🥃 Whisky Auctioneer

From the opening, it's just like the label says: Robust & Intense. Or, I'd say it another way: a young, powerful whisky styled like a spirit; even with water, I find it hard to understand the release's meaning... Okay, I'll give it some time and watch it in real time... I stood there, caught my breath, well, ok, if I dilute it with a little water, then here A young whisky, but quite good, especially in small sips) 21 21+ 20 20+ 83

Amber color with slightly reddish accents. Definitely oily in the glass.

Highland Park Cask Strength Release No 2 is the second batch of Cask Strength bottlings. In addition to the slightly higher alcohol content of 63.9%, the taste profile has also changed. However, Release No 2 is also a robust and intense bottling from the Orkney Islands.

I think Batch 2 is much better and more pleasant than Batch 1

This stuff has got some serious oomph. Initially it's even sharp and a bit harsh on the palate. Fireworks, struck matches, honey, dried fruit, nutty, slightly floral, liquorice in the finish. Very decent dram, but it definitely needs water and time (a decent amount of both) to bring out the best.

A thick forest, with heather, berries, blackberries, ferns, fresh bark, thyme, basil, very rich earth. A campfire in the distance. It's a pine forest, with needles everywhere, and beautiful pine cones falling on us. The peat is relatively light, compared to the intensity of the spices and dried fruits, apricots, bananas, prunes. We get closer to the campfire, we can smell the soot and the coal. With the addition of water, the smoke awakens. In the background, iodine. Salted butter caramel. Very full mouth, warm at the beginning, with red fruits, redcurrants, raspberry, then the spices arrive, they are very strong, pepper, cumin. Finale on the same momentum, quite aggressive but also very long, woody, charcoal, sparkling, cola, ginger. Finally an original bottling worthy of this great distillery. https://ilikesky2020.blogspot.com/2022/01/highland-park-cask-strength-release-n2.html

So Highland Park again, it's one of my favorite distilleries... This time the second edition of Highland Park Cask Strength with 63.9% vol. This is the strength that other distillery distillers dilute their New Make to prior to cask bottling. No information on age, the barrels are the usual seasoned barrels made of European and American oak. The whisky is rich golden, a beautiful colour. www.glen-efze.de

Nose, tobacco, ripe red wine, leather, marmalade, raisins, dried fruit compote, mash, rot, pickled cucumber pickle, cloves and mulled wine. Taste, aroma step by step, more herbs tarragon, dry mulled wine, cumin, tea with rum, despite high ABV alcohol does not dominate, warms but does not burn, more like herbal pepper, chili, cherry liqueur, dark chocolate, black cocoa, caramel . Finish, long, quite salty, caramel, dry, satisfying

S 7 Very smooth nose given its strength, with consistent sweetness carried from nose all the way to the end. This is the dram that changed my mind about the distillery. According to the brand ambassador, the age is between 10-15 years. N 27 - Very creamy - Caramel fudge - Dry fruit aroma, almost PX cask like - Very mild peat hiding behind the fruit P 25 - Orchard fruit, fairly sweet and fruity - Then punch on the palate with spice and sweet chilli sauce F 24 - Mid- long finish - Dry & fruity - Subtle smoke lingering

Not a good balance, needs water, but unfortunately also loses in the process

21+22+22+22

I understand value is subjective, but around me this is ~$130 CAD. Simply too many better options for the price. If it is indeed true that this is 13+ years old… why, WHY would they not put an age statement on that? To me this makes ZERO sense and I simply must assume it’s not the truth. They have everything to gain and nothing to lose by putting an age statement on there.

Vanilla, caramel, hint of chilli powder, more savoury spices, red fruits, pears, apples, oak, shortbread, even oranges and tropical fruits after adding a fair amount of water. Creamy and malty. A bit of dunnage. Switches a fair bit with varying quantities of water, which is what I look for in a cask strength whisky. The alcohol is very well integrated. Wonderful stuff.

