Highland Park Valknut Scotch Review

By Richard Thomas

Rating: B+

Highland Park Valknut
(Credit: Edrington)

With nearly everything closed on Monday and Tuesday, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I was stuck with some strolling in a local nature park (which is always open from dawn to dusk), writing and catching up on Vikings to occupy myself between family engagements. And what better to pair with Ivar the Boneless’s psychopathy than some Norse-themed Highland Park?

If the word “Valknut” sounds similar to “Valkyrie” (predecessor in this Highland Park series, no less), there is a reason for that. The Valknut means “‘knot of those slain in battle,” and looks like three intertwined triangles. As a rune, it was thought to invoke the Odin the All-Father to serve as a guide to the spirits of the departed, which isn’t too far removed from his role as the lord of the Valkyries, who carried the worthy dead off to Valhalla.

As a whisky, Valknut is known to use a modest proportion of spirit made using Orkney-grown Tartan barley, and the whisky was matured in American oak Sherry-seasoned casks. It is bottled at 46.8% ABV.

The Scotch
In the glass, Valknut has a straw-like, light wine wine coloring. Swishing the glass left behind an oily coat and thick, leaf-vein style tears.

The nose takes a bit of a cue from the coloring actually, because it led with straw bales, followed by a hint of ash and a trace of pepper. The taste of the whisky was sweeter, richly endowed with honey and spiced with sandalwood, and just a touch smoky. The finish turned back to the field and spice character of the nose, running with cinnamon and heather.

Overall, it’s a fine sipping dram. It’s smokier than I’ve come to expect from Highland Park, and although hardly a smoky beast of a whisky, it puts a nice twist on the distillery’s character. If you didn’t know it was Highland Park, it’s just smoky enough that you might have a hard time picking it out as such.

The Price
Expect to pay $80 in the US and £58 in the UK.