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Recently I had this and it has to be one of the best malt whiskies I've ever had. It had the rounded taste Highland Park is known for (i.e. malty, peaty, honeyed and sherried in about equal measure with some marine character) but in a deep, chocolate-like expression (fine bitter chocolate) which was impressive. And, it had what I call the "old roses" (or "pages of an old book", or "damask curtain") taste which denotes maturity in many fine malt whiskies. Some fine old bourbon and rye (more the rye) has this quality too. This whisky also, while not inexpensive, is not anywhere near the $200 plus range I see regularly charged for old malts. This one cost about $115 CAN which is under $100 U.S., not bad considering the high quality. It doesn't get much better than this in malt whisky. For those who (like me) can't buy everything they want, it is a good buy because of its balance and "covers the bases" approach. In fact when I blend my own malt whiskies (I am bringing one to the private Sampler gatherings upcoming) I try to emulate a whisky such as this. It's a class act.

Gary

Gary,

How does the 18 compare to the regular 12 YO? I like the 12 quite a bit; I've been shying away from buying Single Malts lately due to the generally higher prices they command as opposed to bourbons. Are the differences worthy of a much higher price?

BTW, 2 SM's that I had an opportunity to try at WhiskyFest were Ardbeg Provenance and Laphroaig 30 Year Old. Both were superb and had a huge peat smoke flavor that I really like. However, I think these sell for somewhere in the $300 range and that is definitely out of my price range!

Bob, the 12 year old Highland Park is superb and an excellent value. The 18 year old is deeper and fuller but not by that much. Actually, I had penned my remarks before opening the regular-size bottle I bought, they were based on tasting a smaller bottle a friend opened which came in a 3 pack: 12, 18 and 25 year olds. My bottle isn't quite as good as the small bottle in that pack: a little less of the "old roses" character in particular and less well-knitted together. But still very good. But the 12 year old is very fine.

Gary

I have enjoyed HP 18yo for a long time . I was buying it for $54.00 at Xmas now its just over a $100. I have reverted to the 12 yo while still isnt as good as the 18 yo its a good valuefor the money. I hve had the 30yo and its just shy of orgasmic. IMHO you cant go wrong with any HP.

There is also a 15 year old expression, which I have not tried but which is intended to be placed between the 12 and 18 year old versions in both price and richness.

Personally, I think HP is probably the most perfect single malt ever made. It has spice, it has sherry, it has everything - and nothing is mixed together and lost. It all comes in waves, one right after the other.

The 15 HP is very good... not as good as the 18, but, very good, none the less. I mostly drink the 12, as it's what I can afford for the most part.

I'm not one of those Scotch drinkers that finds HP to be the end all... be all of Scotch whiskey. It's very good, but, I like the Macallan 12 much better... and the 18 even more.

I have recently tried a few single malt scotches lately. The HP12 is very good. I have not had the 18 due to its $99 price. the HP12 is very good for $37. It has a little of everything in it. It actually morphs depending on what you eat. Sometimes I catch more saltiness, other times more sweetness. It's almost like having several drinks in one.

BourbonDave wrote:I have recently tried a few single malt scotches lately. The HP12 is very good. I have not had the 18 due to its $99 price. the HP12 is very good for $37. It has a little of everything in it. It actually morphs depending on what you eat. Sometimes I catch more saltiness, other times more sweetness. It's almost like having several drinks in one.

That's why it's called "the great all arounder".. which in this case, isn't a bad thing.

I love the HP 12, picked a bottle up last week at the New Hampshire state liquor store for 36 bucks. I like the HP 18 also, but not sure the quality improvement justifies the price. I bought a McPhails cask strength HP 12 un chill filtered for the price of the 18. It is a riveting whisky.

JW