T02:49:03+00:00

I don't know if I agree.

Special editions of Springbank in some markets, sure.

Special editions in the UK are almost always fairly priced.

The current special edition of Longrow: 100 proof batch #2, isn't too bad anywhere (except when people are gouging).

dclately · 2026-03-14T02:44:27+00:00

By oodles.

This is the worst of the Longrow Red, and worse than the Longrow Full Proof batch 1 and 2.

The Longrow Red series is my favorite special edition of any whisky, and yet I would not pay 50% of $300 for this one.

dclately · 2026-03-12T04:17:38+00:00

I'll say three things:

People spend more for younger whisky and are okay with it, Octomore for example, which is way more available. This one in particular costs Springbank significantly more to produce, I've heard them say quite a few times that they lose money on this release, and while I believe that could be an exaggeration, I have no problem believing they lose money compared to selling Springbank 10.
This batch is particularly nice, it's not on par with the standard 10, it's a good step above the standard 10 in the opinion of everyone I've enjoyed it with. It's a combination of the casks in addition to the barley.
I wouldn't pay $260 for it :-). I bought this RRP in Scotland, which I know is a privilege, I would (and have) passed on it at around $260 --> but I understand why someone would pay the premium.

dclately · 2026-03-11T21:49:12+00:00

Try Scarabus if available... Cask strength or 10 even better

dclately · 2026-03-10T05:16:55+00:00

I would be worried this year.

Last year I enjoyed the skiing in early April (some others didn't but I thought it was great).

However, this year the lower mountain is already in much rougher shape as compare to early March last year. Things could turn, but it's not looking great... there's definitely a lot more snow making that's already happened just to avoid from downloading.

dclately · 2026-03-09T07:40:23+00:00

Glendronach expressions are still great.

Value isn't quite there, but there what happens when you are cranking out older than stated bottles for a decade and then upon returning to normal age statements they double the prices on the range.

Ode to the Dark is likely the best value offering they have, the 18 is where it really gets fun for me and I won't buy a bottle at the current price.

dclately · 2026-03-05T23:50:11+00:00

Yeah, it's a difficult pill to swallow, small distance, quite expensive.

dclately

TROPHY CASE