Highland Park Valknut

This bottling is the second in what I'm terming the Highland Park 'Valk Series.' It follows the Valkyrie, which I haven't sampled yet. The third is the Valkfather, which I don't believe is available. There have been many new Highland Park non-age-statement releases recently. This one is among the more accessible and widely available. The Valk series feels like it sits a tier below the main lineup, if that concept makes sense. They aren't part of the core range but aren't random, one-off bottlings either. Let's delve in. ***I revisited this bottle a couple of months later. Several reviews from this period seemed off, and I suspect my palate might have been fatigued. Upon returning to it, the experience was significantly improved.*** Nose: Very little peat smoke is apparent. Instead, there's a more sulfurous note. A sweetness is also present. Bubblegum, green apple, honey, toffee, and vanilla. Additionally, cinnamon, black pepper, and clove spice. Walnut and sun-dried tomato conclude the aromatic profile, lending it a distinctive character. Palate: Butterscotch, honey, vanilla, caramel, and toffee. Red berries (strawberry, cranberry). More of that sulfur note, but otherwise minimal peat influence. Practically no smoke. A hint of milk chocolate appears towards the end. It's nutty and oaky. Finish: Lasts a moderate to long time. It's warm with cinnamon, black pepper, and baking spices. Heavily influenced by oak. More of the sulfur note and some delightful dark chocolate. This is a challenging one to evaluate. When I initially opened this bottle a few months ago, I thought it was a decent dram. Fast forward to last night, and I found it to be quite unpleasant. I had to delay my review until tonight because it was so drastically different from my memory. I even compared it to Highland Park 15, a whiskey I enjoy, and it held its own. The nose, which I initially found most appealing, now seems entirely uncoordinated. That, along with the palate, is overwhelmed by sulfur notes. While I appreciate these notes in Laphroaigs, this expression is too lacking in other areas to compensate for such a pronounced and potentially off-putting characteristic. The finish was excessively harsh for a 46.8% ABV. I genuinely wanted to enjoy this. And, curiously, I did when I first opened it. But unlike most bottles, I found this one deteriorated considerably with time. I've had the Highland Park 12 and 15, and now this Valknut. The score is: Age-Statement releases 2 - NAS 0. I appreciate the nod to Nordic culture as much as anyone, but Highland Park, focus less on the bottle design and more on the contents. ***Returning to this, I'm convinced my prior assessment was due to palate fatigue. The flavor notes are largely consistent, but the nose is now pleasing, the palate robust, and the finish much more satisfying. I've confidently increased the score from 2.75 to 3.5. I'm glad to confirm that as I finish the bottle, my initial positive impression was justified.***

A very generous 30 ml sample shared by the esteemed. I was in the mood for a peaty treat this evening and this has been on my wanted list to try for a while. The spirit used for this Highland Park features a small quantity of Orkney-grown Tartan barley and was aged primarily in American oak sherry seasoned casks. Reportedly, it's slightly smokier than standard Highland Park expressions. Eager to begin… Nose: Beautifully gentle vanilla and herbal (thyme? rosemary?) scented smoke drift along with raisins, perhaps some malty chocolate, and a touch of honey. Gentler than I anticipated, but a wonderfully savory welcome to the dram. Palate: This is oily on the initial taste, and the first flavors I detect are fennel-anise and barley. Accompanied by a good amount of cinnamon, there's also some pepper. Dark fruits like raisins and figs, along with a general crispness of orchard fruit, provide sweetness that balances the spice. I find a toffee note here, comparable in depth and richness to Highland Park 25, actually. As that toffee emerges, the palate softens and rounds out to a creamy fullness, revealing the soft, delicate floral peat of Orkney. Finish: Medium length. Sweet and spicy smoke, some burnt barbecue remnants, and some bakery spice with a hint of dryness create a wonderful conclusion. Wow. The intensity of this expression elevates it slightly above the standard age statements of Highland Park. Elements of the 12 and 25 year olds are present, as well as some characteristics I recall from the 18 year old when I tried it some time ago. Clearly, this indicates a highly diverse selection of barrels. However, everything is intensified, bringing it closer to the peat levels of Talisker or even an Islay offering. This is a complex spirit, and I do enjoy it. I admit, I am a Highland Park enthusiast. My criticism would be that, in my opinion, the sherry influence is slightly reduced, and I would prefer a bit more balance between the spice, the soft elements of toffee and vanilla, and the sherry fruits. Adding water does help to even things out a little, but I lose the toffee and the floral note. Personally, I prefer it without water. Excellent stuff, definitely worth trying. (Pictured here with a Devonian Old Red Sandstone, the same rock that characterizes the Orkney Islands and forms the natural aquifers that filter the water used by the Highland Park distillery.)

