Tastes

Part four, and the last of the “Premium Highland Park samples from Lee” series of reviews. This is Odin. The Allfather. King of Asgard, father to Thor and Loki, and husband to Freya. Enough of the Norse mythology, let’s get to the whisky! This 16 year old single malt is bottled at what I believe is cask strength of 55.8% ABV, natural color of a dark amber and most likely non chill filtered. Matured exclusively in first fill and refill sherry casks with no bourbon casks at all. Beautiful intense sherry on the nose. Warm vanilla and brown sugar. Raisins, dates and plums. A little salty/savory and a light smoke. Buttery biscuits, warm wheat bread and toffee. Roasted mixed nuts, cocoa powder, cinnamon, a touch of chili powder. There was a quick hit of turmeric or curry powder but it was gone so fast I couldn’t really work it out. Chocolate oranges, ginger, fennel, a slight waxy note and a touch of maple syrup. Tobacco drizzled with honey, old wood and leather. After all that, the barest hint of banana. It’s not quite as elegant or balanced as the 25, but just as satisfying. The palate arrives with intense peppery oak. Quite powerful, and it builds. Roasted nuts, sherry, raisins, dates, plums and smoky oranges. Some alcohol burn. Spice cake, cinnamon, clove, more oak and pepper. I had to add a few drops of water to tame this beast or my tongue was going to fall off. What I got afterwards was butter cookies, like the Royal Dansk cookies that come in the blue tin. I also got crusty wheat bread with a little honey on it. All of that was covered in pepper though. The spice never really left. A full bodied mouthfeel that was oily and mouthwatering. The finish is long and dry, with oak, pepper and dried plums. The profile here really fits the name Odin. Incredibly strong and it commands respect. Not as sophisticated as the 25, but no less great. Like the Ice Edition, I feel this would have been better presented at 48% ABV as it’s just a bit too strong on the palate. At $300 it’s almost worth the price...but not quite (for me anyways). I’m giving this a 4.5, same as the 25 year old. It’s as good, just in a different way. Another huge thanks to @LeeEvolved for all the wonderful samples with which I have been provided. It’s been an adventure for sure. Cheers

Part three of the “Premium Highland Park samples from Lee” series of reviews. Tonight is the vaunted 25 year old. This is basically the same stuff as the 18 year old but with a higher proportion of first fill sherry casks. Bottled at 45.7% ABV, natural color of dark copper and most likely non chill filtered. The nose is all sweet sherry at first. Sweet, but not too sweet. It’s elegant. Full of warm wood and lovely fruits. Lots of cherries, oranges and raisins. Almonds, marzipan, maple syrup, toffee and sherry. Furniture polish but in a good way. Very light mint, more cherries and dark toffee. Mocha, chocolate and savory tobacco. Honey, vanilla and a bare thread of smoke. There is a slight alcohol note but otherwise this is a fantastic nosing whisky. The palate begins, unfortunately, with some bitter oak. It’s follows the nose with cherries, almonds and marzipan. Oranges, tobacco, very light smoke and sherry. It’s also slightly astringent with a little pepper. I have to say it is surprisingly lacking in depth given its age, but the flavors it does have are strong. A medium bodied mouthfeel that is very oily, mouthwatering and mouth coating. A medium short finish that is mostly bitter oak with cherries and sherry. I will give this warning to anyone who has the opportunity to try this one...NO WATER! I had a bit left in my glencairn, about a quarter ounce or 15mL and decided to try a bit of water to see if it helped with the bitterness. Killed the nose and did nothing for the bitterness. While this is 25 year old does not have the best nose on a whisky I’ve ever had, it is still fantastic. The mouthfeel is luxurious. It’s a shame the palate and finish lessened all the good things leading up to them. If I had paid the $600 that this goes for around here I would have been a little disappointed. But at that price it’s hard to justify anyways. I’m incredibly lucky to have tried some at all and immensely grateful for my friend @LeeEvolved who sent me this sample. 4.5 stars Cheers

