A toast to Mr. Samaroli - Highland Park 'Flowing Feature', 1992/2016

Mr. Silvano Samaroli is a legend in the whisky industry. He made his name in the industry as the importer and bottler of Scotch whiskies in Italy, and has a reputation for bottling some pretty astounding stuff. Those lucky Italians. In any case, Mr. Samaroli passed on a couple of weeks ago. The whisky world loses one of its great men. In honour of the good work done, I had a Samaroli whisky this weekend.

Mr. Samaroli visited Singapore's The Auld Alliance a couple of weeks before his passing. The friendship between the Italian and The Auld Alliance saw an expansion in the menu here - there are now Samaroli flights that you can try, priced at $40 for the entry level blends, and $80 for single cask single malts. The one I tried was a Highland Park named 'Flowing Feature', and bottled at 45%. It was from a 1992 vintage, and bottled just last year. The bottle's really pretty too. I asked H from The Auld Alliance if they could give me the bottle after it's empty, and he very kindly said yes. Bless him. I actually knew H from the time he was a student in university, so I'm glad to see him doing something he enjoys.

Highland Park 'Flowing Feature' 1992/2016 (abv 45%)

Colour: Straw. This is fairly pale for a single cask whisky that's been maturing for 24 years. Probably a refill cask.

Nose: Oooh. This is a Highland Park, without a doubt. Orange, grapefruit, honey. Then, a big perfume and floral rhapsody that's very captivating. I normally don't like whiskies that are so perfumed, but I think I can make an exception for this one. There's some liquorice and oak, and then, a malty, porridgy undertone. Mmm. This might be close to what S. Valentin of whiskyfun.com describes as "wet dogs".

Palate: Sweet entry, with the honey notes coming to the fore, then some kind of floral tea - both floral, and a little tannic. Dried flowers - that'll be potpourri, I believe. Cloves and maybe one sprig of parsley. Dried orange peel and some lingering citrus notes that remind me of grapefruit. Then, as on the nose, the malty side starts to show itself later in the background, but comes across fairly strongly. What I really like about this, as with the Port Ellen reviewed a couple of weeks ago, was the texture. Thick and viscous, it felt like honey upon entry, like a blob of something viscous entered your mouth, rather than liquid. Ok, that didn't make sense. Viscosity is only used to describe liquids. Okok.

Finish: Mm. Spicy and oaky. Tannins from black tea this time, a little bit of honey and vanilla - odd, I didn't pick this up earlier. Fairly mineral too - wet rocks (no, not wet dogs. Rocks). Some floral suggestions linger, like the time I went to Korea and had a Bimbimbap that used edible flowers instead of vegetables. The finish is fairly long.

Overall - I really like this. The texture is a huge plus for me, and any whisky that combines deep flavours with such a texture will score high in my books. Many thanks to Mr. Samaroli for bringing us such great whiskies for so many years, God bless his soul.

Age to Age - Auld Alliance Irish Single Malt

Another year older, another year wiser, another year drunker. Thinking about what whisky to celebrate my birthday, I thought, why not drink something distilled in the same year I was born? Brilliant. And I know exactly which whisky to get.

When The Auld Alliance re-launched their menu, a couple of whiskies were advertised quite prominently. One of these was an unidentified Irish whisky distilled in the year 1988. Been eyeing that for a year, actually. Finally got to try it, and my my, was it worth the wait.

The Auld Alliance Irish Single Malt Whisky 1988/2015 (51.2% abv)

Colour - light gold

Nose - Intensely fruity. Pineapples, tinned peaches, syrup, figs, some light grapes, some oak in the undertones...This is a massive fruit basket! The fruits are fresh, and the nose is a little sharp, which aids in the delivery of the citrusy nose. There's also notes of some spice in the nose, but man, that's one sexy fruit basket.

Palate - Pineapples on entry, transiting into...I'm pretty sure of this - pink guava. No, not kidding. Pink guava. There's some berries as well - strawberries, and with some time, it becomes closer to something more tart. Raspberries, perhaps? Figs are still there, and the oak tells as well, but the big fruitiness keeps everything fresh and beautiful. With some time, a more malty side emerges. Slight metallic twang, a little bit of black tea, and some toffee at the end.

Finish - Not too long. I think this goes down a little too quickly, actually. Some oak, a little spice. Slightly malty and porridgey too. But nothing lasts very long. Pity.

Overall - Pretty good! Feels very fruity and young for its age, but this is deep and complex. Love the fruits and freshness, though the finish is perhaps not perfect. Many many thanks to EP for celebrating my birthday and enjoying this dram with me! I think she preferred her Whisky Sour better though...