Highland Park 10 year old 1988/1999

Nose is very spirity and amazingly estery; far more so than even aromatic Speysiders such as The Balvenie and The Macallan. Completely unmistakeable apple notes in the nose. Palate is smoky and fruity; my tasting notes include apple, Bosc pear, D'Anjou pear, burnt apple cores, and baked red apples. There is about a second and a half to enjoy the flavors before a firehose-like surge of ethanol. When that subsides you are left with the heavier fruit flavors. The finish is amazingly persistent in flavor and warmth, and the esophageal warming lasts almost as long. At fully fifteen minutes, flavors are still clear, resolving as spiced applesauce and the flavor a smoker's pipe leaves in the mouth. Very youthful and exciting with a complex and wonderful interplay of fruit and smoke flavors. Magnificent! Find a bottle and buy it.