Svenska Eldvatten Vintage 1994

This is Scotch malt whisky blended at birth in August 1994 and left to mature in a sherry butt. In October 2013 it was bottled by Svenska Eldvatten in Sweden.

Rumours say this could be a mix of Highland Park and Glenrothes. It makes sense as they belong to the same Edrington group.

Svenska Eldvatten 19 yo ‘Vintage 1994’ (54,5%, Svenska Eldvatten 2013, single cask blended malt, sherry matured, 619 btl.)

Nose: lots of fudge and banoffee, with milk chocolate and the burnt sugar on top of a crème brûlée. Some buttery notes and vanilla. Hints of dusty malt and dried grasses. Cellar aromas. Roasted chestnut. Rather on the dry side of the sherry spectrum.

Mouth: sweet and honeyed, quite pungent. Some dates and dried figs, mixed with rather invasive peppery notes, ginger, cloves and… something peaty? A tad harsh and missing some fruity roundness in the middle. Fades on coffee.

Finish: quite long, but still a bit harsh and spirity. Rounder with water.

I can definitely see the Highland Park character in this and indeed hints of the European oak sherry style of Glenrothes. Interesting but the harsh side bothers me a little. Around € 90. Still available in some places, like here.

Score: 84/100