Part two of the “Premium Highland Park samples from Lee” series of reviews. Tonight is the 17 year old Ice Edition, which was released before the Fire Edition I reviewed last night. This single malt from Orkney was matured exclusively in ex bourbon casks without a hint of sherry. Bottled at cask strength of 53.9% ABV, natural color of yellow gold, and even though it’s not stated, it is non chill filtered. ACHTUNG!: Not giving this one time to breathe will result in a model glue note on the nose. Please give it at least 5-10 minutes. The nose starts off soft and floral. Heather honey and honeysuckle. It quickly turns fruity. Starting with apples and pears, but it soon makes a sharp transition into oranges, tangerines, apricots, melon. Then another switch to tropical fruits, pineapple and mango. Some light vanilla and caramel, very light smoke. More smoke than the Fire Edition, but that really isn’t saying much. Bourbon like notes emerge with warm oak, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg. Toffee and light mocha show next. Being cask strength I had to add some water to see what else was hiding. I found that toasted coconut was revealed along with more floral notes and vanilla custard. A somewhat hot arrival on the palate, but with it comes huge amounts of fruits. Mango, papaya, pineapple, grilled apricots, and some oranges. Pepper and a very light smoke, still not on the level I’ve come to expect from HP, but still it’s there. A light salty note, toasted coconut and tangerine. When water is added it really reminded me of Bowmore Gold Reef, just with much less peat. Quite good, but too strong to drink more than an ounce without the addition of water. The mouthfeel is full, oily, thick, mouth coating and a bit dry. The finish is medium long, spicy, fruity and salty-sweet. Much better than the Fire Edition, but still the peat smoke is nowhere near where I would like it. Perhaps it’s just the age of the whisky or the sheer intensity of the fruits overpowering it. The nose does not prepare you for the intensity that is delivered on the palate. Not even close. Personally, I feel cask strength is too much here and taking it down to 48% may have been a better decision. But what do I know? Having seen how pure ex bourbon maturation affects HP, I now know that sherry casks are a necessity. They really add a layer or three of complexity that is lost without them. Like the Fire Edition, this is $300. $200 too much if you ask me. Still, it’s a good scotch and I would take this over the Fire any day. A solid 4. Thanks again @LeeEvolved Cheers

@LeeEvolved was gracious enough to send me several premium samples of Highland Park, and now that the current round of the Scottish Distillery Tour has concluded I figured that this is the perfect time to review them. So this will be part one of a four part HP review. The Fire Edition was fully matured exclusively in ex port casks for 15 years, rather than a port finish that typically only lasts 1-2 years. Bottled at 45.2% ABV, natural color of an amber with a reddish hue, and I have a feeling that it is chill filtered. The nose starts with sweet cinnamon candy. It’s Red Hots all the way, the chewy ones. Spicy oak with fruity port notes. Dark berries, caramel apples, plums, oranges, figs and a very light lemon citrus. Cinnamon chocolate, vanilla, toffee, maple syrup. A light coffee/mocha note. More cinnamon and a soft mint note. You’ll notice I didn’t mention peat or smoke. That’s because there really isn’t any to speak of. I know HP is known for light peating, but this is ridiculous. The palate has a very strange arrival. It’s a strong and distinct flavor that for the life of me I cannot put into words. It’s maddening! Here’s what I can describe. Cinnamon and lots of it. Vanilla, milk chocolate, white chocolate. Slightly bitter red grapes, blueberries, raspberries. Warm oak, toffee and caramel. A touch of pepper and, what’s this...is it smoke? Yes, finally the barest trace of smoke, hidden underneath 8 pounds of cinnamon. Light to medium bodied mouthfeel, oily, creamy and mouth coating. The finish is strange. Some sips it disappears in a flash, other times it lingers for 10 minutes or more. Cinnamon is the predominant note on the finish, but there is also a little mint and a nondescript fruitiness. This is a strange beast to be sure. Normally when you hear port maturation you think super sweet fruits and a thick mouthfeel. This is all cinnamon with the fruits playing second chair French horn. It’s also very non-HP with hardly any peat smoke and none of the tropical fruits I’ve come to expected. It really feels like a Glenmorangie experiment, but one that works fairly well. I like it. Now, is it $300 good? No, certainly not, but it’s still HP and they tend to command these prices lately. This is a 3.5-3.75, but I’m going to round up to 4 because of its uniqueness. Thanks for the sample Lee. Cheers

