Highland Park 12 vs. 18 - Your thoughts?

HP12: Malt,salt, peat; HP18 has those things plus is sherried and further mellowed. Do you want sherry flavour in the mix or not? HP12 is very straightforward malt whisky, but nicely so. Many people start with it and it is a very basic well known malt whisky. HP18 has legions of fans beyond the "beginners' " palate and pocketbook, as do the also-sherried 15, 25, and 30 yo expressions from the same distillery. Myself, I much prefer all of the sherried Highland Park products to the 12 which is not sherried. HP18 is a very lovely whisky.

@Victor Thanks for that. My exposure thus far has been limited to Speyside single malts (apart from Talisker 10 which I've found a little too medicinal for my uneducated palate).

I was hoping to start exploring beyond Speyside but without diving head-first into some heavily-peated Islay whiskies. Would Highland Park 12 suit this do you think?

@blastedoak42, yes, HP12 would do well for your purposes, as would a number of other Highland Malts, such as Old Pulteney 12, Glenmorangie Original, Dalwhinnie 15, and Clynelish 14. Of these 5, my own tastes would most often take me to the Old Pulteney 12 or the Glenmorangie Original. If and when you want to embellish further, Glenmorangie has a lot of nice variations with wine finishes of several varieties.

@Victor Thanks for your advice. I'll add Old Pulteney to my shopping list for next time I'm passing the Whisky Exchange shop in London.

Hey, @blastedoak42,

I absolutely agree with Victor about the Old Pulteney 12, a fabulous dram for the price. In fact, I agree with every recommendation he made. However, I would also assert that HP 12 is one of the world's great sleeper whiskies--there is nothing else like it on earth, and it's worth considerably more than the asking price. The 18 is great, but sometimes I like the 12 even better. Don't hesitate to spend the meager asking price for a bottle of this glorious whisky.

Another ridiculously complex and enjoyable dram at a similar price point is Springbank 10; and to complete the parallel, the Springbank 15 is similar in cost to the HP 18. And again, sometimes I like the 10 even better (although the 15 is magical stuff).

Highland Park tends to be a delicious smoke/honey/toffee/vanilla show, whereas the Springbank stuff is more about herbs and bacon fat, an oily, chewy, complex charcoal-grilled melange of sense-baffling heaven.

You can't lose in this game...

Ch

Thanks @Charlie-Davis. That's another few to add to my growing wish-list!

I've got to agree with @ Victor and @Charlie D. I'd recommend starting off with the Highland Park 12 before the HP18. It's an easier, lower priced introduction to the peated malts and as mentioned above, a super value for a super malt! If you like the HP12, then get the higher priced HP18 as you'll love it and will appreciate it much more as you transition.

In my opinion you have to partecipate in a vertical tasting: 1)HP12Y 2)HP 15Y 3)HP 18Y 4)HP 21Y 5)HP25Y You'll find your best dram! You'll understend and love every substantial differences.

@Andrea I wish I could afford to fund such a tasting.

@blastedoak42 the recommendations from Victor are on the money, particularly OP12 and Clynelish 14 in my opinion. However HP12 was the first whisky I ever took a shine to and it is a classic, though I have to admit when I go back to it now I'm somewhat underwhelmed. As a relative newcomer to the world of whisky myself I find that money spent on older expressions isn't always rewarded by a more enjoyable dram, and you have to let your palate adapt gradually. Hope that helps...

@blastedoak42 "I wish I could afford to fund such a tasting."

Even an entire elephant can be eaten...one bite at a time. The whisk(e)y world is full of choices and it takes time to explore what's out there...one dram / bottle at a time.

blastedoak42 you have to buy miniature; € 6 for 1 miniature (you can find in wthe whiskyexchange.com)... and than you can choose your best dram.... SIMPLY

Thanks to all for your invaluable advice. I've just ordered a bottle of HP12 and one of Old Pulteney 12.

Can't wait to see where they take me.

@Andrea this is a bit out of topic, but I was in Ferrara during the past days and saw a wine and whisky shop near the station, was it yours? :)

@blastedoak42 Enjoy the ride! I don't think it ever ends once you get on.

