whisky review

Highland Park Valkyrie Single Malt Whiskey Review


There's something about the way Highland Park intermingles sherry casks and their signature heather-filled peat that excites me. It's one of my favorite flavor combinations. With their new Valkyrie release, the folks at Highland Park have ramped up the smokiness with the addition of more peated malt. Though Highland Park traditionally use only ex-sherry casks for its whiskies, Valkyrie sees a majority American Oak sherry-seasoned casks and ex-bourbon casks.

The bottle was designed by Danish designer Jim Lynvgild, who turned to Viking mythology as inspiration. Orkney, Highland Park's home, probably has more in common with its Nordic ancestry than it does with its Scottish one. Highland Park has fully embraced the Viking culture over the last several years, even redesigning its core bottles in 2017 to reinforce its Nordic heritage.

The nose here carries the classic HP aromas of sweet malt, dried fruits, heather and some freshly squeezed lemon juice. A touch of orchard fruit pops out of hiding from time to time. Those smoky and fruity notes are alive and well on the palate as well. An initial burst of red fruits lead to spice, dried fruit, figs, heather, and fresh ginger. A moderate wisp of smoke builds. The finish is long, with lingering notes of spiced fruit and light smoke.

Wonderful. Simply wonderful. Cranking up the smoke characteristics over the sherried malt base simply works. I like this NAS offering more than Dark Origins. Valkyrie doesn't come across as vibrant as that other expression, mainly due to its slightly lower abv (it is 45.9% here, by the way), but feels richer and more complex. It reminds me most of the 12-year-old expression with a little more zing. Nicely done! 8.5/10

highlandparkwhisky.com

A Review of The Singleton of Glendullan Series


The Singleton brand of whiskies refers to several Speyside distilleries, including Glen Ord, Dufftown, and Glendullan.  It’s a bit of odd branding, and I can see where it can be a touch confusing.  Here we’re looking at the Glendullan portfolio, newly available in the US market.  Glendullan isn’t a well-known distillery, though it’s not new.  It was founded back in 1897 in Dufftown.  Most of the whisky is matured in American oak, though some European oak is also used.  I love tasting through a distillery’s whiskey portfolio side-by-side.  It’s a great way to dive into the distillery style, giving you an intimate look at how the spirit matures over time.  

All whiskies in the distillery’s US portfolio (12-, 15-, and 18-year-old) are bottled at 40% abv.  At the moment, they’re only available in CA, FL, NY, CO, TX, PA, WA and NJ markets.  

GLENDULLAN 12

The youngest and lightest of the bunch, Glendullan 12-year-old is very reminiscent of Glenlivet 12.  The nose features hints of slightly caramelized orchard fruits, lemon zest, honey and very light spice.  The entry is a bit subdued, but opens to welcoming crisp apples and orange blossom honey, with vanilla pod and light spices developing.  The finish is short and leaves a spiced honey note.  This is an uncomplicated, easy-sipping entry level whisky.  $34.99  7/10

GLENDULLAN 15

A couple more years of maturation add a bit more richness.  That means more refined fruits on the nose, as well as toffee, fig preserves and spice.  I find the 15 doesn’t have as much citrus zestiness on the nose as the 12.  Taste-wise, the low abv means a slightly watered down entry.  In terms of flavors, honeyed tree fruit, dried fruits and candied pecans dominate, accented by some oak spice and mulled wine notes.  The finish is a bit longer than its younger brother, with hints of zesty malt, honey and spice.  Overall, a bit darker and richer malt that features more dried fruits and spice.  $49.99  7.5/10

GLENDULLAN 18

Described as “balanced, light and elegant” on the bottle, Glendullan 18 is the oldest of the distillery’s US offerings.  The nose is full of rich and spicy cinnamon cake, stewed apples & pears, and dried figs & raisins.  Hints of vanilla, toasted almonds and seville oranges with a touch of dried tobacco.  The palate is the richest of the three expressions, with wave after wave of dark caramel and dried fruits with hints of vanilla creme brulee, peanut brittle and leather.  The finish is long, featuring dark fruit jam and spices, turning a bit dry.  I think the 18-year-old mark is where this whisky starts to find its sweet spot.  Glendullan 18 is rich and full of dried fruits and spice.  Nicely done.  $79.99  8.5/10

Thanks to Diageo for the samples.  As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Aberlour A’Bunadh (Batch 54) Whisky Review

Oh glorious Aberlour A’Bunadh, where have you been all my whisky-drinking life? 

Okay.  Let me back up and tell you about the whisky, and why it is a new favorite of mine.

Located in the Speyside region of Scotland, Aberlour Distillery has been making whisky since 1879.  Their stills are onion shaped, which produce a dense spirit.  Aberlour’s core lineup includes a 12yo, 16yo, 18yo, and this cask strength A’Bunadh. The latter, and subject of this review, is bottled at cask strength and is non-chill filtered.  Batch 54 comes in at a hearty 60.7% abv.  A’Bunadh spends it’s entire life maturing in Oloroso sherry casks.  In other words, a cask strength sherry bomb!  Let’s dive into specifics.

The nose features a slightly waxy character, with hints of dry sherry, raisins, nuts, citrus and some ginger.  On the palate, a splash of water really opens this whisky up.  It’s dominated by notes of dried fruit, cocoa, dark toffee and oak spice.  A touch of orange peel shows up faintly, and oak tannins appear on the back of the palate.  The long finish features spiced fruit cake and bittersweet dark chocolate.  

What a rich, decadent whisky!  A’Bunadh is the only Aberlour whisky that matures exclusively in sherry casks.  All others spend some time in ex-bourbon casks.  That really sets this bottling apart.  As this whisky is batched, each release will be slightly different.  Just makes me want to try subsequent batches.  8.5/10

Thanks to Aberlour for the sample.  As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.