Stop number 63, and the last official stop for round 4 of the SDT is Balblair. This Highland distillery does not use age statements, but rather vintages. I suppose that way they can sample their casks and determine when they are ready for vatting and not be restricted to set age statement releases. This is the 2nd release of the 1999 vintage, which was bottled in 2014 making it roughly 15 years old. Bottled at 46% ABV, non chill filtered and natural color of yellow gold. The nose starts off with lots of honey. It quickly transitions into apples, pears, tangerines, oranges and apricots. Almonds, ginger and cinnamon. Light chocolate and vanilla. It’s fairly malty with a nice pepper note, and really comes across as an unpeated Talisker. Grape skins and a very light sherry note, buried way down deep. Faint oak and some caramel. The nose, overall, is light. I really wish there was more complexity to it. The palate is very malty with barley sugar and honey. Light sherry sweetness and a little pepper, again mimicking Talisker but without the peat smoke or intense pepper. Tangerines, apricots and oranges. Some brown sugar and caramel. Raisins, mild oak and almonds finish things off. A medium light bodied mouthfeel that starts a little mouthwatering but turns dry. The finish is medium length, dry with tangerines and slightly bitter almonds. After seeing rave reviews from @Telex, @LeeEvolved and @PBMichiganWolverine, I had high hopes for this one, but it seems to fall a little short for me. While I certainly appreciate the likeness to Talisker, I don’t want an unpeated Talisker knockoff. The complexity just wasn’t there for a 15 year old. This is very much like an improved Glenmorangie 10. At more than double the price though, it’s really not worth buying a full bottle. Round 4 was fun, but this Balblair was far from the top of the sample pile, but it was also not at the bottom. Thanks to Telex for the sample, 3.75. Cheers 🥃

I received a few bourbons from John (a fellow Michigander with a love for whisky who is not on this app) in a little trade a few weeks ago. This I. W. Harper 15 year old is the first of them. As all Kentucky straight bourbons are, this is natural color, a nice mahogany. Bottled at 43% ABV and most likely chill filtered. The nose is fairly soft and begins with mint. Oak and soft fruits. Apples and bananas but not much else as far as fruit goes. A light corn sweetness with some caramel and butterscotch. It almost feels like a less sweet Canadian whisky. A little vanilla with cinnamon and some dark chocolate and orange peel. The palate is a bit harsh with an alcoholic twinge. Bitter oak tannins, walnuts and almonds. Cherry syrup, bananas, corn and mint. Honestly I wasn’t able to get much more than that out of it. Maybe some butterscotch. Light bodied mouthfeel that is thin with a light oiliness and on the dry side. Medium length finish, oak, vanilla and slightly metallic. It’s hard to look a gift horse in the mouth, but this was surprisingly bad for a 15 year old bourbon. It’s not without its merits, but at $70 a bottle it’s shortcomings are even more apparent. There’s no real complexity to it. I’m giving this a 2.75 and I think that’s more than fair given the less than stellar quality at a premium price. Cheers

