Highland Park Megasesh Half II

John Scott’s 35 Yr Previous ‘Supreme’ Blended Scotch Whisky (43%, John Scott & Millers, 675 bottles, 2003)
A mix of Highland Park from 1965 and 1968 with some 37 yr previous Invergordon. I do know, you might need questioned what was ‘mistaken’ with the HP, however who is aware of. This was firmly inside the age of innocence. Color: deep mahogany. Nostril: I imply, I do not know what I anticipated. That is beautiful old style sherry. Roasted walnuts, cherry liqueur, Christmas cake drenched in previous Armagnac, rancio, previous leather-based and inexperienced walnut liqueur. There’s additionally some fairly clear Orkney peat sloshing about within the depths, all roots, earth, medicines and dried up darkish fruits. A stunning nostril. Mouth: fairly beautiful on arrival. Pickled dates, rancio, historic balsamic and oloroso. Additionally Maggi, dried seaweed, lemon cough drops, darkish chocolate with sea salt, touches of recreation and historic pinot noir. Outrageously decadent and has deep connotations with some very, very previous Grande Champagne cognacs. I do not actually detect any grain whisky if I am trustworthy. End: lengthy, deeply earthy, completely drying, threads of dry natural peat and nonetheless these splendidly persistent notes of pickled walnut, rancio and inexperienced natural liqueurs. Feedback: was this truly a mix? Did they only… lie? I imply, this was the ‘age of innocence’ in spite of everything. Wonderful ‘previous’ whisky in the easiest sense.
SGP: 563 – 91 factors.

Highland Park 20 yo 2000/2021 (58.1%, Scotch Malt Whisky Society, #4.266 ‘The Darkish Lord Of Stromness’, 1st fill barrel, 202 bottles)
Color: gold. Nostril: somewhat an energetic barrel I might, however glorious so, a number of gorse flower, coconut milk and pure sweetness that goes in the direction of contemporary pineapple, fruit salad juices and heather honey. Certainly, it is a lighter, sweeter and extra playful HP on first impressions. Within the background I discover some coastal flowers, pollens, heather beer and touches of eucalyptus and tiger balm. Elegant and excellent. With water: recollects Euthymol toothpaste, dried flowers, a barely chalkier observe now as properly and touches of sandalwood and mineral oils. Mouth: fairly direct on arrival, break up between candy coconut, flambeed banana, delicate wooden spices, pure tar, new leather-based, mint, eucalyptus, delicate medical embrocations and mead. Certainly, there is a good sense of honey, pollens and wildflowers about it. A really delicate vein of natural peat smoke within the background. With water: caraway, lanolin, tea tree oil, salted almonds and a splendidly natural waxy and honeyed profile rising. A barely extra pronounced peat observe, extra hessian, smoked olive oil, eucalyptus and dried herbs. Getting drier in a somewhat sensible approach now. End: lengthy, natural, barely mentholated, gently coastal, notes of sandalwood and dried flowers. Feedback: I notably take pleasure in the way in which the cask was dominant when neat, however yielded to a splendidly expressive, lighter contact HP profile when decreased. The type of dram you can have a number of enjoyable with for those who’ve a pipette and a few water handy.
SPG: 563 – 89 factors.

Highland Park 14 yo 1991/2006 (55.5%, OB ‘Distinctive Cask’ for Switzerland, cask #4888, sherry)
Color: ruby / mahogany. Nostril: a hug of sherry! Massive, enveloping, darkish sticky fruits, aged Armagnac, stewed prunes, cherry throat sweets, balsamico, dried mint, leather-based and leaf mulch. Feels beautifully pure, clear and contemporary, but in addition extraordinarily dense, sticky and resinous. Takes no prisoners! With water: begins to open now with notes of praline, salted darkish chocolate, fruity black espresso, Maggi and black olive bread with rosemary. Mouth: a robust and direct arrival! Salted liquorice, contemporary espresso, pure tar, dates, damson compote, root beer and pomegranate molasses. Some meaty notes come by means of as properly, high class Iberico and cured recreation meats with a bit very previous pinot noir. With water: pure salted Dutch liquorice now! Natural ointments, cough syrup, lengthy aged mead, aniseed liqueur, pure tar liqueur, maraschino juices and extra impressions of root beer and sarsaparilla. End: lengthy, more and more beefy and gamey, tarry, peppery, seared steak, extra aniseed and liquorice and aged cherry bitter beer. Feedback: fairly bonkers! I believe elements of this are technically not excellent and I’ve in all probability simply been disarmed by the sheer sherried audacity on show. However I am unable to assist however really feel this, with about 20-30 years within the bottle, can be completely beautiful!
SGP: 663 – 90 factors.

