Kategoriarkiv: Islands

Highland Park, Islands

Caol Ila 11 YO (The Maltman)

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ABV: 54.4 %
Origin: Islay
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and peaty. At first there’s an ashy peat with notes of hay and wet dirt. There’s a big sweetness with vanilla, honey and mixed red berries. They are somewhat subdued at first but gets a bit more bold as time goes by. A black liquorice note is found somewhere in the back. The oak is detectable as a top note. The ashy note is in charge but the whole feels balanced and there’s no sharp edges. This is a nice nose with a lot of the house style shining through.

Mouth: It starts out with a generic sweetness and then a mild spicyness spreads out evenly throughout the palate. There’s a bitter tang in the back and it’s a dark chocolate bitterness. A lot of hay and earthy notes is found within the center part. The berries are now much darker and hides along the edges and mixes with the dark chocolate note in the back. The oakiness is still in there and gives it a nice extra dimension. The sweetness eventually switches to a butterscotch note in the center. It’s doesn’t feel as balanced as on the nose.

Finish: The spicyness increases slowly and gives it a nice power-up at the beginning of the transition. The oakiness comes early and fills an outside layer together with the hay and the ashy note, which now has returned. The dark chocolate note is still sitting in the back. After a while the ashy note once again takes over and spreads out over the palate. The fruitiness gets lost in everything else and almost disappears throughout the finish. This is a good whisky with a nice mix of grown-up flavours. It’s got a quite demanding flavour profile but that’s not a bad thing.

Additional information
This whisky was aged in a sherry butt between 2009-2021. This is cask no. 322973 and it’s limited to 493 bottles.

Islands, Ledaig

Ledaig Sinclair Series – Rioja Cask Finish

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ABV: 46.3 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is ripe fruits and peat. At first there’s a vegetal peat, with notes of heather and minerals, sitting on top of a dark ripe fruitiness and a gritty sulfury note. There’s also a minty overtone contrasting the dark and peaty character. With time the whole becomes a bit fresher and fruitier while the peatiness remains intact. When it settles there are notes of sugered rapsberries comin through. It also becomes somewhat sweeter over time. This is a fantastic nose with a nice balance between different sensations.

Mouth: It starts out with a quite sour lemon note in the back and a slightly dusty sweetness up front. It takes a couple of seconds before the peatiness shows up towards the edges and slowly moving inwards. It feels young and fresh at heart, but the ripe berries and the dusty sweetness creates what feels like a fake sense of age. It’s still feels mineral rich but it’s not as vegetal as on the nose. There’s a nice spicyness on top giving it a nice power-up. A slight coffee bitterness shows up in the back for those who wait.

Finish: The impact is immidiate and a sweet and somewhat fresher berry note, mixed with vanilla and sulfur, pushes through in the center. The peat and the ABV spicyness is detached and sits out on the edges. It still feels a bit dusty and there’s a bit of complexity within, but everything feels a bit detached in the finish. The oakiness comes through very late and it’s a very laid back and gentle oakiness which does its job but comes through as a bit lackluster. This is a very good whisky with a fantastic nose. It seems to deteriorate the further down the journey it comes.

Additional information
This no age statement whisky is the first release in the Sinclair Series. It’s aged in ex-bourbon barrels and then finished in spanish ex-Rioja red wine casks. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.

Islands, Ledaig, Tobermory

Ledaig 10 YO

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ABV: 46.3 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 5/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is vegetal and peaty. At first there’s a big vegetal and hebaceous peatiness with a medicinal and ashy background. There’s heather and iodine and also a thin menthol layer on top of everything else. The background is quite gritty and complex with a rubber note somewhere within. With time in the glass vanilla and honey start to emerge and makes the whole very approachable. There’s also a hint of green apples peeking through. This is a fantastic nose with a great array of flavours.

Mouth: It starts out with a slightly bitter background surrounding a very medicinal peat note. It’s not as vegetal as on the nose and it packs a nice punch from the get-go. The vanilla and honey are now out on the edges as well as the green apples but they play second fiddle to the rowdy and gritty flavours. The rubber note is still in the as well as the ashy notes. It mirrors the nose very well and it’s constantly evolving without changing the theme.

Finish: The finish starts out with a big push of heather, vanilla and honey. After a few seconds they once again get pushed back by the medicinal peat and the gritty background, which now has moved forward a bit. When everything settles the heather stays together with the medicinal peat and dry oakiness. It sort of feels like saw dust; Fresh yet dusty. This is a fantastic whisky which isn’t for the feint hearted. It’s very rowdy, yet it presents itself as sweet and flowery.

