Spirit of the Month - January 2009 - Highland Park Single Malt Scotch Whisky

[FONT=&quot]Welcome to the B&B Speakeasy Spirit of the Month![/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Our selection for January 2009 will be Highland Park Single Malt Scotch - 12 and/or 18 yrs aged (your choice!)

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Its a great time of year for another single malt scotch! This month we've gone with the Highland Park distillery, a true gem from the Orkney Isles.

[imga=right]http://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/media/15231/full[/imga]Orkney has a rich and fascinating history, including a strong Viking presence, passing from Norwegian to Scottish rule around 1472. Highland Park Distillery has operated there since 1792, owing its name not to the nearby "Highland" mainland region of Scotland but the local geography of its place on the largest island in Orkney. Highland Park is one of the few distilleries to malt its own barley, firing with local peat and heather. The water is sourced from nearby Crantit Spring and Cattie Maggie's Quarry. The consistently cooler, moist Orkney air contributes to gentle maturation in Spanish and American Oak casks.

Highland Park Scotch whisky is available in several bottlings, of which the 12yr aged selection is perhaps the most widely-available and popular. The 18yr aged is also extremely popular, yet appreciably more expensive, but was hailed as the "Best Spirit in the World" by F. Paul Pacult of Spirit Journal. Highland Park is at no loss for accolades, receiving the first ever 100% rating from renowned whisky expert Michael Jackson in 1984, who continued to sing its praises until his death, saying in 2001, "[Highland Park is] The greatest all-rounder among whiskies, because it combines so many elements: maltiness, smokiness, heather-honey notes and sherry character, in a rich, rounded whole. With its own floor-maltings, the distillery is a classic, too."

[imga=left]http://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/media/15232/full[/imga] We've selected the 12yr aged bottling for those unfamiliar with Highland Park. Bottles are widely available in the ~$40 range, which is a price that's tough to beat for such a quality nectar. Tim has spoken quite highly of it in the past here, so if you're already a fan of HP 12, consider picking up the 18yr aged. We'd love to get a comparison discussion going amongst the gents who've had both bottlings, and heck... what better to spend your Xmas money on than treating yourself to a bottle of the "Best Spirit in the World?"


Use this thread for discussion of any Highland Park Single Malt Scotch, food/cigar pairings, or scotch talk in general for this month!

CHEERS!


*Note: Pat strongly recommends you take a few minutes to check out the History of Orkney (Wikipedia) and Highland Park Distillery's website. The distillery site is one of the most thorough, educational, and interesting to read I've ever come across.

And also: I've put together a Wiki page chronicling all of our SOTM selections, discussion threads, and other info... you can find it here: http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/index.php/B&B_Spirit_of_the_Month

Highland Park is one of the best value-to-bottles out there. I love the heather notes in the 18 year.

For those that enjoy the Highland park pick for this month, you should consider trying Scapa as well. It's the only other distillery on the island of Orkney.

Man...I'm getting thirsty.

--Dennis

Highland Park makes the best all-around Scotch there is. Period. Wonderful stuff and another top notch write-up, Pat.

TimmyBoston said:

Highland Park makes the best all-around Scotch there is. Period. Wonderful stuff and another top notch write-up, Pat.

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The 18 year old, which I sampled at a Whisky tasting was superb. The 12, while good, is not in the same league. In fact, at the risk of being branded an Arch-Heretic for the month I will say this. The Bunnahabhain 12 is a better dram than the Highland Park 12.

I have had the pleasure of drinking the 18 year old on several occasions and it is superb. I just may have to forego a bottle Johnnie Gold and go for the Highland Park 18 year old. It is definitely worth the price of admission. Great choice.

I had every intention of picking a bottle of the 12 up this past weekend but they were out so I left with a bottle of Glenmorangie Nectar d'Or. I have a birthday creeping up in a couple of weeks, maybe they'll have some back in stock (if not maybe my wife loves me enough to pick me up a bottle of the 18)

DunEdinRanger said:

The Bunnahabhain 12 is a better dram than the Highland Park 12.

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Just because it's wrong doesn't mean you aren't entitled to your opinion.

jeffb said:

I had every intention of picking a bottle of the 12 up this past weekend but they were out so I left with a bottle of Glenmorangie Nectar d'Or. I have a birthday creeping up in a couple of weeks, maybe they'll have some back in stock (if not maybe my wife loves me enough to pick me up a bottle of the 18)

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Not to go off track, but I just finished a bottle of Glenmorangie Nectar D'Or on Christmas Eve. Man, that was good.