Highland Park 9 yo 1988/1998 (59.5%, Scotch Malt Whisky Society, #4.57)
Color: white wine. Nostril: peppery and barely leathery, with some impressions of clotted cream, sourdough starter, breads, ales, chalk and an rising mineral high quality. One in all these drier and straighter HP profiles that makes you consider some bone dry riesling. With water: not a lot distinction, the truth is it maybe loses some definition now. Mouth: younger, gristy, bready, mineral and with touches of baked greens and white flowers. Maybe a contact of cardboard as properly. With water: identical concern as on the nostril, begins to disintegrate barely. Simply feels a bit younger and grizzly actually. End: medium, a bit scorching, some white pepper, some cardboard, plain toast – bit boring actually. Feedback: I might say that just about each single batch of contemporary HP I’ve tried lately from the indies is an enchancment upon this. In all probability simply bottled far too younger.
SGP: 451 – 78 factors.

Highland Park 1984/2004 (57.9%, OB for Germany, cask #45, sherry, 528 bottles)
Color: gentle amber. Nostril: a distinct model of sherry, the truth is it actually does stand out fairly sharply towards these newer examples. That is rather more on citrus rinds, damp cellar earth, flints, minerals and tobacco pouches. Many delicate notes reminiscent of dried mushroom powder, liquid seasonings, crystallised grapefruit, kumquat and even pomegranate. Fairly uncommon in some respects. With water: vase water, white truffle, dried mint, eucalyptus resin and stem ginger. Mouth: somewhat sharp connect on bitter herbs, grasses, walnut oil, cedar wooden, pine resin and cough mixtures. Hessian, leaf mulch and bitter lemon with tonic water. A little bit of an uncommon profile I feel, numerous pink fruity notes that make you consider stuff like Tizer and grenadine. With water: very spicy now! Hessian, chilli powder, liquorice root, aniseed, bitter natural extracts and numerous stuff like soot, cigar ends and wormwood. End: lengthy, tannic, bitter, extra marmalade, natural, sooty, saline and with an enormous, punchy spiciness lingering. Feedback: I truly discover this one somewhat robust, though there’s a number of leisure available and high quality is little question excessive, I am simply unsure I might attain for a second glass too rapidly.
SGP: 473 – 87 factors.

Highland Park 1981/2010 (56%, Mackillop’s Selection, cask #6085)
I bear in mind completely adoring the 1980 43% from Mackillop’s Selection that I drained lately (WF92), let’s examine how this one measures up… Color: gold. Nostril: honeyed sweetness alongside natural cough lozenges, coastal air and really light threads of peat smoke. Fantastically fragrant and intricately natural, additional delicate medicinal notes and issues like wintergreen and tiger balm. Luggage of distillery character and completely enchanting. With water: will get sharper and shows extra pressure, tiny touches of acetic balsamic, mineral salts, leather-based, many extra delicate medicinal vibes and damp hessian fabric. Certainly, with time it appears to simply turn out to be extra ‘dunnagey’. Mouth: oily in texture upon arrival and full on resinous natural peat, salted honey, aged mead, natural cough medicines as soon as once more and issues like fir wooden resins, camphor, wee briny facets and mineral oils. Excellent! With water: excellent now! Splendidly oily and resinous in texture, delicate oily peat smoke, camphor, hessian, pure tar, natural medicines and wee sooty touches. End: lengthy, displaying nice stability between salinity and oiliness, extra herbs, soot, camphor, pickling brine and medicines. Feedback: There are numerous excellent trendy Highland Parks, particularly from the indies. However what units this aside is that you just really feel this whisky has actual soul, an attribute that extends past simply technical high quality. That is fairly totally different from the 1980 we tried, however I am unsure it is any much less of a whisky.
SGP: 663 – 92 factors.

