February 15, 2016

Japan with power and ages

Only three whiskies today, but probably (hopefully) some of the best Japanese, with due ages or vintage statements –whether old or young – and all at high strength. So no tiring gimmicky and questionable bottle. Please fasten your seat belts…

Hanyu 2000/2015 (58.8%, OB for La Maison du Whisky, cask #63, 300 bottles)

The prices that any Hanyus are fetching these days are totally insane, but at least most are very good whiskies. I'd add that LMDW's artwork is always splendid, at least they don't just plunder old books that are supposed to have gotten 'free of rights'. Colour: red amber/copper. Nose: starts a wee tad buttery, like many Hanyus in my meagre experience, and gets then rather meaty, with some ham and notes of pencil shavings. Not too easy to nose when undiluted. With water: I wouldn’t say it changed much. Butter cream, old chenin blanc, heather honey… No, wait, it gets pretty immensely floral, which is really cool. Peonies, pot-pourri, roses, lilac… A ‘different’ whisky for sure. Mouth (neat): massive, acidic and jammy at the same time, with a buttery oak and notes of lavender sweets and Toplexil. The jury’s still out… With water: gingerbread, ginger, mango chutney, white pepper, coriander… It’s getting there, it’s getting there. It’s really pretty different. Finish: long, rather spicy, on a slightly sour honeyed base. Mead and ham – nice meal! Comments: an unusual dram for sure. Having said that, I tend to like mine a little cleaner and better chiselled, this baby reminds me a bit of those ‘natural’ wines, or of some orange wines. Let’s say it’s somewhat ‘segmenting’. SGP:472 - 82 points.

Yamazaki 1998/2013 'Arima' (60%, OB, Izumiya 60th Anniversary, sherry butt, cask #CU 70065)

Let’s see if this baby’s better than the former ‘best’ whisky in the world that’s still advertised everywhere as the best whisky in the world without any due mention of the year it was while a much cheaper Canadian won it the year after… By the way, Izumiya is a Japanese supermarket chain. Colour: light coffee. Nose: typical sherried Yamazaki. Prunes, black raisins, tamarind, incense, cedar wood, and a touch of beef gravy, very discreet. Some parsley, perhaps. With water: more of all that, but it tends to become even meatier. Meat loafs with gravy, roasted pine nuts, and raisins. Mouth (neat): oh my god this is heavy and strong! Totally huge, almost out of all proportion. Some kind of meaty rum, perhaps. Or rather a blend of super-strong armagnac and super-strong tropics-aged Port Mourant. Or something like that. Not for the fainthearted ;-). With water: perfect leathery and prune-y meatiness. Pipe tobacco juice. Finish: long, with many more herbs. Thyme, rosemary, sage… and something that I enjoy mucho, and that’s not often to be found in whisky, ramson! Much more chocolate in the aftertaste. Comments: did they really sell this monster in Japanese supermarkets? Oh, forgot to say, loved it. SGP:562 - 90 points.

Chichibu 2011/2015 'The Peated' (62.5%, OB)

Vorsicht! Caution! Atención! Colour: gold. Nose: some kind of rounded peatiness, perhaps. Maybe a little silverware polish? Antiseptic? Well, it IS antiseptic for sure. Nah, it burns a bit. So, with water: it’s quite hard to tame, finding the right amount of water is difficult. I find a grassy peat, some wormwood, some seaweed for sure, touches of camphor… Sometimes it’s young Laphroaig distilled a long time ago, and sometimes it’s rather young Ardbeg distilled a long time ago. Hints of gherkin brine, green grapefruits... It’s not to be rushed, this baby needs your care and your attention. Like all babies, I suppose… Mouth (neat): it seems that someone smoked marshmallows. Or sno balls. Not a bad idea, that, but this drop is really too strong when undiluted. With water: almost gone the sno balls, and gone the marshmallows. This is young grassy and fattish peat, with a little salt, and, there, a little sake. The mind is weak, isn’t it. Finish: very long, salty, briny, and green. Green tea (my brain says macha), and grapefruits. The aftertaste is rather superbly zesty, but there’s a little gritty pepper from the oak. Comments: not an easy beast. There is some complexity, but every time you find some subtle notes, a wave of young peat just crushes them, which can get a little tiring. But yeah, it’s great, great whisky. SGP:466 - 85 points.

(with thanks to Phil)

Check the index of all Japanese whiskies I've tasted so far

Pete McPeat and Jack Washback