TimmyBoston said:

Just because it's wrong doesn't mean you aren't entitled to your opinion.

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Well, there's always Whisky Live NY - http://www.whiskylive.com/usa/newyork-2009/ - in order to free you from the pernicious heresy you now hold.

glenrothes...any year.

I'll try to do a comparison to the HP12 in a few days, but just a few initial thoughts on the HP18...

Beautiful dark golden color... it even looks perfect.

What a nose!!! Just the perfect level of peat -- almost to the point of smokiness, but not quite... retains a honey-sweetness. A true delight to nose -- the HP18 doesn't have the pungency that can make other single malts wear out their welcome.

Tasting: Initially very sweet, then the peat almost rolls through the oily, nutty sweetness into a woody, heathery, peppery finish. Every sip is an absolute pleasure.

Guys, I can't fashion myself any sort of whisky expert. I'm a work in progress. But FWIW coming from me, the HP18 comes closest to that "Platonic ideal" dram that I had in mind when I first started trying single malts. If that doesn't convince you to pour yourself some in the near future -- I've been on a frugality kick considering the economic situation, the holidays, and my meager, fixed grad student income. Yet, I feel completely justified and pleased having spent (an outlandishly extravagent, for me) $100 on a bottle of whisky. IMHO, this is worth every penny.

Highland Park 12Y was my first real epiphany in the world of scotch. That complex peat and honey combination is found in no other. The 18Y is my "desert island" whisky, although I have high hopes for the 1977 Bicentennial Reserve in my closet waiting for just the right occasion...

I got a bottle of the HP 18 as a gift for being Best Man at my friend's wedding. What a wonderful gift! I have been savoring it since October, saving it for special occasions or to pair with expensive cigars.

A really wonderful scotch.

Hopefully, I will find a bottle at BevMo tonight.

I picked up a bottle of the 12Y over the weekend. I have tried it a couple of times now. The first time was with a cigar (Fuente Royal Salude). It went well with the cigar. I had a bit more tonight as I caught up on hour 4 of 24. I like the Highland Park more than the Ardbeg (from October). The medicinal taste of the Ardbeg was a bit too strong for me.

Aside from the Ardbeg, the scotches I know well are blended. What should I be looking for or notice in a single malt?

I found this interesting and thought that I would pass it along. From the packaging:

Enjoy the Perfect Glass of Highland Park

First. Hold your glass to the light to enjoy the clear amber glow. Then, tilt and rotate it to see the beads of whisky on the inside of the glass. The smaller they are, the higher the alcohol strength and the slower, the better the spirit quality.

Next. Add a drop of water and take 3 long sniffs. The first just gets your nose used to the alcohol. But in the second, you'll discover our characteristic honey sweetness. And in the third, fruit. Maybe pineapple, apple or pear.

Now taste the whisky by chewing it in your mouth for four or five seconds. Then swallow. The front of your tongue will start to tingle and after a few seconds your mouth will go dry, leaving a gentle smoky feeling and a flavor that keeps on going.

As a whiskey drinker for the past five years or so, I was stunned when I recently learned HP was from so far north! I thought I knew my whiskey! It doesn't have the heavy peaty flavor that I would have expected from such a wind swept, seaborne area...but then again, neither does Scapa I suppose. Still, of the non-peatier variety (Ardbeg, Laphroaig) HP is probably my favorite...save of course my old standby Balvenie!

I love to read up about Scotch whisky's here on B&B...! Never tried the HP but maybe in the future, I'm sipping from a MacAllan 12YR at this very moment! It's a nice combo with own brand cigars from our town's cigarmaker.

This is my first time stopping in at the Spirit of the Month, and i am So impressed! Great report Pat!

i picked up the HP 12yr last night, which also came with an ounce or two of the 18 to sample. it was very nice and even more so while reading this thread.

thanks again!

joshmpdx said:

i picked up the HP 12yr last night, which also came with an ounce or two of the 18 to sample. it was very nice and even more so while reading this thread.

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That was the same package as the first bottle of HP 12 I ever picked up (on Tim's recommendation), and I think they'd do quite well to sell more of the 18 by continuing to package minis with the 12. Its truly an outstanding dram -- definitely familiarize yourself with the 12 before you crack it and/or save it for a special occasion.