"For this second release in the Cask Strength series, Gordon Motion, our Master Whisky Maker, selected mainly sherry seasoned European and American oak casks, along with just a few ex-bourbon casks. You’ll find aromas of summer rose, ripe pear and fresh coconut gathering on a wave of aromatic peat smoke, followed by a wild harmony of sweet and spicy flavours - poached pear and rich almond cake, a drizzle of cloudy honey and a twist of salty liquorice. There’s the suggestion of toasted oak and intriguing notes of orchard fruits, black pepper and sweet aniseed linger, in a satisfyingly long finish. In a word (or three) we call it ‘smoky peppered praline’." I will try this whisky both without and with some water due to it's extreme ABV 63.9%. The highest I have ever had. N without W: Alcohol sting right away but what would you expect from 63.9%? Going over that, extremely intensive and complex. Strong oak notes. Loads of vanilla and citrus with a whiff of aromatic peat smoke. Heather and caramel. Amazing. (89) P without W: Here we go. Bold. NO ALCOHOL BURN, means it's nicely composed. A very nice mint note with cooling notes. Very rich on the vanilla and and citrus side. Dark sherry notes such as figs, raisins and plums. Heather honey and caramel with some smoke dominates. (88) F without W: Long and dry with loads of menthol, spice and aromatic sweet smoke. (84) Water added to be around 50%. N with W: Wow, definitely opens up the nose. Rich yellow fruits, honey. Some banana and sweet toasted oak. Heather and caramel with some smoke. Red fruits and caramel appears. (90) P with W: Some bitterness which is most welcome. Citrus and honey. Heather with caramel and some smoke. Very earthy. Some coal and tar. Very wood forward now. Figs, raisins, plums with strawberries. (94) F: Long and dry. A nice bitterness with citrus fruits, heather honey and smoke. (86) 89 / 90 = 89,5 88 / 94 = 91 84 / 86 = 85 89,5 / 91 / 85 = 88,5 so I'll make it 89 pts / 100

I love HP whisky! I really like whisky from the CS range. But I have to admit that this one is not the best of the series. It has all the notes and aromas that are characteristic of the brand, it is a bit too alcohol pungent and could have more intense smoky notes... But nevertheless, I am glad that I was able to taste it and I remain a loyal fan of the HP brand.

This is an extremely powerful spirit with a rich flavor, suitable for those who prefer a strong and straightforward taste. Otherwise, it is recommended to add more water.

This malt changes a lot, and mostly with the addition of water. And it gets only bettter with water. Confidence that it's Higland Park grows from nose to taste and leaves no doubts in the finish. To my surprise very prominent sherry influence, can be taken blindly as cask strength Glenfarclas or Glendronach. A decent batch, I would not be surprised if it contains casks older than 12 years.

A "cheated" dram that benefit from the high strength. Really needs water to open up

Highland Park Cask Strength Release 2, SMSW 63.5%. 30ml sample June 2023. Dull orange. Aroma of candyfloss and bubble gum, some parma violet sweets, buttercandy. Body is watery. Taste is salty and spicy up front. The alcohol strength certainly shows up. Dry woody spice. Nutmeg, over-spiced eggnog. Always the tannic wood. Quite simple. The woody spicy note carries with it a bit of sweet butteriness to start but then becomes more peppery as it merges with the peat. People often say HP has a 'heathery peat' note. I've never really understood that but here I do get a note of 'dried flowers that have been burnt'. There’s definitely a straw and dried flower dryness to the smoke. This might be the first time I’ve really understood the 'heathery peat' observation. Not offering much at bottling strength but it’s better on the palate than on the aroma. 3.2/77 With a splash of water, the aroma simplifies but improves quite a lot – toffee with light lavender and mixed petals. Taste is even more salty and tingly on the tongue. Salty throughout now, the woodiness doesn’t show up and the sweetness has reduced. White pepper heat in the finish along with a faint modern day sherry cask influence. I prefer it with water but it’s not a world-beater by any means. 3.3/79

With a little water it's much better..