Highland Park 24 yo 1980/2004 (58%, OB for Park Avenue Liquors, cask #7366, sherry butt)
Color: amber. Nostril: a deep and unctuous old style sherry, splendidly textural impressions of leather-based, saltiness, umami paste, recreation meats, pure tar and unique hardwood resins. Massively scented, weighty and very stylish stuff! With time these aromas of recreation meats, treacle and salty darkish chocolate turn out to be extra pronounced and distinctive. Attractive nostril! With water: mint, eucalyptus, menthol tobacco, cherry scented cough medicines, unique hardwood resins and lapsing souchong tea. Retains creating layers of complexity and lots of tiny wee aromas. Mouth: vastly syrupy arrival. Meaty, completely natural, bitter, salty, somewhat a number of salted almonds and toasted walnuts, inexperienced walnut liqueur and pure tar resins. Completely extractive, completely meaty and simply brilliantly textural and fats within the mouth. There’s additionally this undercurrent of natural, resinous peat and syrupy medicines which is textbook old style Highland Park. With water: excellent! We could must name the anti-maltoporn brigade (it has been some time, have they modified numbers?), an ideal collision of bitterness, umami, salinity and beautiful flavours of meats, walnuts, coffees, sweets and spices. End: lengthy, natural, completely bitter, saline, spicy, salted Dutch liquorice, pure tar, natural medicines and extra of this resinous HP peat flavour. Feedback: 1980 appears to be some type of borderline classic for Highland Park, not too positive later vintages had been typically this luminous or displayed fairly the identical peat flavour / profile. Anyway, this was a completely sensible cask. Cannot wait to return to New York and purchase a bottle from the great people at Park Avenue Liquors… 
SGP: 563 – 92 factors.

I really feel we have to be approaching our 600th Highland Park nearly now, so let’s make it one thing very cool and somewhat particular. How about both of those very early SMWS bottlings…

Highland Park 1979/1991 (55.2%, Scotch Malt Whisky Society, #4.10)
Color: ruby mahogany. Nostril: as they are saying in Alsace: YOWZERS! Severe, old style, deeply fragrant and scented sherry. Unctuous, dripping with rancio, pure tar, walnut liqueur, Irish espresso and even many crystallised unique fruits. And naturally the standard abundance of sultanas, figs, prunes and raisins as properly. What’s simply fantastic is that this simultaneous rustic facet that makes you consider some wild and sensible previous Armagnacs. We might very properly already be hopelessly misplaced in maltoporn territory! With water: not an enormous change with water, besides that it maybe turns into barely extra fragrant, just a few additional spices right here, just a few additional fruits there. However that is nonetheless a wall of rancio and deeply concentrated sticky darkness. Mouth: completely thick, stodgy, darkish sherry that behaves like a mixture of pure tar extract and molasses in your mouth. Gorgeous rancio, natural and walnut liqueurs, Maggi, umami paste, black olives and aged cherry bitter ale. Simply excellent! With water: developed extra medicines, extra elegantly tannic black teas, extra earth, dates, damson protect, tar, treacle and extra bitter natural liqueurs. End: lengthy, completely bitter, nearly sticky in texture, endlessly on rancio, tar, roasted nuts, molasses, concentrated darkish fruits and extra of those fantastic historic armagnac vibes. Feedback: The early days of the SMWS might in all probability be outlined as an ocean of tooth-dissolving petrol, dotted with small archipelagos of among the most unctuous and gorgeously darkish sherried drams ever to grace glass. That is very foolish whisky.
SGP: 763 – 93 factors.

