Highland Park Valknut SIngle Malt Scotch Review & Tasting Notes

If you’ve never heard of the Scottish city of Kirkwall, that’s okay. There’s not a whole lot that earns attention. Kirkwall is located near the Arctic Circle, at about the same latitude as Anchorage, and is one of several that make up the Orkney Islands. What Kirkwall does have is a remote distillery called Highland Park.

Recently I was provided with a sample of Valknut, the second in Highland Park’s Viking Legend series. I’d like to thank Highland Park for providing me it with no strings attached for my unbiased review.

According to Highland Park, Valknut means “knot of those slain in battle” and represents the story of Odin, the Norse god, guiding souls from the land of living to the underworld and back again.

Highland Park suggests they are located outside Scotland’s five whiskey regions, however, legally they are in the Highland region. Valknut is a peated Highland Scotch. As such, I expect some smokiness associated with the flavor along with a certain amount of fruitiness. For the most part, I enjoy whiskies from this vast, diverse region. Highland Park uses sherry-seasoned oak casks to age Valknut. I assume this is the same as using a sherry cask. Regardless, the big question is, is this Highland Park release worth the suggested $76 investment? Time to #DrinkCurious and find out...

For those unfamiliar with Scotch, it is perfectly legal to add caramel coloring to the finished product to garner a more appealing appearance. Because Scotch is typically aged in used barrels, it often lacks the deep colors we see in Bourbon and American Rye. Highland Park makes a point that Valknut does not contain artificial coloring or additives. The appearance was a rich gold and created a medium-thick rim that led to fat droplets to fall back into the pool.

At chin level, I picked up aromas of vanilla and very slight smoke. When the glass was raised to lip level, pear and oak became evident. Held just under my nostrils, the smoke was more prevalent, effectively muting the pear and vanilla. When I inhaled through my lips, black pepper and vanilla danced on my tongue.

The mouthfeel was thin but creamy. The whisky was initially sweet with raisins which lasted through the mid- and back-palate. Other flavors mingled with the raisins as it traveled across the tongue. Up front was honey and oak, which led to pepper and smoke, and finally morphed to clove and other warm spices.

I found the finish very creamy and long-lasting. The peatiness died out quickly, while the sweetness carried through.

At 46.8% ABV (93.6°), this is almost perfectly proofed. However, I’ve also had several nice experiences adding a few drops of water to peated Scotches. Using an eyedropper, two drops were sufficient to provide noticeable, unexpected changes. I had anticipated a thicker mouthfeel with stronger vanillas. Instead, that small amount of water made the clove explode without changing the mouthfeel but completely wiped out the sweetness. Proofing it down definitely diminished the quality.

Bottle, Bar, or Bust: If this was proofed down to 40% or 42% ABV, I’d rate this as a Bust. As I stated, 46.8% seems almost perfect and makes a world of difference. I truly enjoyed it neat and, in the world of Scotch, $76 is a moderate price, and I would be happy to have a bottle in my whiskey library. As such, it earns the Bottle rating. Cheers!