Additional information
This is made by the Tobermory Distillery. It’s not stated, but suggested that it’s aged in ex-bourbon barrels. The peat level i 37 ppm. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.

Highland Park, Islands

Highland Park Cask Strength Edition Batch 4

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ABV: 60.8 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
(from Batch 2. Notes will be revised)
Nose: This is sort of laid back and sweet. There is an ABV spicyness coming through but it’s not invasive. There’s honey and vanilla together with a red fruitiness but the whole thing isn’t jumping out of the glass. There’s a subjective note of how a closet full of old clothes smell. The core flavours tend to move forward over time in the glass with red berries and dark dried fruits. It opens up and improves substantially with time.

Mouth: It starts out sweet and quite ABV spicy. A lemon note flies by before the red berries and dark fruits show up. There’s liqueur-soaked cherries and raisins. There’s a dusty note and just a thin leather note. The cask influence is sort of limited and it’s not a complex dram, but flavourful nontheless.

Finish: The high ABV shoots off a peppery spicyness before the sherry influence and a honey sweetness comes through. Vanilla is residing in the background together with some raisins and there’s not much of an oakiness, just a touch in the end. It comes through together with the thin leather note. There’s no astringency and basically no bitterness. A small chalk note comes through late in the finish.

Additional information
This expression was first released in 2013 as an exclusive for the swedish market. It’s aged in european ex-sherry casks for an undisclosed amount of time.

Highland Park, Islands

Highland Park 1998

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and floral. At first there’s a sweet mix of honey, vanilla and heather coming through from the center and a very mild whiff of peat and tobacco slowly rising up towards the edges. It takes a few seconds for them to meet up to create a whole. When they do the floral notes are pushed forwards together with a fresh fruitiness. The sweet layer moves slightly backwards and gets a butterscotch note added within. There’s also a menthol layer hovering above everything else. This is a very nice nose and it’s shaped like a cone; With a wide sweet bottom and a fresh pointy top.

Mouth: It starts out with a thick layer with everything mixed in. There are notes of heather, assorted tropical fruits, tobacco, peat, honey and vanilla. There’s even a fresh saw dust oakiness and they’re all coming through at once. After a few seconds it starts to once again create the same cone as on the nose with the fruitiness and heather up front and the sweetness in the back. The tobacco and peat smoke is a bit heavier in taste than on the nose. The oakiness is floating around outside of the cone.

Finish: The menthol returns for a quick visit but it’s soon pierced by the fresh tropical fruitiness and the floral notes. The oakiness is still very fresh with plenty of wood spices and it’s creating a woody scenery in the background. There’s also a hint of ripe fruits somewhere in the middle but maybe it’s the tobacco notes and the peat creating an illusion. This is a very good whisky despite its low ABV. It’s a bit mild and a bit too oaky, but it never feels flat and/or over-oaked.

Additional information
The Highland Park 1998 was bottled in 2016 so it’s a 12 YO expression. It’s a travel retail exclusive which focuses on maturation in first fill ex-american bourbon barrels.

Arran Malt, Islands

The Arran Malt 18 YO

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 5/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and lemon fresh. There’s a very nice and thick layer of vanilla, caramel, honey and sweet liquorice and it’s intertwined with lemons and oranges. A hint of fresh oak comes through from the back together with a sprinkle of sea salt. There’s a white chocolate note appearing after some time in the glass. This is very rich and full bodied.

Mouth: A squeeze of lemon passes by before a black pepper spicyness takes over. It’s not as sweet as on the nose but it’s still very rich. The lemon note comes back together with malt, sweet liquorice and some caramel. It comes off as a bit dry and dusty. The lemon note is now leaning more towards the zest with a bitter tang to it. The oranges are gone. In the background a hint of the oak is coming through together with white chocolate.

Finish: At first, black pepper and lemon is creating a cloud that takes up the entire space. It takes a second or two before the other flavours make themselves known. There are vanilla, honey and caramel notes as well as an oakiness building up. It’s a very nice fresh oakiness with a hint of hazelnuts and a hint of chalk. In the late finish it finally shows some age with a row of dusty old books. This is an extremely well made and very tasty whisky.

Additional information
This is part of The Arran Malt’s core range and it’s aged in both american ex-bourbon barrels and european ex-sherry casks. It’s unchillfiltered and has natural colour.

