Kampai!!

Japanese Whisky!

On the 9th of February we held a small tasting for those big whisky nerds who wanted to try five different Japanese whiskies side by side. Thursday we packed as many people possible into a tiny room and dissected several whiskies from the East. Coming from the same company, Suntory, I expected to find some of the family similarities within these whiskies that Willie had described the previous week.

Hibiki 12 yo blend
A blend of whiskies taken from both Yamazaki and Hakushu distillies, it is totally dominated by the time it spent in plum wine casks. 
Nose: fruity (peaches, cantaloupe) "marmalade and melon". Deep ruby reds
Taste: very light compared to a decently rich and complex nose. Immediately sat at the back of the tongue and tasted of glue, resin, and tree sap. Quite bitter and fleeting after an initial shock of sweetness. "Candied apple"

Yamazaki 12 yo single malt
This was the first Japanese single malt to ever be produced from Japan's first distillery.
Nose: plums, honey, shredded wheat, vanilla
Taste: a very subtle taste again. Not overpowering. Begins with noodle-y oak nature and quickly turns to a bitter fleeting sensation again.

Yamazaki Puncheon
Matured in a 480-liter virgin oak puncheon cask, 48% and non-chill filtered to boot!
Nose: honeydew melon, pine, roasted pine nuts and walnuts, cream cheese icing, granulated sugar, Haribos, "nail varnish", "pear"
Taste: a bouncy dram, spiced ginger, light and floral, again very fleeting.

Hakushu 12 yo
Coming from Suntory's second distillery, this whisky is widely popular in Japan for its use of peat.
Nose: picked peaty black pepper
Taste: old fireplace cinders. green barley peat kiln   

Hakushu Heavily Peated
A "heavily peated" version of the original spirit. It promises to hold onto the subtle Japanese characteristics without delivering the traditional Scottish heavy peat.  
Nose: irnbru smoke, cinnamon, rust, bubblegum
Taste: "peat Robatayaki",  tobacco and green apples, dry smoke but leaving a behind a very wet palate. "Like an old geisha sitting in a public swimming pool", "peated by someone who has never been to Islay"

The Suntory Family and the Water of Life Society

The more mindful readers out there will notice that I have removed the "overall" category from my tasting notes. Since we decided to compare the whiskies side by side I waited until the very end to take a quick poll of the room to see which whisky would be voted the best. As I proclaimed the five names, hands went up all over the room. There was no single whisky that commanded the room that night. They all shared characteristics particular to Japanese whiskies (notably apple, plums and their light and fleeting nature) but they were different enough to cut across the preferences of all 28 of us present.

A house divided.