A cold snowy night here in the Metro Detroit area finds me seeking a nice dram to end the evening. A Midwinter Night’s Dram on this mid winter’s night sounds like a perfect match. Thanks to @Scott_E of the SDT group I happen to have a sample. Act 4, scene 1, which comes in at 49.3% ABV, most likely natural color and non chill filtered. The color is a beautiful dark red mahogany, no doubt in part from the port cask finishing. This is a blend of sourced ryes. I won’t go into the composition, frankly because I didn’t bother to look it up. The nose starts with a huge minty dill pickle. Right there is a miss for me, can’t stand dill pickles. Moving on. A good deal of rye spice and some oak, oak that was sanded smooth with stale rye bread. Dill vegetable dip, a touch earthy. Buttery English toffee, caramel and some maple syrup. Very light fruits, apricot pits, subtle cherries. Vanilla finally shows up after a while. At the bottom of the glass I got an unexpected note of overripe mango. I didn’t get the port finish so I decided to add a little water to see if I could coax it out. Sure enough it worked, but it was overshadowed by the strong rye notes. A pink bubblegum note came through as well. The palate starts spicy and sweet. Lots of rye and oak. Like the nose, lots of dill and mint. Buttery toffee, caramel, vanilla and some fruits. Apple skins, pears and cherry cough syrup. Not much else that I could pick out with all that dill in the way until I added a little water. After that I got that same bubblegum note and the elusive port finish. A medium to full bodied mouthfeel, dry but slightly oily. Medium long finish with lots of mint, dill, some of that bubblegum and rye. I really had high hopes for this one after seeing all the praise it gets. Unfortunately the dill notes were just too strong for my liking. I can tell it’s well put together and most would probably love it, but it’s just not my style. Of the ryes I’ve had (and that’s only a handful), this one was probably the heaviest on those dill notes. Glad to have tried it since I’ve had it on my wish list for a while, but now I know not to seek out a full bottle. 3.75, which is still a respectable score in my opinion. Cheers

Stop number 62 on the SDT is Aberlour. There are many expressions from this Speyside distillery, and even though I have a bottle of the 18 in my cabinet, I chose the big daddy of them all to be my first. Each batch of this NAS single malt is matured exclusively in Oloroso sherry casks and bottled at cask strength. This sample is from batch number 46, which comes in at an ample 60.3% ABV. Non chill filtered and natural color of a dark mahogany. Heavy oak and mint were the first notes I picked up on. Initially it come across as more of a well aged bourbon than a scotch. Toffee, brown sugar, caramel and cinnamon. The Oloroso sherry starts to show with heavy chocolate notes and some fruits. Baked apples, pears, raisins and cherries. Slightly earthy with a wisp of smoke, tobacco notes and a touch of anise and ginger. With this being cask strength I had to add some water to see what else it could show me. Basically it brought out more sweetness and less fruits. More toffee, caramel, vanilla and cinnamon. A bit of a mocha/coffee feel with some ripe banana and mixed nuts. Mint and oak come back around as well. Pretty good stuff. At first the palate is warm and welcoming, but after the second sip the ABV reminds you that you are not going to get away with drinking this neat for long. A little water is really all that is needed to fully enjoy this one. Brown sugar apples and pears, plenty of cinnamon, some caramel and toffee. Sherry and maple syrup. Spiced fruitcake, light tobacco, mocha, cherry cordials and cherry cola. Sherried oak and a lot of it. Plenty of spice and heat and some overripe banana. On the first sip I would have called this medium bodied, but after the second one it’s definitely full bodied. Fairly oily, mouthwatering and mouth coating. The finish is long, spicy, oaky, dry with pears and lots of cherries. While it is possible to enjoy this one at cask strength, I wouldn’t recommend it. This is one of the few whiskies, for me anyways, that really improves with the addition of water. It brings out more flavor, but more importantly, it drops the spice level so you can taste it. I preferred the nose without water, but not by much. I believe this batch was purchased for $60, which is a superb value, but current prices put it over $100. To me that seems to be about $20-30 too much. I’d like to try other batches to see how they compare, but I seriously doubt I will ever buy a bottle. A solid 4 and a big thanks to @PBMichiganWolverine for the sample. Cheers 🥃

