Matured predominantly in European and American sherry seasoned oak casks, our iconic 12 Year Old single malt whisky is spicy and well-rounded, packed with the flavours of sun-kissed Seville oranges and rich fruitcake spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves; you'll find molten heather honey in this whisky's waves of heathery peat smoke. Why not try it with a handful of wasabi peas on the side or alongside a sizzling, pan-fried rib-eye steak or with smoked salmon and sour cream. We've been crafting our award-winning whisky at the Highland Park Distillery in Kirkwall, Orkney, since 1798. Age, experience and respect for tradition may define our whisky, but it's Orkney that sets it apart. Something magic happens here and the result is the wild harmony of flavours found in our whisky.
What you smell and taste in a whisky is highly subjective.
Even the pros do not always agree on the tasting notes. Therefore, we have combined the tasting notes from several sources into a cross-section Nose, Palate, and Finish to find the commonalities between two whiskies. We use the Aroma Wheel with its concentric circles of increasingly specific tastes and smells (general in the center; more specific the further out you go) to find Exact, Secondary, and General matches between two whiskies. We also take into account other important factors like mash bill, barrel type(s), ABV, region, ratings, price and more. We then weight each factor based on what we believe to be the approximate importance it has in determining whether two whiskies are similar.
We're all different.
Again, we cannot stress enough that what you smell and taste in a whisky is likely going to be different than the person you're drinking it with. Whisky Mates is meant to be a guide to help you find what you like drinking, using the best methodologies available. In the end, rely on your own palate to tell you what you like and don't like.