[FONT="]Welcome to the B&B Speakeasy Spirit of the Month![/FONT]
[FONT="]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
[FONT="]Our selection for January 2009 will be Highland Park Single Malt Scotch - 12 and/or 18 yrs aged (your choice!)
[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
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
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