Tastes

The nose is enticing with plenty of fruit and some smoke. The flavor though - Immediate stale bread D: For Highland Park, the flavor is surprisingly weak, with fruit making up the bulk of the flavor aside from the gross bread. It doesn't taste like much and definitely tastes young. This is not a whiskey worth sipping. There are several flavors in here, but they are across the board and not of high quality. It's all kind of generic and it doesn't vary over the course of the sip. There are vanilla and some citrus notes mixed with smoke and of course stale bread. Not much in the way of toffee is present, though there might be some mild red fruit in the background.

It smells kind of bland, but it tastes unique. There is a lot of alcohol, but it is also shockingly herbal. That bitter herbal bite is rough. There is some stale bread and there is also a lot of alcohol. It's extremely rich with a nice smokey backing. Don't count out the peat either. Mostly, it tastes quite old, which is nice and also surprising in its aggressiveness for Highland Park. There is plenty of sweetness, but it doesn't overtake the rich, aged flavor. There's a hint of apple, but it isn't too strong. There isn't as much depth and complexity as I would like, but evaluated as an aged whiskey, this is good. Despite the stale bread, I'd be happy to drink this.

There's a lot going on here! It's smoky and sweet, but also mildly spicy with some peat. There are toffee notes, but they aren't terribly strong. A bit of grass makes its way in too. It's highly reminiscent of Highland Park 18 and that's terrific. It tastes a bit less aged and a bit spicier. There's a slight, slight flavor of stale bread, but it is somehow within acceptable bounds. The alcohol is a bit present. It could use some improvement, but for its age and price this is exemplary.

It has smoke, but it's not overwhelming. The flavor develops throughout the drink, bringing in prunes, raisins, wood, caramel, cream. It's smooth, rich, and superbly balanced. It covers the whole spectrum and is a delight to drink. It's definitely fruity, but the smoke quickly balances that flavor before giving way to brine. The price is high, but it is hard to argue that this scotch is not complex and we'll balanced. Amazing. This is like if someone took Oban 14 and redesigned it to maintain the depth while avoiding the problem of conflicting flavors. Highland Park nailed it with this. The real magic of this scotch though is that no matter what you've had before it, it tastes at least good, usually great, and sometimes amazing. There is no other drink I have ever had that tastes good on all occasions. The subtlety required to achieve this is truly impressive and not matched by any other alcohol I have ever tasted. Smoky with salt and sea spray, but backed by sweet toffee, luscious orange, and mild apple. There is a hit of vanilla in here too and it definitely tastes aged with a coconut undertone hanging out there. It's sweet, smooth, and luxurious. Although not perfect, this drink is a triumph of balancing reasonable complexity with delicious, well-executed flavors that marry nicely. This is arguably less complex than Highland Park The Dark, but it is richer and has better flavors. It's arguably too in-your-face but it avoids the mineral notes and I love that about it. This is a masterpiece. There is so much going on here and the flavors range from good to excellent. This might not quite match Glenfarclas 25, but it is a capable rival.

Herbal and spicy with clear notes of mint and slight hints of clove, anise and a fair bit of cinnamon. A little salt is present and there is plenty of tartness. A little bit of fruit makes it through and there is definitely some sweetness. The flavor is fairly full and a bit interesting, but worth paying more than twice the price of Rittenhouse 100? Probably not.

There's a nice sweet richness here. It tastes like a rye, but it isn't trying to show off how harsh it can be. There's mild toffee along with the regular spices. There are some nuts (almonds), apples, and dried cherries. The flavor isn't extremely strong, but it is present. The balance is very good and the flavors are too. I'd like some more complexity, but I'll take this as is. There's cocoa that indicates a bit of smokiness. It's a bit herbal with some bit of mintiness. This is a solid all around rye that is quite sippable. It isn't my favorite, but I would drink it. The alcohol does come through more than I would like

It has some interesting herbal notes, but also some chocolate, mild coffee, and sweet toffee. There's spiciness for sure, but it isn't overwhelming. The flavor is balanced though it is a bit medicinal. There's smoke and some barrel presence but it's still balanced. There is a decent amount of complexity and the flavors stand out reasonably well. The finish is a bit bitter but is still acceptable. It would be nice if the flavors were a bit higher quality and/or stood out more prominently. I'm not a huge fan of the herbal flavor here, but it is a reasonable thing to have. I would happily sip this whiskey, but I would be wishing for something more the whole time. There's something a little rancid going on that I'm not a a huge fan of. It's still good though. It has a bit of a nutty oiliness that reminds me a bit of Pendleton. There is some fruit in the sweetness but it is hard to place. If you really dive into the subtleties, there is a lot of good flavor standing out. Unfortunately, it all stands out about equally and it takes a lot of attention to pick out the flavors. I appreciate the sweetness and nuttiness (peanut), as well as the balance. Even though none of the flavors are great, the whole package is quite good. The nose is full of rancid meat with plenty of alcohol and a little bit of rye. The palate is very oily and has a lot of spice. It's rich with lots of rancid but oils, reminding me a bit of Pendleton 1912. It has this unappealing young caramel flavor to it. It's hard to believe that there is much in of the older bourbons in this. The rancid flavor is bitter and give it a bit of a medicinal vegetal flavor along with a bit of earthiness. There are some going red fruit notes that stem from the rye tartness and minerality. This cranks the bad side of Old Forester Signature up without compensating with a better good side. This is somewhat comparable to Jim Beam Black Label, but it has more issues. Ultimately, this is borderline in terms of sippability, but it is a good base to mix from. The nose is fairly meaty but otherwise uninteresting. The are peppery, minty, and cardboard scents too. The palate is black pepper with rye spice and lots of caramel with some light wood. It isn't terribly deep or overly rancid, but it does taste on the young side. There's some vanilla that goes with the rye and the oily meat. There are some flavors here and there's nothing terribly bad, but it's unexciting and a little off. There's a weird molasses flavor that is a bit sickening. It is far from the worst whiskey I've tried, but it tastes grusomely young nonetheless. There are some nice details that save it, but for the most part, this is a bold whiskey that misses its mark. It's not terrible, but it has serious flaws that detract from its richness. It's richer than Evan Williams Black, but it has less complexity and balance. Unfortunately, it's inferior. The flavor is quite one-note with caramel and some spice mixed with some nuttiness (including almond) and maybe some cherry, but no real variation in character throughout. It has kind of a cola flavor on the finish and is generally sweet throughout, though it ends with that cola bitterness. This is a great mixer but it really isn't a sipper. It has some generic sweet and mineral elements that stand out and are indicative of bourbon, but it's also quite flat in flavor. It's oily with a distinctly bitter alcohol flavor. There's some caramel too, but it's a little sweet. It's pretty generically bourbon and while the oily element does give it a bit of a creamy texture, it also leaves the whole thing tasting rather one-note.