Longrow – 1973 The Birds 17 Years Old (75cl, 46%)

This is a 17 year old Longrow, distilled in 1973 and bottled as a single cask in 1990 at 46% ABV in a 75cl bottle. It was released by the independent bottler The Moon-Import in its The Birds series, and the label carries a bird illustration from a German print dated 1892. The whisky matured in a sherry hogshead and was bottled without added colour or chill filtration. Longrow is the heavily peated malt made at Springbank in Campbeltown, from barley dried over peat smoke for 48 hours. Its smoky character sits alongside sweet, fruity notes. The nose shows a little salty cheese and lavender, green apples, mango and pineapple, with vanilla cream in the background.