Honey, tropical fruits, citrus fruits, Swedish berry candies, whispy heathery peat, cinnamon hearts Compared next to the no. 3, this one has more citrus and tropical fruits, is a smidge spicier, notably less peaty, and seems to veer more to bourbon, but with plenty of great sherry to make this sherry head pleased. The no. 3 veers more peaty, with more sherry, and is a bit gentler over-all. Both are great for different reasons - comes down to taste preference or mood that day, really...

Somehow not as magnificent today as at the last tasting. In full strength as well as in any dilution not as exciting and varied as I remembered. Still a tasty malt, but no longer great.

Compared to release no. 1 More sherry, more sulfur and more nutmeg, but less bitterness in the finish.

aroma: delicate, rounded, chocolate, cocoa, coffee taste: smooth, rounded, dried fruit, vanilla, chocolate Feel the real influence of sherry casks, a distinctly sweet whisky

My buddy and I took the time to taste this through at our leisure. Even though we did not agree on every detail, the conclusion was that this is an overall decent dram, but not the best in the HP CS series. We started with leaving the whisky in the glass for half an hour before even touching it, to let it get some air. The nose is simply fantastic and the most complex part, you can keep on sniffing this the entire evening without ever taking a sip. The palate, however, is much less friendly, very dry and has an overpowering alcohol sting. The finish is quite okay, but not remotely as good as the nose.

Glen Alaki raisin sticky and woody feeling A taste to like and dislike

Tip: Try it a couple of times, forget it for 18 months and come back. Much, much better now!

A very intensive, full-bodied whisky. A couple drops of water makes it milder and less spicy. Tasty - oak, hay, honey. Medium-long finish with a little smokiness at the back scene

63.9%, wow... I was lucky enough to get two bottles of the 50ml version and enjoy it this evening as we bid farewell to 2021. Because of the alcohol concentration, it is indeed a little irritating when it first enters the mouth, but it passes quickly, and the very concentrated taste remains in the mouth, but I guess the age is only about 10~12 years? In terms of taste, it is similar to Highland Park12yo, and then the smoke is reduced and more fruity sherry is added. However, because it is cask strength! The impact was so violent, like being hit by a train full of sweet sherry, it was a magical experience! Although its price is slightly more expensive than 18yo, it can have a completely different experience, but I think 18 will be more suitable for me. If you want to try the super rich version of Highland park 12yo, I recommend trying it! The sum of the taste is 90 points, and 1 point is deducted considering the price, for a total of 89 points.

So after talking with the brand ambassador of highland park about the batches and how the future of HP CS will look I have this: HP CS #1 - Exactly 12 years old - Basically a cask strength version of the core bottling, so we knew it was going to be good. HP CS #2 - 13+ years old, focused on sherry casks, Oloroso mainly. Older and much deeper richer flavours than #1, less smoke and more of a winter dram - In my opinion incredible and more to offer than #1 hence grabbing 2x before it all gets snapped up! HP CS #3 - 'The future CS', told this will be younger than previous expressions and focused on smoke....all I could get i'm afraid

A strong, warming and strongly sherried whisky. Is this good for freezing weather or for Christmas time? Nose: oak, honey, sherry, dried fruits Taste: mouth coating, honey, sherry, vanilla, cream, soft pepper This is richer, and sweeter than Release No 1. But I prefer No 1 because it's straight, drier and more simple and still a wonderful dram.

Color: bright brown, medium to upper oil. Smell: full of creaminess, with some honey. The smell is very strong but the irritation of alcohol is not obvious. Taste: very strong, with the salty and humid feeling of the sea breeze blowing on the face. It has a bitter bottom and is very dry. Astringent tail tone: medium-long, maintaining the salty, astringent, and dry flavor without any change. Overall: too strong, a bit frizzy.

cask strength for this little definitely going to my collection, another one to be cracked open with a few drops of water to open up a little all the goodness. Cheers