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Islands, Jura

Jura Prophecy

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ABV: 46 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 2
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and peaty. At first there’s a leathery and slightly ashy peat dominating the palate. It’s quite rowdy but it doesn’t feel protruding or sharp. There’s a vanilla and honey sweetness which slowly becomes noticable. The same goes for a soft and mild, slightly ripe, red berry fruitiness. When it settles there’s a dry soil earthiness floating around somewhere within. There’s also a sweet liquorice note coming through towards the edges. This is a rich and full flavoured nose which has a lot to offer.

Mouth: It starts out with a hit of the dry soil peatiness with a peppery spicyness on top. The sweetness is still in there but it’s not as sweet as on the nose. The sweetness eventually creates a butterscotch layer on the edges. After a few seconds the leather note appears as well as a sulfuric background note. There are ripe red berries up front and a thin sour lemon note in the back. The whole is slightly astringent and sort of hard to reach with a rock-like minerality to it.

Finish: The minerality and the dry soil never budges through the transition. The other flavours take a slight dip before returning. The peatiness has become a bit more herbaceous at this point and the fruitiness is residing a long way back on the palate. This gives the oakiness room to be noticed and it brings a fantastic hazelnuts and old oak combination. The oakiness is joined by the peat a long way down the line and the late finish is the best part of the journey. This is a really good whisky with a not so commersial composition. This makes it stand out in a very good way.

Additional information
The Prophecy is aged ex-bourbon, ex-sherry and limousin oak. The whisky is unchillfiltered and more peated than other Juras.

Islands, Jura

Jura 10 YO – Origin

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is vanilla sweetness and ripe fruits. At first there’s a mix of ripe red apples and dark red berries with a honey and vanilla sweetness on top. There are floral notes floating around as well as a cinnamon note. The whole thing is very centered and it feels like there are flavours missing around the edges. The vanilla note moves forward with time and there’s a gritty complexity which kind of builds up in the background but never seems to spread out. This is a straight forward and pleasant nose, which really benefits from time in the glass.

Mouth: It starts out with a somewhat thick layer of honey. After a few seconds the fruitiness breaks through and it’s still ripe apples and berries. The vanilla is still in there and there’s a thin smoky note floating around as well. It feels a bit narrow and it still refuses to spread out over the palate. After a while the honey and vanilla becomes a toffee note. There’s a tiny hint of tropical fruits coming through from the back but it’s very subdued and miniscule.

Finish: A fresher tropical fruitiness pushes through in the start of the transition but it’s soon covered by the honey and vanilla sweetness. It takes a couple of seconds before the sweetness start to break down and for the tropical fruitiness return. It now sits together with a very nice and nutty oakiness. It’s mainly hazelnuts but there’s a mixed nuts quality to it. The late finish is by far the best part of the journey. This is a decent whisky which suffers from being to mild and quite narrow on the palate.

Additional information
This Jura 10 YO is matured in ex-bourbon american oak barrels for the entire aging period. It’s now discontinued.

Highland Park, Islands

Highland Park Einar

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. At first there’s a sweet round layer of honey and vanilla surrounding a core of fresh red berries. Underneath a mild and herbaceous peatiness creates a backdrop. There’s also a fresh peach and sour lemon freshness somewhere within. Cinnamon, oak and black liquorice are all in there as well. It becomes sweeter over time. This is a good nose but it feels a bit thin and shallow with the peatiness not really connecting to the other flavours.

Mouth: It starts out a bit flat, but soon there’s a honey and butterscotch note arriving together with a leathery and smoky peatiness and a mild black pepper spicyness. The fruitiness is sent to the back and the liquorice and honey notes are up front. There’s a nice gritty background flavour with oak, rubber and a hint of sulfur. This creates a much needed layer of complexity. The fruitiness comes back together with vanilla notes after a while.

Finish: The black pepper returns in small sprinkles as the finish starts with an otherwise flat array of sweetness and mild peat. There are still red berries within but they are now darker. There are raisins and overripe plums peeking through. The gritty background notes return and they stay behind together with vanilla and butterscotch when the oakiness starts to build up. The oakiness is a nice mix of fresh and dry oak and it’s got a nice spicy character. There’s also a small nutty side to it. This is a very good whisky but it really lacks some power.

Additional information
The Highland Park Einar was released as a travel retail exclusive in 2011. The ppm is 20 and it’s aged in both american and european Oloroso sherry seasoned oak casks. It has natural colour.

