Maybe someone "in the know" can give me some advice. My first bottle of scotch purchased about a year ago was HP 12. Loved it, Went to Scotland last fall and devoured quite a good number of drams of HP 12 along with many others. Loved it. Subsequently have shifted over to peatier drams such as Laphroaig QC, Caol Ila 12, Bruichladdich Peat, Bowmore 12, Benriach Curiositas,Ardmore Traditional Cask etc. but still thought my love affair with HP 12 was intact even though I flirted elsewhere. Opened a new 750 ml botlle of HP 43% today and was quite disappointed with the lack of peatiness and thought there was a bitter offputting aftertaste. So much so that I tried a head to head with Laddie 10 which I also find to have much the same aftertaste. It was very similar. Had my wife taste the two and she thought the same. My recollection of HP 12 was one of a "smoother for lack of a better term" whisky with a bit of a smokey lingering finish. Just wondering if my taste buds have been scewed by my new fondness for Peat or if maybe I have purchased a bad bottling. I haven't really read anything about batch fluctuations in the HP bottlings. But I am starting to ramble. Any thoughts on this.
Jonesz
Maybe someone "in the know" can give me some advice. My first bottle of scotch purchased about a year ago was HP 12. Loved it, Went to Scotland last fall and devoured quite a good number of drams of HP 12 along with many others. Loved it. Subsequently have shifted over to peatier drams such as Laphroaig QC, Caol Ila 12, Bruichladdich Peat, Bowmore 12, Benriach Curiositas,Ardmore Traditional Cask etc. but still thought my love affair with HP 12 was intact even though I flirted elsewhere. Opened a new 750 ml botlle of HP 43% today and was quite disappointed with the lack of peatiness and thought there was a bitter offputting aftertaste. So much so that I tried a head to head with Laddie 10 which I also find to have much the same aftertaste. It was very similar. Had my wife taste the two and she thought the same. My recollection of HP 12 was one of a "smoother for lack of a better term" whisky with a bit of a smokey lingering finish. Just wondering if my taste buds have been scewed by my new fondness for Peat or if maybe I have purchased a bad bottling. I haven't really read anything about batch fluctuations in the HP bottlings. But I am starting to ramble. Any thoughts on this. Jonesz