Springbank 8yo Local Barley
2025 Release | 58.1% ABV
Score: 8/10
Something special.
TL;DR
Young and spirit forward but oh so textured. I get the Local Barley hype now
Whisky finds you.
There are a select few limited edition bottlings that seem to attract attention from pretty much all whisky enthusiasts every time a new batch is released.
The likes of Lagavulin and Clynelish special releases - only to find out it’s 30% more expensive than the already outrageously priced previous year’s edition - Ardnamurchan’s Paul Launois, Kilkerran 8yo CS, Bruichladdich Bere Barley, or indeed, the subject of today’s review; the legendary Springbank Local Barley.
Probably the most anticipated and collectible J&A Mitchell annual release, Local Barley is meant to be the most Campbeltown-centric whisky of the range, sourcing the barley from a single farm on the Kintyre peninsula. Each year the specific farm as well as the variety of the barley changes, along with the age statement and maturation though those tend to be within variations on early teenage years and a mix of bourbon and sherry.
I’m not lucky enough to have been to Springbank - yet - so I won’t be able to dive deep into why local barley requires such a special process, but the fact it is relatively more expensive than “regular” Springbank is due to the fact that the barley comes in with all the farming debris (rocks, earth, twigs…) and that the grain size is irregular and much more difficult to handle and process. Whereas, when you order in barley from a maltster, it comes in clean and to specification (to a certain extent). That irregularity makes milling, in particular, quite a challenge as I understand it. A few reasons why Local barley is so special. Wally wrote about it a little more in last year’s 13yo piece.
So how did I manage to get my hands on this unicorn of a bottle ? Well, I have a few people to thank for it. If you’ve been a part of this online whisky community for a while or, even better, if you’ve been to Glasgow, chances are you know of a couple who are unapologetically geeky about whisky, and they’re quite famous for being big fans of Campbeltown’s finest, Springbank.
They run a restaurant in Paisley which is closed on Mondays, so that’s the day they take advantage to go to the Wee Toon quite regularly. They of course usually share some pictures on the Aqvavitae Barflies Facebook page. We know them as the Monday Whisky Hunters. About a month before the Independent Spirits Festival, of which you can read my recap here, they posted a picture of a shelf packed full with the new local barley edition, in the Springbank shop. I saw the post about two days later and wrote in the comments something along the lines of “Wow, I never see that in my neck of the woods, if you manage to get me one I’d be eternally thankful”. Truth be told, I thought I was too late to the party already, and I forgot my comment practically just after having posted it.
Fast forward to just a week before the festival, and I receive a message.
“Hey pal. Have you managed to get a Local Barley yet?”
Let me tell you, I felt the adrenaline release while reading it. I replied that it hadn’t made its way to France yet, and that I wasn’t sure I could get one when it did, seeing that the last LB I was allowed to order for my shop was three years ago. I then saw messenger’s three little dots dancing around for a while and a reply popped up.
“Leave it to me pal. Local Barley coming your way”.
People like this are the lifeblood of our community. It is because of this sharing mindset that me and other non-UK resident folk can get our hands on such bottles, and in turn share them with our local whisky pals. You can be sure that I won’t be drinking the whole 70cl in this bottle as some samples will go to friends, and I might even bring the bottle to a whisky club night. But shush, don’t tell them, we’ll be tasting it blind.
Review
Springbank Local Barley 8yo, 2025 release, 50% ex-sherry, 50% ex-bourbon, Bere barley from High Ranachan, Kintyre, 58.1% ABV
~£100 and while there may be a bottle or two here and there, it’s pretty much gone, as always
To be perfectly honest, when I first got into whisky, I struggled to understand the hype around Springbank’s Local barley releases. I was lucky to try one or two, and I didn’t find them particularly exceptional. That might have been because my palate wasn’t really trained to like such malts, but I’m not even sure, as I already was enjoying other Springbanks and Kilkerrans at the time.
That all changed when I tried a vatting sample of this 2025 8yo release back in September, at the Parisian Springbank Society tasting. The major difference between this 2025 and the recent releases is the barley variety. While in the past few years we’ve seen the usual culprits - Concerto, Laureate, Optic… - this one is a heritage barley variety, and perhaps the most famous one alongside Golden Promise; Bere. Made famous by Bruichladdich and their yearly release focusing on this crop, it’s actually quite rare to see it elsewhere.
Bere, and heritage varieties in general, contain less starch in proportion to their weight compared to more modern varieties developed for the whisky industry. This implies a reduced yield, because less starch equals less fermentable sugars and, in turn, less alcohol. But it also means that there’s more room in the grain for proteins and congeners that contribute flavour and texture in the final product. As always, I’m no chemist, and this is oversimplification. Ainsley Fife, Lord of Close-Enoughness.
I remember this pour being the oiliest of the night, but that was six months ago, so I think we can all agree I need to revisit it.
Score: 8/10
Something special.
TL;DR
Young and spirit forward but oh so textured. I get the Local Barley hype now
Nose
Gloopy, rich, with oily rags and old tools in the shed. An earthy farminess as well. Cocoa nibs. A good dose of Campbeltown funk.
With water: a certain creaminess and a cooked guanciale aroma make me think of proper Carbonara. It gets farmier as well, and a black pepper note appears.
Palate
Superbly rich, oily, farmy and malty. The taste is what I imagine old-school Campbeltown whisky to be like. The mouthfeel is simply gorgeous, it stays with you forever. Milk chocolate, black pepper and beef fat.
With water: Creamier and sweeter, with more chocolate, ending on a spicy, hot chili and black pepper finish.
The Dregs
I am convinced that Bere plays a huge part in the mouthfeel of this whisky, which again, is simply stunning. I have no oilier whisky on the shelf, nor can I remember tasting one that was. Except maybe a Waterford Hunter, which, guess what, was made with heritage barley as well.
This still has some elbows and knees, as it’s only 8 years old, but damn, it is stunning already. While I didn’t really get the hype around LBs made with slightly more modern Concerto or Laureate varieties, I completely get this. It makes sense. More of it please.
For today’s listen, let’s play the track Dead, by black honey. Moody indie rock.
Score: 8/10
Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. AF
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