Highland Park, Islands

Highland Park 16 YO – Wings of the Eagle

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ABV: 44,5 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is mixed fruits and mild peat. At first there’s a heavy hit of mixed tropical fruits and red berries. Underneath lies a dark and slightly dirty baseline with raisins, a hint of sulfur and a very laid back aromatic tobacco peatiness. With time in the glass there’s oranges and nectarines coming through within the fruitiness. There’s also an outer layer of vanilla and oak which sort of clings to the edges of the glass. This is a very pleasant and welcoming nose without it being easy or boring.

Mouth: It starts out by filling the outer edges with a tobacco and leather peatiness. After a second of two there’s a dark sherry fruitiness filling up the center part of the palate with overripe plums, raisins and a dash of coffee liqueuer. The peatiness works it way closer to the center over time. It’s very rich in both taste and texture with an oily feel to it. For those who wait there’s a very pleasant vanilla oakiness joining the peat around the edges. The peat increases in intensity over time.

Finish: It starts out with a fresh peppermint gently sweeping through before a fresh tropical fruitiness arrives. The dark fruity sherry notes also return but are restricted to the background together with the peatiness, a hint of sulfur and black coffee. It stays like this for a good while and the oakiness comes through fashionably late. The oakiness is a nice mix of bitter notes and sweeter fresher vanilla ones. There’s a hint of walnuts, orange peel and coffee. This is a great whisky which offers flavours from contrasting sides and making them work together.

Additional information
This 16 YO was released in 2018 as a travel retail exclusive. It’s aged in a mix of sherry-seasoned european and american oak casks with an emphasis on the european casks. It has natural colour.

Islands, Jura

Jura 16 YO – Diurachs’ Own

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 1
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is dark fruits and honey sweetness. At first there’s a center note of dark ripe berries and sulfur surrounded by a thick honey and toffee sweetness. Everything seem to be covered in a thin hazy smoke but it’s not a peaty smokiness. The sherry fruitiness feels a bit dirty and unrefined which is a good thing and that creates depth and complexity. The whole thing turns darker with time but somewhere in the background there’s a brighter red apple and citrus fruitiness peeking through. There’s also some baking spices creating a nice and warm experience. This is a very nice nose with a lot of layers.

Mouth: It starts out a bit flat with a vanilla and honey sweetness coating the mouth. After a few seconds the sherry fruitiness, now more leaning towards mixed dried fruits, and the sulfur note returns. An orange peel and coffee bitterness create a nice backdrop but the whole is not as rich and inviting as the nose suggests. There is a dry spicyness slowly arising but it falls short of being interesting or contributing to the sensations. A very thin aura of oak is slowly forming at this point, but it sort of hides within the bitterness in the back.

Finish: The orange peel and coffee bitterness quickly moves up front together with a sprinkle of cinnamon. The fresh and dried fruits make their way towards the edges and gently disappears. A small rise in sweetness occur shortly after. Then most flavours die down and leaves room for a fairly bitter oakiness. The coffee notes stay within the oak, otherwise it’s less than interesting but does the job competently. The finish isn’t very long and after a few sips it grows a bit astringent. This is a good whisky with nice flavours but it’s a but mild and muted overall. The nose is by far the best part of the journey.

Additional information
This whisky is maturated for 14 years in traditional american white oak casks and is then transferred to ex-sherry (Amoroso Oloroso) casks where it matures for at least another 2 years.

Islands, Jura

Jura Superstition

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ABV: 43 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in Collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is fruity with a bitter tang. Up front there are oranges and grapefruits mixed with butterscotch and vanilla. In the back there are coastal notes like a salty ocean spray and a hint of seaweed. A thin veil of peatiness rests all over the other flavours adding an extra layer. The peat comes through as new leather. The whole thing is quite mild but all-in-all pretty well balanced.

Mouth: It starts out with some bitter notes surrounding the palate before the oranges and the grapefruits come through. The butterscotch and the vanilla comes through together with the soft leather note from the peatiness. Dark syryp is creating a small sweetness. There’s a tiny bit of spicyness but it lacks some power. It mirrors the nose very well and it’s quite dry from the start.

Finish: The fruitiness moves from the citrus fruits towards assorted tropical fruits. It’s still quite bitter, but in a well balanced bitterness. The butterscotch and vanilla is now residing in the back and the veil of peat is completely gone. When the oakiness arrives it really punches through and leaves most of the other flavours behind. It’s a very nice oakiness with hazelnuts and cacao. It’s nice dram but it lacks some intensity.

