A friend brought me back this Highland Park 12 Year Old "Viking Honour" from a work trip to Scotland. I don't usually open peat-leaning malts at home, so it's not a bottle I'd pick up on my own — which is exactly why I sat down with it carefully.
Highland Park's distillery sits on the Orkney Islands — a cluster at 59°N, beyond the northern tip of mainland Scotland and across more sea. It's one of the world's northernmost Scotch distilleries, founded in 1798. The islands were once Norse territory, and even today many surnames and place names trace back to Norway. The Viking motifs across the brand and labels aren't just decoration; they're the actual history of the place.
The distinctive aroma made by heather peat
Orkney's peat is different from Islay's. With almost no trees on the island, the peat is built from local plant matter — especially heather fibres. Burning that under the malting kiln creates a smoke that's nothing like the iodine, medicinal note of Islay; instead it's sweeter, gentler, more like burning an aromatic wood. Highland Park's signature character leans heavily on this heather peat.
The 12 is the house standard. The label calls it "Spicy & Well-Rounded," and that's accurate: nose of heather honey, light citrus, cinnamon and clove. On the palate, sherry-cask dried fruit comes first, with peat smoke smouldering quietly underneath. Less assertive than Islay, so it's an easy first peaty whisky to recommend.
Holds up neat without losing shape; a small splash of room-temperature water (a "twice-up") opens the aroma another step. Made into a highball it loses its character, so I stay neat with this one.
Scotch is supposed to be the geography of its origin in liquid form. The sea wind of Islay, the apple orchards of Speyside, the highland hills — and what Highland Park carries is Orkney itself: the islands, the memory of the Vikings, the heather-covered moor. Each pour feels like borrowing the view from 59°N for a while.
Highland Park — Background
※ This section combines public information with the author's notes; please confirm the latest details on the official sites.
About the Orkney Islands
Around 70 islands north of mainland Scotland, between the North Sea and the Norwegian Sea. The distillery is in the main town, Kirkwall. The islands were Norse from the 9th century and only joined Scotland in 1468. Skara Brae, a Neolithic site, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Founding and the "Viking Soul"
Founded in 1798. The founder, Magnus Eunson, is said to have descended from Vikings. The brand line "The Viking Soul of Scotch Whisky" sits at the centre of its philosophy. The current owner is the Edrington Group (which also owns The Macallan).
The Five Keystones
The distillery's "Five Keystones" — Hand-Turned Floor Maltings, Aromatic Peat (heather peat), Cool Maturation, Sherry Oak Casks, and Cask Harmonisation — guide its production. It's still one of the very few distilleries that does a meaningful share of its own floor malting in-house.