Highland Park Cask Strength Release No. 2

Release No. 2. 63.9%. N: Honey, caramel, flowers, dried vegetation, heather, earth, petrichor, vanilla, cherry, fruity coffee (high end), unlit cigarettes (also high end), tobacco smoke, pears and other orchard fruit, dash of mint and menthol, some fresh herbs. Endless. P: Sweet honey, caramel, vanilla, tropical flowers, dried heather, earth, dried fruit, cooked pineapple, mint, citrus, dark chocolate, sea salt and brine, seafood cooked with sweet fruit, some mineral notes, copper. Again, endless. F: Honey, dried heather, dried flowers, dried firewood, oak, menthol, petrichor, smoke from a seaside fire, earth, pine, tobacco smoke, dark chocolate, chocolate mints, long lingering dried leaves, more seaside bonfire smoke, cigar smoke, Milk Duds candy, maybe some almond... I'm digging now, but I think there are still further treasures to find. This is an incredible Scotch. For my palate, it is one of the greatest, most complicated, most interesting things I've ever tasted, of any sort, alcohol or otherwise. I'm qualifying that ("for my palate") because 1) it doesn't make a ton of sense as an NAS CS blend and 2) people I respect have written less glowing reviews of this particular release. But I am three quarters through this bottle and have treasured every sip like almost no other whiskies I've tasted. My best explanation for this starts here: I firmly believe that taste is highly subjective, and a big part of what forms that subjectivity is genetics (which, I suppose, is ironically not really subjective, but it's a case of objective genetics creating subjective experiences - leave me alone). I think where your family is from, over generations, absolutely shapes the flavors you experience most intensely, most intimately, and that you most gravitate toward. I've read lightly on the subject and it seems science doesn't disagree with me (take that with a grain of salt - I do), but anecdotally, I point to my girlfriend: she is Armenian (born there, emigrated later) and, obviously, gravitates toward food from that part of the world - boiled cow hoof soup is a much loved traditional once/twice a year meal.* She also dislikes, or even outright hates, things like pasta and rice that are not nearly the staples in that part of the world that they are elsewhere. I could go much deeper on this subject, but, take my word for it, we rarely completely agree on what food is "good." Back to the whisky: my family is 99.8% (very high proof!) Scandinavian, coming from two families with deep ties to Norway and Finland. It would not surprise me to find out that my ancestors raped and pillaged Orkney at some point. You can basically blame me for all the Viking shit HP has thrown out over the last decade or so. (And obviously, I love it, despite my best intent.) So, you know, my genetics probably predispose me to love this whisky. That's my best guess as to why I think this is practically the best thing I've ever tasted while others think it's, you know, okay, or even pretty good. All that said, I'm not tempering my rating here. Despite acknowledging that others will certainly disagree, I love this whisky and will be very sad when it's all gone. (And yes, I plan to stash at least a few bottles of this while I still can.) And I hope you all find the bottle that does the same for you, no matter what I or anyone else thinks of it. *Khash is supposedly a hangover cure, but has to be boiled for hours in advance, and then is served usually at 7am with copious shots of vodka. So basically you have to plan to be hungover, have someone else cook it for you, and then plan to do nothing else the rest of the day. And it's very much an acquired taste. ____________ Please come join an unofficial Distiller community on Discord (now one whole year old!): https://discord.gg/VSmCvzAQfH. We chat spirits (and other things) in real time while being a great resource to each other for recommendations, finding deals, and generally enjoying the journey together. (If the link is expired (it shouldn't be), please post a comment and I will gladly provide a new one.)

This one took me awhile to warm up to. Bottle is 3/4 full, open 6 months +/-. Nose: French vanilla, slightly burnt buttered popcorn, straw, dried apricots, graham cracker and light baking spices. Palate: Rich, viscous, coating, vanilla, baking spices, smoke notes and heat, the longer held, the hotter it gets. Finish: Sryupy, sticky, numbing. Maybe this could be a good substitute for Novocain if you are going to have dental work done. To quote Pink Floyd, “ I have become comfortably numb. “

NOSE Butterscotch, malt, dried fruit, leather, vanilla, graham cracker, ash and baking spice. A nice aroma that blows the current 12 out of the water. PALATE Inky smoke, oak, butterscotch, toasted bread, malt, cocoa and Nilla wafers. A lovely warm taste that gets a tad more candy-sweet with water. FINISH Long -> Graham, ash, dried fruit and caramel.

Pastries and oranges. And it burnss. Cheers to Sam

Vanilla, butter, nuttiness, sherry, light smoke and salinity in the background, citrus, lemon. Alcohol burn is almost out of balance, but very enjoyable.