G’day,
In my latest YouTube Video here, I do the wrap up video for 7 Day’s of Nikka Taketsuru Pure Malt Whiskies and rank them from last to first place.
Kampai
Brian
Hey friends,
I’m about half way through my YouTube reviews of the Nikka Taketsuru Pure Malt “standard” range, No Age Statement through to 35 Year Old. You can check them on my channel here.
Kampai
Brian
Hey friends,
In today’s video I chat about what’s coming up on the channel and review Ichiro’s Malt Double Distilleries Chichibu x Komagatake. So, do we get a winner when whiskies from two different Japanese Whisky producers are blended together? Lets find out! Thanks for watching : )
Kampai
Brian
Nose: Light earthy peat. Nutmeg, wet wool, cacao powder, pears, white peaches, red apple skins, licorice root. A savoury note with water added.
Palate: Fermented pears and apples, vanilla, chilli flakes, white oak, nutmeg, salt, licorice root, butter, icing sugar. Some orange sherbet with water added. Medium bodied.
Finish: Nutmeg, cacao powder, almonds, licorice root, butter beans, ash. Touch of lemon and some juicy oranges with water added.
Last Word: A decent whisky that improves a month or so after opening and the fill level drops. However, not really a patch on the previous version with the dark label.
I suspect the main reason is a dearth of sherry cask mature whiskies at Nikka’s distilleries. Seems to me there is no sherry cask whisky in this newer blend, where it is an obvious influence in the previous version which was much richer and rounder. If you can still get your hands on the older version, run don’t walk to stock up!
Rating: 82/100
Nose: Red Grapes, quince paste, marmalade, sherry, blueberries, vanilla, toffee, balsamic, Bonox(beef stock paste), a little pepper and coal. I’d class it as velvety and satisfyingly rich.
Palate: Cocoa powder, chocolate mouse, coffee beans, sherry, vanilla, Brazil nuts, blueberries, salt, cloves, raisins, oily.
Finish: Sherry, Brazil nuts, cocoa powder, minerals, raisins, coal, cigar leaf.
Last Word: I spent around 30 minutes chatting at the Nikka stand at WhiskyLive last weekend. There were 6 expressions on offer and the general consensus seemed to be this was the pick of the litter. For myself this has either a lot of excellent young malt whiskies in the mix or, and I believe this is more the case, a large chunk of older whiskies in the mix especially from sherry casks. I bought a bottle straight away so that should be enough of an endorsement. A huge improvement over the my last bottle of no age statement Taketsuru, significantly better than the last bottle of Taketsuru 12 I had and in all honesty, if this quality remains I won’t need to lament the discontinuance of the 17 year old.
Rating: 87/100
Nose: Honey, brine, chocolate, preserved pears, hint of earthy peat, seaweed, greed apples, marshmallows, coal.
Palate: Chocolate, brine, red grapes, read apples, brine, blueberries, a little oily but overall the body is thin and brittle.
Finish: Some brine, earthy peat, ash blueberries, pie crust. The oiliness is more evident on the finish:
Last Word: Can’t really hang with a good batch of the 17 or 21 year olds. Not sure if it is just the low abv but too thin and brittle for my tastes.
Rating: 80/100
Nose: Stone fruits of peaches, plums and apricots. Toffee, oak, wood spice. Banana Flambeau and a corn note I’d associate with a blended whisky. Water brings out orange juice.
Palate: Ginger, nutmeg, pepper, oak, banana, creamed corn, cashews. Arnott’s Savory Shapes Biscuits, orange juice. The spices are quite prominent and make this quite punchy at ‘only’ 43%abv. Water introduces some Fruit Tingles Sweetness.
Finish: Banana’s, butter, cashews, mint, BBQ hotplate, orange juice.
Last Word: Not the last word in complexity/boldness but I am sure that was deliberate. There is enough going on with the punchy spices and nicely balanced with a little water added.
Rating: 85/100
Nose: Cantaloupe, rose water, vanilla wafers, white peaches, fresh cut timber, pink grapefruit.
Palate: A bowl of mixed nuts, white peaches, peanut butter, there’s both savory and herbal elements, strawberries.
Finish: Salt, nuts, herbs such as cloves and oregano.
Last Word: Not a whisky that is going to blow your mind but blended with a purpose to be lighter in style to accompany food or as a summer sipper and with an emphasis Miyagikyo Malt Whisky. If this was Scottish it would be a Lowland Whisky.
Rating: 82/100
Nose: Cantaloupe, honeydew melon, almonds, macadamia’s, hint of white pepper and a slight dusty note.
Palate: Without water I’d say fairly one dimensional on peanuts, peanut butter, black pepper and freshly sawn timber. Water brings back the cantaloupe and macadamia’s and adds some strawberry compote and cocoa powder.
Finish: Cantaloupe, peanut butter and some mouth drying wood tannins.
Last Word: While I would not call this a bad or cheap tasting spirit, it just doesn’t get me excited. I also have an unopened bottle of the Yamakazura Cask Strength Sherry Wood Finish so will be reviewing that some time down the track.
Rating: 80/100
Nose: Earthy, licorice, molasses, fruity notes from a well aged rum, leather, tobacco, lapsang souchong. If you can call a nose smooth this is smooth.