I am also fairly new to SMSW and with the guidance of those on this site have purchased the HP 12. Being a novice, I was initially surprised by the peat (smoke) but after a few samplings I was able to discern the honey at the start and the smoke on the finish. I now really enjoy this whisky but have not yet ventured into more peated malts. I would suggest Balvenie DoubleWood also.
Enjoy the journey, the good folks on this site are really helpful.

Hi Lucadanna, nice to speak to you, NO I haven't a whisky shop...... When you will travel near Ferrara you'll have to visit KIK BAR Via S.Donato BOLOGNA...... great assortement of old and new single malt. The propeter Bruno Benassi is a great conoisseur of whisky....GREAT COLLECTION

@Andrea Ive sent you a buddy request! Anyway, I was there because some friends of mine own a youth hostel named student's hostel in corso biagio rossetti, they're all sicilians :)

@lucadanna1985 I hope you enjoied in Ferrara.......... When you'll return in Ferrara Drink some good single malt dram in Bar Brindisi near Piazza Duomo!!!!!!!!!!! Have a good whisky speaking!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@blastedoak42 If you are new to it, try HP 12 first. If you like the distinctive taste of HP, then go for a HP18, which is one of the best whisky I have ever tasted and I am starting to have a few behind my lever ;o)

I finished my bottle of HP 18 recently and it is priced at 145$ CA here in Quebec. I know I can find it at 80$ in some US stores so, I wait until I get a chance to grab one but I miss it very much. The HP 18 is very very complex. You find a new aroma each time you put your nose in the glass. Very nice.

@Kutter, I have now tried the HP 12. I do indeed like it - very much! The initial sweetness on the nose and the tongue followed by the dryness and then the smokiness is wonderful. The HP 18 is definitely on my birthday present wish list. I've found a supplier here in the UK who are selling right now for £49. See here; tinyurl.com/65wgssj

@Charlie-Davis wow, a virtual whisky doppelgänger! your tastes closely mirror my own--so i guess i need to try old pulteney 12! amen to your sentiments regarding HP and springbank! cheers...

@yalc yes, for me, while it may lack a little of the desired punch, HP12 performs a nifty little magic trick, turning heather into smoke. truly a journey in a glass, which is whisky at its best (IMHO). enjoy!

18 for me. I know it is the conventional wisdom, but I'm not sure I agree that one benefits by starting out with younger, less complex whiskies. Unless price is the determining factor. But I admit I could be wrong...

HP is one of my favorite malts. For me the 18 is the baseline HP. I would generally not want to drink an HP inferior to it, if I could help it. For the official bottlings with age statements my order of preference is HP 30, HP 18, HP 25, HP 12 and HP 15.

I love the 25, and like the fact that it's barrel strength vs the 30 which is not. I wish I could find the 21 to try, I bet that's great. Depending on my mood I'll swap preference between the 12 and 18....

Just a correction: the 12yo is absolutely sherried, 20% of which is first-fill, and it shows: "Everything we do at Highland Park is all about sherry casks; we only use sherry casks for our whisky." www.youtube.com/watch

@vanPelt, yes, sherry casks could always be used with HP12, but you could, like me, get a bottle in which it was absolutely impossible to nose or to taste ANY sherry. That bottle was from 6 years ago. I am sure that the batches are different now.

@Victor I think I bought one of those bottles as well - kept me away from Highland Park for a few years. This this past Christmas, here in the Chicago suburbs, I found HP12 in a jet-black tin with a sample of Dark Origins. I thought, "Highland Park is going to put their best foot forward for the holidays." (not sure the bottling was intended for the holiday season, just guessing) I was not disappointed. Excellent bottle with obvious sherry influence, yet balanced with thin wisps of smoke (can I say "drank older" even if I'm not entirely sure what that means?). If every batch of HP 12 could be so, I would always stock a bottle and be happy with it over the 18, but alas...

Regarding the old pulteney 12 - it gets good reviews, but the bottle I have has a sour taste to it, which for me is unpleasant. I guess batches differ.