The Jewish Single Malt Whisky Society

Islands – 56.3%ABV – 700ml bottle – Price ?? I could not find this bottle available at any of the shops I frequent – Thanks to “O.K.” for the sample! (Note: the picture shown is for the 1985 version, not the 1981 as I had tasted)

This will be sort of a shorter review today.  Or at least, the lead up to the actual tasting.  Truth be told, this one took a lot out of me.  The whisky (specifically, the nose) was quite demanding and I’m not sure I was up to the challenge.  Yes, I think I gave it a fair shake (or maybe I gave myself the shake) but it took a while for all to be revealed.

They say good things come to those who wait.  Maybe I was too impatient.  You can decide for yourself…

On the nose — Man, this whisky needs some time to open up.  A few minutes and some nice cherry notes are revealed along with an overall saltiness to it – quite oceanic but at high tide, not a fishy low tide type ocean scent to it.

The nose is brisk and has just a mere hint of smoke (think pipe tobbaco – fragrant).  A few extra minutes and the nose opens more giving me some nice orange notes (Mineola to be exact, very tart).  With a few drops of water some buttery notes come out and it get ever so floral.  I love this nose but I had to dig and wait quite a bit for the scents to show themselves.

On the mouth — Hold on here, this is quite a departure from the nose.  The flavors are not subtle here, you don’t have to work quite as hard – fresh grassy notes and bitter fruits, a good amount of pepper (think cayenne with out the burn).

I think I need to add some water here (it did wonders for the nose) – the mouth feel gets chewy and some white pepper comes out as does something quite sweet thought I can’t put my finger on it.

Finish – A long finish.  The orangey notes remain as does the pepper.

In sum — Part of me felt like a paranormal investigator here.  I knew I had a “spirit” nearby but the nose made me want to scream “Show Yourself!!”  Thank G-d for the palate and finish though, it really came through.  In the end, a nice single cask whisky but I’m not sure it was worth all the trouble.

Islands – 43%ABV – 750ml bottle – $35 | £23 | €26

So, I’ll be quite honest when I say the only reason I purchased this is because it said “Highland Park” and it was a $35 dollar bottle.  You may have seen in a previous post that the best dram for me in 2009 was the Highland Park 18yr.  I am a devotee of Highland Park and, for me, everytime I have a sip of their nectar I have a Shehecheyanu moment.  Highland Park whiskies are that special for me.

On top of that, John Hansell of Malt Advocate gave this particular expression a nice little review.  I’ll pay $35 for an 83pt whisky (especially if it’s Highland Park)!! You can check out John Hansell’s review here.

Without any further ado, here are my notes on this fine little dram:

Initial Whiff – Very delicate and quite briny, almost like a slightly intense Scapa 16yr (that review to follow in the coming weeks), oaky, hint of fried pineapple, honeycomb breakfast cereal (does that exist outside of the US??)

Palate – Increasingly fruity, tropical, syrupy mouth feel (can this really only be a $35 bottle??), ever slight earthiness (can’t place it, but the feel the flavor gives me is that of things growing in the springtime – it must be the youthfulness of the spirit), sweet onion, this is a punchy little dram.

Finish — Medium length, just as biting as you’d expect from 43% (though I would have loved to have tried this at 46%), after a minute or two I notice a stronger smokiness in my mouth I did not detect earlier.

In sum – This is not a very “Highland Park” Highland Park.  It’s quite different from the 12yr, 15yr or 18yr.  And while it’s not the most spectacular dram I’ve ever had, I can see myself reaching for this in an instant.   This is a really nice every day dram though, no doubt about it.  Quite well done and oh so worth the price spent (if not more – though don’t tell the kind folks at MacPhail’s, it’ll be our secret.  Just you and me. Ssshhhhh!!)

Continuation of the “In sum” portion of this post — So, I pored myself a nice healthy portion (my guess is about 6.5cl) and I tend to only use the first 2cl of a dram for review.  I’m about 4cl in and, wow, just a really nice dram.  A nice little cracker and so very perfect for the springtime or a cooler summer day.  I’ll take this in place of a cold beer any day – extremely refreshing!  Heck, I’d take this over water (this is the “Water of Life” after all, right??)

