Highland Park 2003, 16yo TWE exclusive

When i buy whisky samples i tried to make the most of it. I often buy samples of limited expressions, and one of such cases was this Highland Park 2003 vintage, 16yo, matured in an european sherry butt No. 1885. It was bottled at 58.9% with a lovely Reddish dark blood color, exclusively made for the online retailers "The Whisky Exchange". On the nose, it is really complex. Coffee beans and a strawberry juice are the first notes i got. Hazelnut, milk chocolate and the most amazing Tiramisu dessert note i have ever got since the Glenmorangir Signet. The tiramisú milk cream is there. After a first sip, the red fruits have taken over.  A "Crunch" chocolate bar. There is this amazing maraschino cherry aroma with a hint of pepper that has appeared. Wonderful. The aroma is full of chocolate and cherries. On the palate: Wow this is a bomb. Starts with a powerful red fruitiness. Winey. Nuclear Pepper. There is some acidity to it. A third sip clarified things. Chocolate, acid prunes and ginger. Aftertaste is good. Sulphur and salt. Some chocolate notes, very appealing. Red wine. Tobacco. Not a hint of smoke, nor that heathery peat from Highland Park. It is like hard mint candy. This one is on the sweeter side, almost not peaty. Hints of an earthy flavor. It is very dry, a little grassy too. Overall, It doesn't feel as a Highland Park. It is more like an Edradour; actually if i had been on a blind tasting, Edradour would have been my guess for this dram. It is a very good whisky, but it is also a little rough. I love Cask Strenght single malts, but Highland Parks at high strength have never been my cup of tea, even if this one doesn't taste at all as a HP. My score for it is a solid, well deserved 89 over 100.