Highland Park 1974/1984 (60.2%, Scotch Malt Whisky Society, # 4.1)
Talking of petrol… Critically although, it’s at all times a complete thrill to have the ability to attempt these very early drams from SMWS. Color: white wine. Nostril: youthful, pure and actually somewhat peaty. It’s certainly somewhat petrolic, with a number of brine, seawater, antiseptic, malt vinegar and medicines. There’s additionally this impression of oiliness and textural weight concerning the distillate. Fairly excellent! With water: opens up on an entire spectrum of assorted peat and medication aromas. Bandages, gauze, mouthwash, aspirin, bonfire embers, tar, seawater and mercurochrome. Mouth: purity is the phrase! Large arrival, all on white scorching peat embers, pure tar extracts, seawater, pink grapefruit, preserved lemons, lanolin and natural cough medicines. Uncooked, bare and sensible distillate; naked bones Highland Park in all its glory. With water: chunky, chewy uncooked peat. Camphor, tar, iodine, TCP and creosote. Additionally brilliantly oily in texture. End: lengthy, smoked olive oil, tar, pickling brine, camphor and hessian once more. Additionally these natural qualities within the aftertaste that appear at all times to be a trademark of older model HP. Feedback: a terrific demonstration of the foundational brilliance of Highland Park’s distillate throughout this period. Undecided all batches had been this peaty, but it surely’s fairly clear why so many of those older sherry casks developed into such whole gems when this was the juice that was underpinning them. As soon as once more, the flavour and profile of the peat feels fairly distinct from different distilleries of this period.
SGP: 366 – 92 factors.

Highland Park 34 yo 1973/2008 (49.6%, OB for German Orkney Journey Tour, 42 bottles)
This cask seems to have been break up, with the bigger half being bottled as a 35 yr previous for one thing referred to as ‘The Nuance Group’. Who’s the Nuance Group and the place are they now? Guys, that is 2021, if ever the world wanted some extra nuance… Color: gold. Nostril: deeply honeyed and resinous at first, with many notes of wax polish, sea salt, crystallised inexperienced and unique fruits, torches of yellow natural liqueurs, tiny sooty inflections and issues like sandalwood and mineral oils. Mouth: a somewhat shiny sheen of honeys and minerals on arrival. Softer salty issues like dried seaweed, seawater after which properly sharp notes of pink grapefruit and preserved lemon. Splendidly contemporary and with glorious complexity. These resinous natural and crystallised fruit qualities persist as properly. The important thing impression is one in all freshness and what I can solely describe as an ‘aged coastal’ theme. Over time it turns into splendidly natural and delicately medicinal, the sensation of peat flavour dissipating and sub-dividing superbly with age. End: lengthy, tense, leathery, mineral, salty and resinously natural and fruity. Feedback: textbook and glorious absolutely mature early 70s Highland Park I might say. The type of whisky that you can quaff till the curtains come down on this foolish Universe.
SGP: 563 – 91 factors.

Highland Park 39 yo 1967/2006 (57.6%, OB for Saybrex Worldwide, 200 bottles)
Needs to be good. Color: vivid gold. Nostril: that is simply 100 yr previous yellow Chartreuse. Critically, it is natural wine matured for many years in glass. Pure sugars, roots, herbs, wormwood, verbena and lemon cough medicines. Astonishingly singular and exact on this model. With time it opens up a bit extra in the direction of these extraordinarily pale and ethereal peat tones, dried out and pale previous medicines and ointments, the faintest rooty and dried out peat smoke. Embrocations, mineral salts, previous leather-based and dried heather flowers. Honey with sea salt. Completely beautiful. With water: turns into astonishingly aromatic, an entire meadow of dried flowers, dusty pollens, waxes, dried herbs. But in addition these beautifully resinous notes, flower honey with sea salt, coastal air and ozone. Mouth: an astonishing fusion of historic natural liqueurs, very previous peat, crystallised unique fruits, citrus fruits, seawater, sandalwood. Simply name the anti-maltoporn brigade please, inform them it is pressing! I am nearly loth to place water in it as a result of that is simply so fucking scrumptious! With water: finest not mentioned. End: infinite, pure, salty, peaty, coastal, waxy and ideal! Feedback: completely beautiful. Because of this we’re into whisky, and particularly why we’re into Highland Park!
SGP: 664 – 94 factors.