Islands – 43%ABV – 750ml bottle – $75-99 | £55 | €64

I’ve read so many reviews on the HP18 (Highland Park, not Harry Potter, come on people!!) I figured, enough is enough – I had to try just to see what all the hoop-a-lah was about.

Back in October of 2009 I went to The Scottish Arms in St. Louis Missouri. If you’ve never been, go. Now. More than 150 drams (Scottish, Japanese, American, you name it) on their whisky menu – amazing! Well, while I was there I tried the HP18 and all I could say was…”eh…, so what”

PLEASE READ ON

I realized the reason the whisky was so sub-stellar was just because of the type of glass they used (should have brought my own Glencairn) and the fact that I had food getting in the way of the tasting. Note to self: only taste when you’re either A) done with food or B) haven’t had food yet (though on an empty stomach… that can be…ummmm…fun?!).

So, after many people telling me that I must be crazy for thinking the Highland Park 18 was no more than a big yawn, a little while later, I decided to shut them up and lay down the casheesh to buy a bottle.  I actually got the bottle for much less than what is shown but, it was an eBay buy so I won’t post that price.  Let’s just say, I got it for about the price of the standard 12yr bottle of Highland Park!!

Around this time I was reading that many people do their whisky tasting in the morning time so I decided to conduct my tasting during that time myself.  What a way to start the day!!  The following notes, by the way, were written in October, 2009:

Nose (almost 3 full whiffs!!) – Not as smokey as I had anticipated. Very sweet smelling, almost juicy with an underlying smokiness to it. Second whiff: More of the same, this time a little more smoke but now the oak came out a bit and something almost tropical – overripe banana perhaps? I couldn’t wait for the 3rd whiff…

Palate – Absolutely one of the most succulent drops I’ve ever had! The smoke was underlying but kept peaking it’s head out and was balanced so well by the sweetness. Sherry notes but thankfully not overly so. The age came out a bit, long vanilla oak notes and more sweet smoke. G-d damn, I’m in heaven!

Finish – Soft and silky, warming (which is much needed as it was 33deg F this morning!), smokey and long.

In sum – Those who know me now I am a devoted fan of the Glenmorangie line but I have to say, with the exception of the D’or (which remains to be my dram of choice), this has knocked all of the other Glenmos out of the way! Maybe it’s the weather, maybe it’s because I had it in the morning, I don’t know. I can tell you that I think I’m in love.

Islands – 58.1%ABV – cask strength – 700ml bottle – £65

Ah, the Hjärta – a 12yr Cask Strength Highland Park. Available only through the distillery’s website, the distillery & in nordic countries. Which of coarse leaves the rest of the world out (unless you have sources…).

I’ve been lusting after this for some time and now it is in my possession (Mmmmwwwaaa-ha-ha-ha-ha!).

Let’s cut to the chase and go to my thoughts on it, shall we? Yes, we shall:

Color – Old pirates gold

Initial whiff – For 58.1%abv, nowhere near as prickly as I had expected. I could jam my nose in there ’til my “Hjärtas” content (or I run out of oxygen). Licorice, fried pineapple slices, heather, smoke and moldy celery. A bit salty and a wee more grassy

On the mouth – A bit more hot now, spicey, some sherry notes, buttered toast with honey & jam (raspberry), pineapple again and wisps of smoke, peat & figgy stuffs – all in all, a very luscious dram (reminds me of the succulency of the 18yr)

Finish – Long and a bit burny (in a good way), the sherry comes back up, smoke.

In sum — Rumor has it that a 12yr CS may be on the way as a standard expression for Highland Park. If the Hjarta is any indication as to what we can expect – I’ll be waiting with baited breath!!

The 18yr is still king in my book but this is uber nice!  Thanks to the fine gent who helped me get a bottle!!