Highland Park 12 Year Old

Highland Park is the only single malt from the Orkney Islands (okay, there is also Scapa, but you rarely find it in stores in the States, and the distillery operates only sporadically). Although I am a definite Bowmore man on many occasions, Highland Park is a deeply satisfying dram. One of the oldest distilleries in Scotland (it was established in 1798), Highland Park is not as intimidating as the peaty Islay malts, but still has plenty of character. The color is straw with some hints of gold. Undiluted, the nose is pleasant, not as pungent as others. There's a good dose of sweetness on the nose, but also some smoke. The Malt Whisky File by Robin Tucek and John Lamond gives it high peatiness and low sweetness, but I think it has much more sweetness to it than Talisker, for instance, which has far more pepper. Although only 43% alcohol by volume, I think this whisky needs some water to open it up more. You can drink it straight, but some artesian water or spring water really helps. After water is added, I'm reminded of sweet taffy, or even toffee. Mike Jackson speaks of heather, but quite frankly, I don't know what that's like, so I can't comment.