Additional information
This whisky is made from both peated and unpeated malt. It’s aged between 13-21 years in american ex-bourbon oak barrels. It was discontinued in april 2018.

Islands, Scapa

Scapa Skiren

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is fruity and floral. At first there’s a floral note sitting on top of a cola and honey layer. Somewhere in between there’s a hint of cherries and mild ginger. In the background there is an earthy soil note which gives the whole thing a dry character. With time it becomes sweeter and the honey note is increasingly getting stronger and eventually joined by a vanilla creaminess. This is a nice and pleasant nose.

Mouth: It starts out mild without giving anything away. The first thing to come through is the honey and vanilla cream sweetness. It takes a while for the fruity and floral side to arrive. It’s quite savory and the fruitiness is more leaning towards apples and a hint of coconut. The mild ginger and the cola note are now in the background but they are still detectable. A hint of citrus fruits is also in there. The oakiness do peek through, but it takes some time.

Finish: A mild spicyness and a sour note is first to arrive. After a second or two the ginger and the cola note start to build up and they stay in the mouth for a long time. They are eventually joined by a pretty anonymous oakiness. There is a slight nuttiness, but the cola note is sort of surpressing it. The fruitiness and the floral notes are almost completely invisible. After a few sips there is a small build up of a greasy oily note in the back, which gives it an extra dimension. This is an nice whisky with some good notes in there, but it lacks some complexity.

Additional information
Scapa Skiren was released in september 2015. It’s aged in first fill american ex-bourbon barrels for an undisclosed amount of time.

Islands, Talisker

Talisker 18 YO

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ABV: 45.8 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 5/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is mellow peat and fresh fruits. At first, there’s an array of fruits sitting inside a circle of gentle peat. It’s oranges and grapefruits side by side with ripe apples, dried apricots and just a hint of overripe plums. The peatiness is a warm, burning bonfire, but it’s out in the distance and not very protruding. The whole thing is kept together with vanilla and oak. With time in the glass it gets fruitier. There is a coastal, salty note but it’s buried deep within. It feels a bit fresher than its age and it’s a very nice, complex nose.

Mouth: It starts out quite mild and sweet but after a few seconds the flavours start rushing in. The fruitiness is now leaning heavily towards grapefruits and dried apricots with just a hint of raisins. The peat is creating a thin oily outside layer. In the dead center there’s a dusty oak note. It’s spicy but it’s a slow build up, which makes it easy to handle throughout. The oakiness seems to be connected to a malty beer note. It becomes sweeter and with time in the glass brings a honey note aswell.

Finish: It starts out quite spicy with a nice transition of flavours from before. It’s still grapefruits and apricots with a hint of darker notes and the peat is still creating the oily outside layer. The coastal note becomes more clear in the late finish, as well as the dusty oakiness, which fits nicely together with the bitterness coming from the grapefruits. The malty beer returns in the late finish as a nice little surprise. The late finish leaves a hint of peat and lemons. This is a complex dram with a lot to offer.

Additional information
The Talisker 18 YO is aged in both american ex-bourbon barrels and european ex-sherry casks. There not much information other than that to be found.

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Highland Park, Islands

Highland Park Leif Eriksson Release – Limited Edition

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ABV: 40 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is sweet and fruity. At first there’s a thick layer of liqueur soaked cherries, raisins and ripe red apples. In the back there are notes of rye, vanilla and toasted almonds. After a few seconds a brighter layer of green fruits appear and sort of rests on top of the sweeter, darker base. There’s also milk chocolate present somewhere in the middle. It’s very mild and very approachable.

Mouth: It’s a very watery start and it takes a while before a gentle black pepper spicyness and some vanilla notes finally show up. It feels a bit underaged and it’s not as fruity and pleasant as on the nose. Gets a little dry when hints of the oak arrives together with and a tiny leather peatiness. There are small notes of green apples and pears and a small pinch of salt. It feels a bit muted overall.

Finish: The mild black pepper, which is quite nice, is dominating the first part of the finish. A small bitterness sits behind with some assorted fruits and a small hint of dry earthy peatiness. The whole thing moves quite quickly towards a bright, very welcoming oakiness. The toasted almonds return and some salted caramel suddenly show up in the late finish. It then ends with a dry, nutty finish. This really lacks some power, but it’s a very easy whisky to get aquainted with.

Additional information
The Leif Eriksson was released in 2011 as a travel retail exclusive. It’s aged in a combination of american ex-bourbon barrels and ex-sherry casks made from american oak.