Nose: Warm sherry-influenced sweet smoke, musky raisins, herbal notes, a hint of honey, leather, and dark ale or stout. After some time, a lemon aroma emerges, and there's a fresh, coastal quality throughout. With the addition of water, I detect mashed turnips and rutabaga, which might sound unappealing but is a delightful vegetal note. The aroma from the dry glass is classic Highland Park smoky honeypot. Palate: Oily smoke with spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and pepper), evolving into fruity flavors (stewed apple with cloves, dates, and figs) with a touch of vanilla, salted caramel, and licorice. The texture is oily and coats the mouth. Adding water slightly softens the spice notes and enhances sweetness. It also alters the smoke's character, making it smoother and providing more texture and a pleasant, mouth-filling quality. Finish: Medium/long. Fruity smoke. A slight leafy walnut-skin bitterness in the aftertaste, but the final impression is of ale. Water introduces a hint of sherry to the aftertaste. Highland Park leans slightly towards Islay, and it does so quite well. This expression is a bit smokier than most Highland Park varieties, and the smoke's quality is more akin to Islay maritime than Orcadian maritime, but the smoke doesn't overpower either the distillate or the sherry cask influences. Water isn't essential but is highly recommended as it reveals aspects of both the nose and palate that would otherwise be missed. This clearly has a foundation of younger whisky, I'd estimate 5-8 years perhaps, but there's definitely some older spirit in the blend as well contributing depth and fullness to the profile. There's certainly nothing about it that suggests a lack of maturity, and it's definitely superior to the earlier Valkyrie release in this series. The only drawback is the price, which is a bit high.

Information: The Valknut is the second release in a series created in partnership with Jim Lyngvild. Some of the barley used in this single malt was grown in Orkney and aged in American oak sherry casks. As I'm not typically a fan of Highland Park, I was particularly keen to try this edition due to positive comments about its more pronounced smokiness. Nose: Notes of linen, fresh thyme, herbs, and salt. The characteristic smoky salt of Highland Park. Orange peel. Palate: Cereal grains, sunflower seeds, citrus, salt, and smoke. Finish: Medium length, featuring orange zest and a hint of smoke. Overall: Not bad, I can't say I was blown away, but it's quite drinkable. It possesses moderate complexity. It's not enough to convert me to Highland Park, but it's definitely closer to my flavor preferences. The texture is surprisingly rich and quite oily, actually. Allow your glass to breathe well; this will reveal grassy and linen notes. For those who appreciate Highland Park's style, this is an expression you should consider acquiring. For those who, like me, are not usually fans of Highland Park, it's worth exploring as it represents a new direction that doesn't overlap with their usual aroma profile found in countless other editions. I was told it's in the vein of Dark Origin. I don't find that to be the case. Aside from Highland Park's smoke, I see no connection between these two editions. Dark Origin had a sherry-smoke character, whereas this one is more focused on herbs, grains, and smoke. For the unusual interplay of sherry and smoke, I would recommend Dark Origin over Valknut (based on my personal taste). In short, on my scale (60-69; passable, 70-79; good, 80-89; very good, 90-99; excellent), I rate this as 'very good' but closer to 'good' than 'excellent': 82%.

The overall experience feels VERY formulaic. Not sure how else to put it. It looked, smelled and tasted like someone went in the lab to “construct” a Highland Park whiskey using some supposedly “true & tested” formula. As in... (and here please imagine a person in a lab coat)... take equal parts single malt distillate, add a certain amount of heather peat, then a quarter part sherry + some liters of water. Then shake and let sit for some hours. Then more purified water, and add a tiny amount of iodine + cold tar = Highland Park whiskey. Don’t know the exact formula but you get the point. Simply put, this pour has NO soul. I didn’t know there’ll come a day when I would describe whiskey in such an esoteric way but here we are. Sure it tastes like whiskey. Sure you can pick up some peat. And sure, you can feel the sherry. Then what? I guess the distillery was counting on the adage that says “if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it must be a duck”. Except it’s not. More like a plastic facsimile. Lucy! I mean Highland Park! You have some explaining to do! Glad I got this on a close out sale for less than $35. I guess that’s why it was discounted. Skip this one. You should have no FOMO on this with confidence 1.25 - 1.5 stars Cheers!

The final entry in my reviews of whiskies from the Highland Park Viking Legends Saga, this time focusing on "Valknut," following my experiences with the excellent Valkyrie and the less impressive Valfather. Valknut derives its name from "Val," meaning a Viking warrior, and "Knut," meaning a knot. The symbol for a Valknut consists of three triangles, which are also featured on the bottle. Regarding the whisky itself, it's bottled at 46.8% ABV and has a burnished gold appearance. The nose is quite rich and fatty, with notes of BBQ sauce, glazed pork, grease, and bacon. After an initial taste, the aroma shifts to a sweeter profile, offering milk chocolate and vanilla, though the BBQ notes persist. Further aeration reveals more vanilla, alongside a salty, maritime scent. The palate becomes sweeter with successive sips, starting with bacon, sausages, vanilla, and oak spice. The second sip brings significant vanilla and salt. After a third taste, it turns exceptionally sweet, dominated by pure vanilla. The finish showcases its Highland Park heritage. It's smoky, with notes of scorched earth, pepper, and salt, along with prunes and burnt grass. Overall, this is a well-rounded whisky, sitting between the Valfather and Valkyrie. An 87 out of 100 seems appropriate. Considering its price, it's a good drink.