North Star Campbeltown 5 year 2014

From a North Star Spirits tasting in Sydney on February 21, 2020, this is Whisky #2. The aroma brings to mind fine leather, apricots, peaches, and golden syrup. In the background, there are hints of honeysuckle, rosewater, and a touch of minerality. A faint wisp of tarry smoke is also present. Upon tasting, there are sweet spices immediately. It’s lively and succulent, with very sweet malt and sugar-coated dried fruits becoming prominent as it develops. There's a lot of syrupy fruit jam. The texture is substantial and rich, and as it opens up, the palate reveals notes of toffee and caramel. The finish is medium to long, with sweetly sherried malt and a leathery aftertaste. It has a warming quality. North Star acquired some spirit from Campbeltown distilleries some years ago, which was blended and is now offered as two single-cask blended malt bottlings; this is the second. The distilleries remain undisclosed, but given the limited number of operational companies in Campbeltown, one can make a highly educated guess. The initial bottling arrived in 2018 as part of North Star's series 005 and drew attention for its prominent 4-year-old age statement. It was bottled at 57% ABV, matured solely in refill bourbon casks, and frankly, it was quite spirit-forward, grassy, and young. It was a challenging dram for enthusiasts and a bold decision to release it at such a young age. Following feedback from consumer testing, the owner of North Star took a logical step by re-casking the remaining stock into what was undoubtedly a very active first-fill PX sherry cask. After a year of this finishing period, the resulting spirit is completely transformed from the 4-year-old version. This release from series 009 is quite enjoyable, sweet, approachable, and intensely aromatic, with an overwhelmingly pronounced PX influence. It's so heavily sherried it borders on parody, yet it avoids being a pure sherry bomb due to the vibrant and lively underlying spirit that balances the fortified wine finish. While my description might not sound entirely positive, it is, in fact, delightful – in a quirky, experimental fashion. The sole notable drawback is that over time, the aroma becomes excessively toffee-like, and the palate turns almost relentlessly sweet. Regarding its origin, it's highly probable that it's Glen Scotia, possibly with some Springbank/Glengyle influence, but there's a complication. Springbank no longer supplies spirit to independent bottlers (with the exception of Cadenhead, which they own), nor do they sell Kilkerran to them. Furthermore, the whisky doesn't exhibit the typical aroma or taste profile of Springbank. The most likely explanation is that this is a Glen Scotia with a small amount of another malt added (teaspooned), which aligns with common speculation. Regardless of its exact composition, I thoroughly enjoyed it and immediately purchased a bottle after the tasting. The price of $125 AUD at the event felt reasonable, but the standard price of $165 AUD makes the value questionable for what is essentially an intensely sweet, jammy whisky – though undeniably fun. "Good (just)": 83/100 (3.5 stars)