Signatory Highland Park Shinanoya Selection Review
Background
I have a problem. The problem is that, when faced with a single malt induced bit of purchasing or tasting indecision, I tend to panic and then immediately look for a Highland Park offering. Comfort in the familiar, and independent bottlings of Highland Park have become a consistent point of enjoyment for me. I like the salinity, the gentle peat, and what that distillate does in a variety of casks. Not too long ago, I reviewed three Highland Park SMWS offerings, and enjoyed them all. My overburdened shelf has started to become a bit of a comical exercise in “which Highland Park would I like to drink today?”
Anyways, the panic. I had the good fortune recently of taking an extended vacation to Japan with my wife. There I quickly learned that Japan, particularly Tokyo, is a land where you walk into a liquor store and are immediately confronted with an overwhelming amount of choice. Look, I’m not wildly far along in my journey of drinking and reviewing scotch. More well versed readers must at least acknowledge this is not the most approachable of hobbies. Therefore, I will admit I am somewhat hopeless at being able to ascertain value when facing a wall of options. So there I sat, in a liquor store, staring at a wide array of options while the yen crashed around me and my wife exuded more patience than I ever would if we were shopping for her. I see a familiar name- Orkney… HIGHLAND PARK! And an exclusive for Japan no less, what a souvenir. Purchase made, shame at my inability to branch out engaged.
Signatory Unnamed Orkney (Highland Park) Shinanoya Selection (13 Years, 62.5%)
Nose: A sherry driven, floral note is most prominent. It’s a gentle sherry influence though, along with a bit of artificial red fruit rock candy. Hints of lemon peels and honey.
Palate: Verges on a creamy note, but not quite. There’s a certain ineffable texture that’s quite nice. It’s not syrupy, it’s not sticky per say, but it’s not thin by any means. The front of the palate gives a strawberry pop-tart filling vibe before moving into grilled lemon and salt spray note.
Finish: That rock candy note is back, salty and briny on the finish with that charred citrus from the palate also present. There’s some black pepper, and it is ultimately defined by a nice balance between that rock candy sweetness, some salinity and hints of pepper.
Great to Excellent (7.5/10)
Overall: You are welcome to take this review with a grain of salt. I made my biases well known in the intro. That said, the sherry never gets to be overwhelming, but rather gently supplements a classic Highland Park character. At times, the sip borderlines on being a little brazen given the proof, but that gentle sweetness keeps the overall experience in check.