Stop number 61 on the SDT is Glenglassaugh. This Highland distillery was founded in 1875 and was producing single malts (mostly for blending) for over 100 years until it was mothballed in 1986 during the great whisky recession. It sat dormant until it was sold in 2008. Production resumed and Torfa (Old Norse for turf and turf meaning peat in this case) is one of the first offerings from the newly matured whisky. Torfa is a NAS expression peated to a level of 20ppm and is 100% ex-bourbon matured. It’s bottled at 50% ABV, non chill filtered and natural color of pale straw. The nose is intensely sweet and fruity with a backbone of smoky peat. Peaches and cream and pie crust...basically a peach pie with whipped cream. Apricots, white grape juice, apple juice. Lemon/lime citrus and candied pineapple, pears, oranges and tangerines. Surprisingly I got sunflower seeds/oil. It was brief but there, not something I’ve ever noticed before in a whisky. Pickled ginger, vanilla custard, buttercream frosting. The peat makes itself known here with sweet smoky bacon, brown sugar glazed ham and pan fried whitefish. Olive oil brine and soot. Black licorice candy and after a while some mint. Towards the end it turns grassy with dry hay. Much more complex than I would have guessed. The palate arrives with a burst of sweet peat. Lemon custard, peaches, apricots, pears and apples. Smoked ham, bacon and brisket. Light spice in the way of black pepper, ginger and cinnamon. A bit of vanilla and butterscotch with a hint of golden raisins. A very light oak, almost completely hidden. As @Telex noted, I get black licorice jelly beans. Slightly vegetal/ earthy, like unwashed celery. Peat smoke, not too strong though, but just enough to be really good. Light to medium bodied. Oily, creamy and mouth coating. The finish, unfortunately, is on the short side. Smoky with a general sweetness. I was surprised by the sheer sweetness here, especially considering that it’s all from bourbon casks. Very fruity and quite smoky for being only 20ppm. I suspect we are dealing with refill casks since it is a very light color even at 50% ABV, which would suggest that most of what I am smelling and tasting is distillery character and not casks influence. Still it’s damn good very drinkable at 50%, no water needed. I’d love to try this with a sherry or port finish. I paid $70 for this bottle and it’s right on the edge of worth it/ not worth it, but I say it’s worth a try. A stronger finish would have pushed this to a 4.5, but I’m giving it a 4-4.25. Cheers

Time for another one of the exciting bonus samples from our tour group. An Indian single malt from Amrut where the malt being used is rye instead of the traditional barley. The only other Amrut I’ve had was 10mL of the cask strength greedy angles that was provided by @PBMichiganWolverine (as was this one) and that was superb. Let’s see how this one fares. Bottled at 50% ABV, this NAS expression is non chill filtered and is most likely natural color of a beautiful mahogany. Strong minty oak starts the nose, promising a powerful palate to follow. It’s very rye heavy, as is to be expected from a 100% rye, but it’s also quite fruity. Apples, pears and a little banana. Walnuts, toasted coconut, more oak and barrel char. Vanilla and caramelized brown sugar. New and old leather, cocoa powder and tea, fairly herbal as well. Pink bubblegum towards the bottom of the glass (I’ve found this in many bourbons) with a bit of a pineapple/mango combo. WOW, a hugely powerful arrival. You’d think it was well above 50%. Spicy peppery oak. Rye and warm buttered rye toast. Strong mint and dill with some clove. Mixed nuts, underripe bananas, yellow apples, pears. More rye and oak make their way back around. Tropical fruits appear the more you get accustomed to the intensity. Papaya, mango and guava. Those tropical fruits really help to add complexity to a fairly simple whisky. I say simple, but the sheer power of it really negates that descriptor. A full bodied mouthfeel. HOT, oily, mouthwatering and mouth coating. The finish is medium long with oak, mint, herbal and fruity. This is my second Amrut, and it’s another winner. Far too strong to be a daily sipper, but when the mood hits and you want something with power, or to torture friends expecting something soft, this would be a great choice. Can’t say I’d buy a bottle at $170, but it’s got great character. While it’s not very complex, it’s powerful flavors make up for any shortcomings. 4.25-4.5, but closer to 4.25 I think. Cheers