Nose

Powering bourbon sweetness. Lashings of oak and vanilla with liquorice and plummy fruit. Tired, but hanging on.

Palate

Creamy and spicy with a large smoky, oaky background. Just enough honey comes through to give a Highland Park signature.

Finish

Dry, chalky and some late sensuous peat lift this from a weary start. Lovely salty sea tang lingers, too.

Comment

This would never have survived another summer. Impressive brinkmanship, though still over-aged.