94 Malt Advocate

ntroduced to the Highland Park portfolio in 1997. Gentle peat, soft toffee, floral notes, and honey on the beautifully fragrant nose. Superbly balanced on the velvety palate, with brittle toffee, stewed fruits, peat, honey, and a hint of coffee. Smoke and more toffee mingle in the long, elegant finish.

94 The Whisky Advocate

Toffee up front, with vanilla, green apple, pot still spice, milk chocolate, peppercorn, ground ginger, and aromatic hints of coffee. To taste, a bounty of toffee, chocolate, espresso, tobacco, vanilla pod, and burnt sugar notes, with coriander seed and fennel spices, then burnt orange and more coffee before a delicious creaminess spills over. The integration of chocolate and coffee notes really elevates this vintage as a particularly fine whiskey.

94 The Whisky Advocate

Somewhat closed at first on the nose, but the palate is very lively, with vanilla cream, caramel, baked raspberries, cola, and toffee, along with tobacco, balanced aged oak, and black pepper. It’s a hot one for sure, but the flavors still manage to assert themselves. The finish is where it all really shines, blending more vanilla cream, milk chocolate, aged sweet oak, balanced pepper spice, and warehouse earthiness.

94 Tastings.com (Beverage Testing Institute)

Steely clear color. Aromas and flavors of anise seed and fennel and celery stalks with an oily, vibrant, sweet fat body and a hot, delightful, very long finish with notes of black licorice and rock candy, straw, and coleman’s fuel. A bold anise liqueur with unmistakable Sambuca style.

85-89 Wine Enthusiast

"The initial whiffs find soft, biscuit and sugar cookie scents; aeration adds deeper aromas of cereal, honey, yeast and light caramel. Fat and creamy at palate entry, then toffee on the mid-palate. Finishes up mildly spicy and oaky. A terrific bargain that first became fashionable during prohibition."

94 Tastings.com (Beverage Testing Institute)

Amber color. Inviting aromas of caramel popcorn, spiced apples, leather, maple, and brown butter with a slightly chewy, vibrant, dry medium body and a sleek, complex, medium-long milk chocolate, pecan marzipan, toffee, and espresso finish. An instantly appealing, classic Bourbon that can do no wrong.

93 The Whisky Advocate

Polished and nicely balanced, with caramel as the main note, followed by candied fruit, soft vanilla, sweet corn, and nougat. Subtle spice (ginger, cinnamon) and gentle oak on the finish round out the sweet notes. Easygoing demeanor and very drinkable. Great value too! A very pleasing, versatile bourbon. —John Hansell