Review | Highland Park Sherry Skies 19 Years Old

Sherry Skies represents the final whisky created by Gordon Motion, the Master Whisky Maker for Highland Park. He has held the position for 16 years, but is now retiring. In that time he has overseen 90 new expressions of the Orcadian malt, plus 435 single cask selections for different world markets. This final bottling features just nine casks – 3x European oak ex-sherry quarter casks, 3x American oak ex-sherry quarter casks and 3x- ex-bourbon barrels. The whisky is bottled at 19 years of age.

Highland Park is located on the Orkney Islands, close to the capital of Kirkwall. The distillery is one of the oldest producing whisky in Scotland and was established in 1798 by David Robertson. The ‘whisky priest’ Magnus Eunson had previously operated an illegal distillery on the site. He was an interesting character who was a priest by day and an illicit distiller by night.

Highland Park is currently owned by the Edrington Group with an annual production capacity of 2.5 million litres. It is one of the few distilleries in Scotland to malt some of their barley on-site. The volume equates to around 25% of the malt needed for production. They dry this malt using Orkney peat. This is mixed with an unpeated malt from a commercial maltster, Simpson’s.

The Highland Park Sherry Skies 19 Years Old is bottled at 48.8% ABV and is both non-chill filtered and of natural colour. It is available on allocation in selected world markets, plus from the distillery shop on Orkney and www.highlandparkwhisky.com. There are just 1,200 bottles and each will cost £265.

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Our Tasting Notes

The colour is deep coppery amber and the nose is sweet, rich and with a late savoury twist. Aromas of caramel, almond and toffee mix with dried fruits such as raisin and sultana, plus a hint of maple syrup. Heather honey and orange oils add further depth. Delicate baking spices – think of cinnamon, nutmeg and clove especially – and old cigar box are also detected. Everything is wrapped in a subtle, gentle peat smoke.

On the palate this whisky feels silky, decadent and rich. Upfront is a distinct note of fruit and nut milk chocolate with raisin and hazelnut in abundance. Notes of caramel and heather honey follow, as do hints of vanilla paste, green apple and ripe apricots and peaches. Other dried fruits are also evident, especially prunes, plump sultana and some candied orange peel.

The gentle, ashy smoke wisps around these characteristics but never dominates. It sits classily in the background and adds structure, depth and complexity. A hint of dried heather accentuates this. Some toasted walnut and delicate oak spice also come through towards the end, and this adds a lovely savoury quality.

The finish is long and drying. The sweet elements and dried fruits fade first, then the fresh fruit. The apple and peach linger longest. This allows the drying oak and baking spices to shine as the smokiness also slowly fades. A pinch of cocoa powder and a leather-like savoury note evolve nicely at the close.

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What’s The Verdict?

This is a sublime whisky and one that is a fitting tribute as Gordon Motion’s final offering. The marriage of the small ex-sherry quarter casks, both American and European oak, is superb. The addition of the ex-bourbon barrels is clever and stops the sherry influence being too exaggerated. It is so multi-layered and remarkably fresh and expressive for its age. We love Highland Park and this is definitely one for the ages. It is terrific and we urge you to grab one before the limited amount has gone.

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I’ve sampled 100,000s of casks during my 27-year career, and the nine selected for Sherry Skies deliver a unique depth of flavour – singing with the sherry sweetness that I have loved exploring and perfecting, balanced with the subtle hint of aromatic smoke of our Orkney heathered peat.

Gordon Motion.