Highland Park 13, 1988-2001, Blackadder, Sherry oak butt no. 11924, 505 bottles, 58% abv.

Nose: quite simply an overflowing picnic basket of aged, rum-soaked, sun-dried raisins. Upclose, I smell remnants of wet, old steamed lotus leaves, dried red fruits, wet bread.

Palate: oily but dry, intense, generally different flavors popup throughout and sometimes even repeat themselves, although each flavor is distinct. At some points, I tasted extreme sherry with its composition of dried raisins, grapes, pears, and then on the other side of the spectrum I tasted young tofu and wet old steamed lotus leaves. Sometimes I tasted melting unsalted butter, sometimes salted berries, sometimes just a box of sweet small fruits. After adding some water, as the Blackadder label recommended, the wet old steamed lotus leaves flavor profile came to the front, and the dried fruit and sherry flavors went to the back, but still quite prominent. The back palate and finish became more salty, like the skin of whole steamed dried fish, clam shell broth, salted wood, dried tsukemono before the pickling, if that makes any sense.

Finish: long, dry, salty, copper, dried fruit skins, dried berries, the crust on a thick dry rubbed steak, light spices, has a cooling effect.

Intense is the keyword on this one. Many extreme flavors and if you remember my theory on the relationship between wet old steamed lotus leaves and a well bodied over-sherried sherry, then you might understand when I say this is only at the ends of that spectrum. It has no components that help connect or bridge these flavors, sort of like a pitcher that throws a 150 mph fast ball but hits the strikebox 20% of the time. Water didn't help. I don't know if this is a well developed dram, or if it was just plain luck it ended up like this. A little crazy in my amateurish opinion.

Grade: B+

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Image courtesy of Eric Yee.

Eric Yee

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