Highland Park, Islands

Highland Park 18 YO

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ABV: 43 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 5/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is dark fruits and leather. Ripe plums, raisins and liquorice comes through as a thick layer sitting on top of notes of new leather and dry garden soil. The whole thing is salty and a savory note can be found in the middle of it all. A small veil of mentholated tobacco hovers like a cloud above everything else. After a while coffee and sweet oranges appear. This is quite complex and has great depth.

Mouth: It’s a mild and fresh lemon/orange based start. It’s salty, yet very fruity and much brighter than on the nose. Dried fruits such as a mix of raisins, coconut and pineapples are in there, but also darker fruit flavours such as ripe red apples and plums. It’s very juicy. A small hint of dust and a complex note coming from the long maturation creates a nice depth. Far away in the back there’s a maritime feel to it.

Finish: The leather and tobacco notes coming from the peat is first, then soil and a mix of fresh and darker fruits. A small bitterness comes through before the oakiness arrives. It comes with notes of coffee and walnuts. The sherry notes and the leather stick around and together with the oak they stay for a long very nice finish. After a few sips a tropical fruitiness starts to appear in the finish. The finish also has the aura of the long maturation. This is an excellent whisky.

Additional information
The Highland Park 18 YO was released in 1997. The ppm is 20 and it’s aged in both american and european Oloroso sherry seasoned oak casks. It has natural colour.

Islands, Talisker

Talisker Distiller’s Edition 2001/2012

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ABV: 45.8 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 4/5

Tasting notes
Nose: This is coastal and fruity. At first, the sherry notes come up with darker fruits and red berries. Behind there’s a layer of vanilla and honey with some salt and white sand mixed in. Even further back there are some brighter fruits like green apples. The feint peatiness is creating a thin veil of smoke from mentholated tobacco. A medicinal note comes through after some time in the glass.

Mouth: At first there’s a bitter note together with a touch of spices. After a second or two the peatiness starts to build up with a very medicinal aura. The tobacco is still present but it has strayed from the menthol. The sherry notes are somewhat held back and acts as fillers for the harsher flavours. There’s some vanilla coming through but the honey sweetness is now gone.

Finish: The menthol comes back and together with the medicinal notes the lead way back onto the beach. There’s a quite noticable saltiness and it’s still got an earthy, sandy feel to it. The sherry is still toned down and the fruitiness is much brighter than before. After some time the oak comes through. It’s a mild oakiness. There’s no astringency and it never sits alone. It’s accompanied by the medicinal notes all the way to the end. In the late finish the tobacco notes reappear. This is a dram with a nice fruity twist to an otherwise rowdy experience.

Additional information
This is basically the Talisker 10 YO finished for about a year in ex-Amaroso sherry casks. It has around 20 ppm. It’s aged for 10 years in reconstructed american ex-bourbon oak barrels before the finishing period.

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Independent bottlers, Islands, Rock Oyster

Douglas Laing’s Rock Oyster

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ABV: 46,8 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Blended Malt
Bottles in collection: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 3/5

Tasting notes
Nose: First thing that pops up is a savory, meaty note. Spicy and ashy, hints of lemon and lime. There’s a metallic note in the back. Quite powerful and unforgiving.

Mouth: Starts out mellow and sweet. The savory note takes over with notes of honey glazed barbecued meat. Still a little sour in the back. Spices build up after a couple of seconds. A bit underwhelming compared to the nose.

Finish: Sweet, savory and ashy. A complex array of ”funky” notes show up in the middle of the finish together with the honey and vanilla which makes it quite interresting. The oak note hides in the background and never really takes over.

Additional information
Rock Oyster is part of Douglas Laing’s ”Remarkable regional malts of Scotland” series. It’s a blend of malts from distilleries located on the islands. Douglas Laing mentions Arran, Islay, Orkney and Jura as Islands where the components come from. It has natural colour and it’s unchillfiltered.

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Highland Park, Islands

Highland Park 25 YO

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ABV: 45,7 %
Origin: Islands
Type: Single malt
Bottles in coll.: 0
Emptied bottles: 0
Impression: 5/5

Tasting notes
This was tasted at a whisky festival. No tasting notes were recorded.

Additional information
The Highland Park 25 YO is aged in both american ex-bourbon barrels and european sherry seasoned casks. It’s presented with natural colour. It’s the only whisky to ever recieve a perfect 100 (Ultimate spirits competition in New York 2013).