Highland Park The Light 17 Year

Light peat, quite enjoyable

Selected this to be my whiskey for my wedding!!

Not to bad but a bit head scratching as to why the high price. The Fire and Ice I definitely preferred to this one. The Dark I'll review post this. Lovely white pepper, vanilla, citrus notes going on. Need a bit of water to open up. Nice warming afterglow which lingers but slightly acidic aftertaste comes along for the ride. 3.75.

The nose is just alcohol. The honeyed apricot sweetness is nice. It reminds me of Bushmill's 21 but much stronger. There is a bit of stale bread, bit it isn't too bad. There is a bit of richness hanging out in the back, but it's just enough to make the drink a bit nuttier. There is some spice and the alcohol is a bit noticeable, but the flavor is still good. It's not extraordinarily complex, but it is quite good in terms of general flavor. The individual flavors are great and there is no masking of them in here. The flavors are quite good, but a bit mild and not terribly complex. It's kind of light tasting. It has a some mineral and gross bread mixed with honey, smoke, and some peat. It's actually a good balance that ties some elements that aren't usually all that great together. The complexity is nice and it has a good amount of character. This is the most successful gross bread flavor I've ever encountered. There are hints of pear and orange blossom too that are quite lovely and there is some nice salty sea spray and a surprisingly harsh (but still quite moderate) spice. The spice is more peppery (a mix of white herbalness and black richness) than cinnamony. There is some cask in here, but not a tremendous amount for a 17 year old drink. It sure isn't a wussy drink, despite its mild flavors. Valkyrie would have been a great name for this one. This is really a delightful drink, but it is not mind-blowing and is not worth the high price. For $100, it might be worth buying.

Almost everything that Highland Park does is great. The most northern of Scotland's distilleries are also known for their amazing marketing, and "collections", from the vikings to the smugglers (who were also vikings), this is one of my favorite distilleries. This time i am reviewing Highland Park 17yo The Light, one of a two bottle collection, (the other one is "the Dark") which are inspired in the seasons on Orkney. This one of course represents spring and summer. Bottled at 52.9%abv we can expect lots of flavors. On the nose, it is citric and slightly peaty. Artificial tangerine notes, Artificial orange also. A dim Highland Park traditional peat. Burnt grass. Nice aroma; Lemon and after breathing a slight chocolate note comes up. On the palate it gets very mineral and salty. Coastal, Earthy. Mostly mineral and coastal to reveal a chocolate explosión on the finish. After first two sips vanilla is felt, since your mouth get used to the peatiness and the minerals. Finish is lovely. Chocolate with peat and ashy spiceness. Incredible aftertaste. Burns your lips nicely as any other hp. Overall this is a beautiful dram. A little expensive, but it is a lovely bottle with some nice juice on it. My score for it is 94 over 100.