NV Highland Park 18YO 43%

Nose: a thick dollop of honey spread across a layer of salted butter; in the background the ashes of a peat fire are emptied. Taste: eye closing beauty: immediate glossy impact of rich, vaguely metallic honey but upped in the complexity stakes by the subtle intense marbling of peat; the muscular richness, aided by the softness of the oil ensures that maximum intensity is not only reached but maintained. Finish: long continuation of those elements found in delivery but now radiating soft spices and hints of marzipan. Balance: if familiarity breeds contempt, then it has yet to happen between myself and HP 18. This is a must-have dram. I show it ladies the world over to wine their hearts, minds and taste buds when it comes to whisky. And the more time I spend with it, the more I become aware and appreciative of its extraordinary consistency. The very latest bottlings have been astonishing, possibly because colouring has now bee dropped, and wisely so. Why in any way reduce what is one of the world's great whisky experiences? Such has been the staggering consistency of this dram I have though of late of promoting the distillery into the world's top three: only Ardbeg and Buffalo Trace have been bottling whisk(e)y of such quality over a wide range of ages in such metronomic fashion. Anyway enough: a glass of something honeyed and dazzling calls... 43%