Despite my misgivings about prices and marketing at Highland Park in the last decade or so, I quite enjoyed the two Highland Parks I reviewed this week: Monday’s 12 yo sherry cask for the Little Lebowski Urban Achievers, and Wednesday’s 15 yo bourbon cask for Binny’s. Here now to close out the week is another bourbon cask release, put together from spirits from hogsheads that received a bourbon barrel finish. It was bottled, at an eye-watering strength, by the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. Let’s hope it’s up to the standard of the other two this week.

Highland Park 12, 2008 (61.2%; SMWS 4.263; bourbon hogsheads+bourbon barrel finish; from a bottle split)

Nose: Mineral peat and soot and cereals off the top and then on the second sniff there’s lemon and some sweeter fruit (apple?). As it sits there’s more tart fruit (gooseberry) and some peppery olive oil. With more time still the peat and soot recede; now there’s some vanilla and a bit of peach. With a few drops of water the citrus expands (bitter-sweet lime zest) as does the peach and the vanilla becomes a little more custardy.

Palate: Comes in with oily lemon zest and sweet lime cordial. Hot but not unapproachable at full strength; oily texture. Not much sign of the peat or soot from the nose. Sweeter on the second sip. Later there’s some pepper but it doesn’t really open up very much more as it sits. This needs water. Yes, with water the peach emerges clearly here as well; still no sign of the peat/soot though.

Finish: Long. The alcohol burn expands on the finish. When it subsides the main note here too is lime but it’s joined by the cereals from the nose. As on the palate with time and water.

Comments: Another very nice bourbon cask Highland Park. I can’t help but wish that the bourbon barrel finish had been left off and that it had been bottled at a lower abv—somewhere in the mid-high 50s. It takes too much fussing with water to get it down to where the alcohol burn doesn’t dominate on the palate and finish. Those who have bottles and have figured out the optimal dilution must be very happy though.

Rating: 87 points.