Highland Park 25 Year (Spring 2019)

Created from fewer than 20 sherry seasoned European oak casks, first-fill ex-bourbon casks, and refill casks, hand-selected from a small treasure of suitable casks by the Master Whisky Maker. Halfway through this bottle, with many drams shared with family, but taking a moment this evening for a solid pour to update these tasting notes. Nose: Bright and warming with citrus, wafts of herbaceous floral smoke, maltiness, a fruit juice sweetness, and a softening vanilla-fudge note. Palate: Dried fruits from the sherry cask, balanced with toffee, gingerbread, and vanilla, all underpinned by charry BBQ steak. Finish: Medium. Slightly sweet smoke with floral savoury flavor. Briny sea-spray. This is a complex, deeply flavored, and delicately refined whisky. The soft toffee-vanilla profile is expertly measured against the wonderful BBQ char, floral-herbal smoke, and sea spray brine. It’s almost a chewy mouthful, like biting into meat straight from the grill. Yet, it still demands respect and time to consider and discover. I’d say its time well spent. Sadly, though, this isn’t a five-star whisky for me. It’s unquestionably good, but it lacks something. Perhaps I expected more for 25 years from the esteemed producer, but the magic is missing. When this bottle is gone, I don’t think I’ll pine to replace it, so it just isn’t 5 stars. The distillery heralds this as a whisky shaped by wild climate, stormy seas, and Viking exploration dating back over 1000 years. But this whisky dates back further. The Orkney Islands are dominated by the Devonian Old Red Sandstone. These rocks are the 400 million-year-old natural aquifers responsible for filtering the water used by the distillery that is drawn from a spring. Bottle kill pour 11/03/2022. After pouring 60 ml into a mini bottle to save for later, I emptied the last drops to enjoy for the last time in what I suspect will be a very long time. This time around, after leaving the pour in a glass for twenty minutes, I start nosing… Nose: Honey becomes apparent; I missed that last time. Still bright and warming, but now the citrus is slightly more bitter, like marmalade. The smoke adds a slightly leathery or tobacco note. Perhaps this is the oxidation at work. Well, it works very well. The previously noted vanilla and juicy malt are still here, backed by the same delicious floral peat smoke. Palate: Same as last time. Rich dried fruit, gingerbread, some vanilla. There is lovely sweetness and maybe some newly discovered creaminess, not chocolate per se, but a mouthfeel reminiscent of it. The smoke is so restrained, so gentle, and so deliciously sticky like BBQ meat glaze. I find this a little more prickly now, similar to really crisp rocket leaves. Finish: Still medium. Slightly salty with gentle smoke and a savoury feel. The new rocket leaves are slightly present still. The addition of a splash of water, given yet more time, brings out the orange on the nose with less bitterness and more of a fresh orange being squeezed. The most notable development, though, is the smoke, which just gets bigger, more weighty, and forceful. The smoke does this without diminishing anything else. Wonderful stuff. This really is excellent. It is, you can’t deny it. But it’s still not filling me with the excitement I would want for $999! So it’s not perfect to me. What I remember of the 18-year-old, or perhaps even some of the cask strength 01 or 02 bottles I’ve heard good things about, would serve as admirable alternatives at a quarter of the cost.

Nose: Honey stored in an oak barrel, very faint vanilla, mild floral scents, enveloping dusky orange, apricot preserves, orange marmalade. Leather armchair, old oak sideboard, and a hint of cigar smoke. As it sits, it becomes more complex and the subtle smoke note gets a little stronger. Palate: Perfect arrival – slightly sweet, growing sweeter and deeper as it unfolds. Stewed and fresh fruit, especially blood orange and currants, but the sweetness is slow and simmering, not bright and immediate. Chocolate and toffee develop along with licorice and prunes with just the lightest touch of peat smoke. Spices and spicy herbs (mustard, cress, rocket, and clove) are present, and the texture is good, somewhat chewy, and gains creaminess with water. Finish: Medium/long. The palate gently fades into a lightly maritime aftertaste with echoes of the mustard spice and cigar smoke. A wonderful nose that is relaxed, sophisticated, and rewarding. It has that dusky, dusty oxidized quality that old spirits often show. The smoke is very reserved, lacking any phenolic or guaiacol notes, but the subtle cigar quality is pervasive. For some time after finishing the dram, there's a definite mouth taste of just having smoked a cigar. The palate has complexity, but not as much as one might wish. In some ways it's a limited profile, but what's there is very good indeed. The finish is good. Adding just a small dash of water mellows and broadens the entire experience. The dried orange and spice notes both soften, and the texture becomes more silken. The finish gains a little body, and there's the most interesting sensation when breathing out of genuinely feeling like you are smoking. A lovely spirit, but if you have the good fortune to try this, do not rush the experience. Give it at least 15 minutes in the glass to awaken, and if adding water (which you should), give it another 15 to settle. Those are bare minimums - ideally, sit, nose, and ponder this for an hour before taking the first sip. There is nothing to be gained by haste and everything from patience. Great stuff, but overpriced in my opinion. This is not light years ahead of the 18 year old; in fact, it's more like a sideways step than an advance, so I'm giving it the same rating. Tasted from a 30ml sample generously provided by a friend. “Excellent”: 89/100 (4.75 stars)

The distillery recently revamped its branding, introducing bottles with etched Viking designs. They subsequently relaunched their entire range, with many expressions remaining reasonably priced for a premier distillery. This 25-year-old, from the 2019 release, is likely not excessively expensive, especially at its initial launch. Matured in both bourbon and sherry casks and bottled at 46% ABV. The nose initially presents with orange, followed by heather but no peat. Red fruits, floral notes, and Alka Seltzer emerge. After the first taste, the aroma shifts to grass and smoke, with a medicinal note. The palate is somewhat dry, with notes of paper, raw rice, hay, and scorched grass, tasting bitter and grassy, with a lip-drying saltiness. A second sip reveals red fruits, a much fruitier and pleasant profile. Cherries appeared on the third sip, showing improvement with each taste. The aftertaste consists of a faint aromatic smoke and salt, along with cherry syrup. Overall, it's a pleasant dram, but it lacks emotional depth. For a 25-year-old offering, a superior whisky might be expected. My rating of 89/100 is somewhat disappointing.