Highland Park 16 years Twisted Tattoo

Score: 73

Highland Park Twisted Tattoo 16 years. walked into the tasting with a very different kind of promise with a striking cask story: first‑fill Rioja married with first‑fill bourbon, all wrapped in that vivid, ink‑inspired design. It’s a whisky that signals colour, fruit, and modernity before you even pour it, and that set expectations for something expressive and a little bit showy. In the glass, it delivered more consistently. The Rioja casks brought red berries, plum skin, and a gentle wine‑tannin grip, while the bourbon barrels added vanilla, citrus, and clean oak that kept the whisky bright rather than heavy. The Orkney peat, floral, heather‑driven, never aggressive, framed the sweetness rather than fighting it. The palate had a nice rhythm: fruit first, then honey and toasted oak, then a soft, aromatic smoke. It wasn’t a powerhouse, but it was coherent, flavourful, and more mature. *Tasting Notes* "Lovely nose" "Nose is fresh but it’s almost like something is missing. It feels like it was whole at one point and then someone just took out the most important part somehow. The taste is similar. Lacking something important. The finish is surprisingly better." "Sweet and rich but needs more punch for me."