A Highland Park 1997, Pedro Ximénez sherry finished and bottled by David Stirk’s Creative Whisky Company in their Exclusive Casks series.
Highland Park 14 yo 1997 (51,9%, Creative Whisky ‘Exclusive Casks’ 2012, PX sherry finish, cask #6255, 90 btl.)
Nose: modern sherry, quite thick. Classic raisins and figs and a kind of syrupy sweetness that’s typical for Pedro Ximénez. Raspberry sweets and prune juice. Also a distinct sawdust / planky note which is not uncommon for this kind of speedy maturation.
Mouth: starts nicely honeyed and fruity, but it quickly becomes spicy (pepper, clove) with an oaky undertone. Liquorice. Heather. A slight bitterness of herbal tea in the end. Slightly harsh due to the alcohol and punchy spices.
Finish: long, quite grainy now, with much less fruits and only liquorice and spices left of the sherry.
Quite a modern style of sherried whisky. Quite good as well, although I tend to like my sherried drams a little more rounded. Around € 70.
Score: 83/100