Highland Park 14 Year; Dramfool ‘High Parkland’
Whisky : Highland Park 14 Year; Dramfool ‘High Parkland’
Country/Region : Scotland/Islands
ABV : 63.6%
Cask : Ex-bourbon
Age : 14 Year (Distilled 11 May 2006, Bottled 24 Aug. 2020)
Nose : Moule frites— clams, salt, and fruity white wine. Oranges and tangerines joined with plums to create a sort of sangria by the sea. Sweet cereal notes come through with sweet sake, musty plum jam, and new shoes.
Palate : Medium bodied and quite oily. Sweet, sea, and smoke came through right away with tar pitch, coal smoke, and an apple-pear tart. Developed more citrus and herbal tobacco over time. The wife described it as apple butter and dumpling water.
Finish : Lingering sweet citrus fruits and faint salt.
Score : 7
Mental Image : Sangria by the Sea
Something Better : Caol Ila 17Y ‘Unpeated’ (similar clean salt/lemon, less tar, more hospital)
Something Similar : Rock Oyster/Island 18Y (similar citrus/maritime, less fruit, more spice)
Notes : Ledaig without the funk— was how I described this after tasting it blind with some friends at the tail end of 2020. It had lovely elements of sea, citrus, and a nice initial blast of smoke. I have never been hot on Highland Park in the past, but this was a wonderful dram that showcased the moderately peated spirit without a whole lot of cask influence. This would be the perfect pick up for anyone who enjoyed the Highland Park 12 and really they could dial up the intensity of citrus and salt flavors as well as the mouthfeel and finish. The overall profile was straightforward with nice contrast between fruit flavors and herbal undertones.
