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With notes of smooth caramel, smoky oak, and salty seaweed, this rare 27-year-old scotch has unsurprisingly won several notable accolades…
Set your watch: it’s time to invest in your next big bottle of whisky. And this — an outstanding 27-year-old Highland Park from independent bottler One Cask at a Time’s impressive debut collection — is the perfect choice. Distilled in 1996, it’s a sublime scotch from the Orkney Islands, and has already been recognised on the world stage.
Earlier this year, the whisky scooped both a coveted Global Scotch Whisky Masters ‘Master’ award and an International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) Silver medal.
But every whisky bottled by One Cask at a Time is a rare find or hidden gem; their six single cask malts representing some of the best distilleries across Scotland, including Ledaig and Auchentoshan. And the releases are divided into three horology-themed series: Chronograph, Pendulum, and Grandfather.
Every dram of this whisky, the Highland Park 1996, is sweetly suffused with warming notes. And those drams are extremely limited, with only 187 bottles of this expression available (and many of those already snapped up and sipped at).
There’s plenty to like about the liquid — but the One Cask at a Time experience extends beyond the bottle. Every lucky collector also has access to a ‘Bottle Passport’, allowing them to brush up on the finer details of their choice bottle, whether cask information, distillery history, or tasting notes — which neatly (or over ice, your choice) leads us to the Gentleman’s Journal verdict on this singular, seasoned scotch…
On the eyes: Before we even get to the scotch itself, the presentation box offers up a treat. Staying true to the clocks that give this loftiest of the collections its name, each bottle in the Grandfather range stands handsomely in a dark-grained, open-faced wooden case with bronze accents. The liquid itself is equally majestic; a rich and inviting gold that pours with some serious legs, promising depth and texture. And, as it's non-chill filtered, that colour is all-natural. Impressive stuff.
On the nose: Where to start? The aromas deliver (and then some) on the promise of those vibrant, high-spirited hues. But there’s no ugly jostling or bar-fighting between them. Instead, the seeming dozens of different notes and savours swirl together in mild, glad-handing harmony. There’s a smoky maritime bouquet — samphire, seaweed, a sprinkling of salt crystals with sand-dune dryness — but also lemon zest and linseed oil, alongside a cavalcade of Calvados-soaked dessert notes, including poached pears, heather honey, and banana bread.
On the palate: Take a sip, and it’s a tale of two spirits. On one hand, the relatively low 43.4% ABV softly ushers in a clutch of more lightly bud-brushing notes: think smooth caramel, gently toasted oak, and another generous drizzle of that heather honey. But there’s more to be found if you drill deeper into the oily mouthfeel: additional angular aromas of white pepper and sharp tropical fruits. And yet, once more, these flavours find a balance — bridged by nutmeg and cinnamon spice, and a whisper of peat smoke.
On the finish: Let it linger, and the sharper-edged notes will mature in your mouth. That smooth caramel will set into chewier toffee; those tart fruits will stew into orange marmalade. And, under it all — as the sweetness subsides, and the saltiness is taken back out by the tide — the peat smoulders to the top until, finally, only smoky campfire embers remain. Time for a second sip.
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