Palate: Again the long aged rum is prevalent but not overwhelming. Caramelised orange juice, tobacco, leather, lapsang souchong, mixed herbs, ginger heat, salt. Well balanced, interesting, tasty and with no rough edges whatsoever.
Finish: Leather, tobacco, tar, pine, molasses and coconut.
Last Word: I’ve tasted a number of Ichiro’s Malt and Grain bottling’s and this one is a stand out! Not cheap, but if you have the readies this is a highly recommended whisky and better than the majority of Ichiro’s Card Series I’ve tasted.
Rating: 92/100
Note: A blend of 25YO Hanyu Single Malt from 1990 and 33YO Kawasaki Single Grain from 1982.
Nose: Needs a lot of water to reveal any nuances. Tequila like pepper. Barley, fresh cut timber, orange peel, apricot jam, hint of ash.
Palate: Without water this is an overpowering whisky. Big alcohol, big heat. Not cheap alcohol, just too full on. With water there is Brazil nuts, pepper, nougat, spearmint, barley and apricot jam.
Finish: All of the flavors fade quickly except for the pepper that coats the mouth and hangs on for an age.
Last Word: Too hard hitting at full strength, it takes a lot of water to bring this one to heel. Even then it is not a particularly complex or cohesive whisky.
Rating: 80/100
*Note: This one is was commissioned by Liquors Hasegawa to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Yaechika Mall at Tokyo Station.
Nose: Maltesers, caramel, oak, lacquer, dried fruits. Very gentle.
Palate: This is where things step up a few notches over the Taketsuru 12YO(I haven’t tried the standard NAS). Lots of juicy dried fruits, malt, quite a some pepper, sugared orange slices, and in lesser measure sherry, cloves and paprika. The oak is subdued.
Finish: Dried fruits, sugared orange slices, sherry, young tawny port and some decent length.
Last Word: Not amazingly complex but well balanced, the extra punch offered by the sherry cask finish is a welcome addition. Nose is a bit soft for my liking however.
Rating: 83/100
*Sample courtesy of Clint at Whiskies R Us
Nose: Oak, grated orange rind, fabric softener, strawberries, dates, honey oats, mild rose petal, scallop’s.
Palate: Hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, mustard, Arnott’s savory shapes, pepper, bubblegum, nougat, scallop’s. There is a unbalancing bitter element in the mix I’m not fussed about.
Finish: Nougat, mixed nuts, strawberries, bubblegum, some ashy dryness, ginger ale.
Last Word: Not mentioned in the above but it feels a little weak. I remember my first bottle being robust of nose and palate. This one feels a little watered down for want of a better description and the bitterness on the palate is a little off putting. The bitterness does tend to diminish after a couple of drams however.
Rating: 80/100
Nose: Maple Syrup, mild chicken korma, BBQ grilled pineapple, vanilla, honey, buttered crumpets, licorice, damp earth, butterscotch, walnuts, Pineapple Lumps, Granny Smith apples, mango, light tobacco. Plush!
Palate: Sharp blue cheese, pomegranate’s, mixed peel, papaya, hot spices, tobacco, burnt banana, oak, big saltiness. Water smooth’s things out, the maple syrup and honey make a return and some burnt lemon meringue is added. Big stuff at ‘only’ 46%.
Finish: Some coal, dried fruits, papaya, burnt lemon meringue pie, BBQ grilled banana, oak, butter, salt and pineapple.
Last Word: The nose is exquisite. Palate is fiery and needs water. A powerful and interesting whisky.
Rating: 89/100
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Nose: Cherry Ripes, blood oranges, honey, toffee, tree resin, white peach, whole meal dough, Turkish delights.
Palate: Fig jam, Turkish delights, madeira, poppy seed and orange cake, toffee, honey, ginger, ginger bread, salt and a little pepper.
Finish: Ginger bread, honey, figs, dates, nutmeg, salt and some drying tannins.
Last Word: Hard to believe this is a blend. Amazing quality-price ratio at only $23 for a 750ml bottle.
Rating: 86/100
Nose: Grapefruit, pears, oak, varnish, lemon, mustard, hint of putty.
Palate: Again grapefruit, lemon, pear but the dried variety. White pepper, licorice and a bit waxy.
Finish: Grapefruit, dried pears and lots of peppery heat.
Last Word: Basic stuff. Tried this as a mixer and there was a surprising amount of peat.
Rating: 70/100
Nose: Stewed fruits, sherry, honey, earth, peat, pencil shavings
Palate: Peppery spice, sherry, coconut, mint, chocolate, stewed fruits, malt and peat.
Finish: Spicy, malty, earthy, minty, with good length and a little drying.
Last Word: The Peat/Smoke intensifies nicely after being open for 6-8 months and the last 15-20% of the bottle. Like this one a lot.
Rating: 86/100
Nose: Not great. A little sherry and oak. Label says it was fully matured in Sherry casks. Doesn’t taste like it. Also, plasticine, glue and cheap brandy.
Palate: A little better than the nose with bread dough, some lime and tangerine. Then ruined again by the plasticine and glue.
Finish: Bitter, with plasticine and, thankfully, short.
Last Word: According to The Whisky Exchange, this was bottled in the 70s. Not Suntory’s finest hour.
Rating: 60/100
*This one may be a single malt as it was matured at Yamazaki and back in the day it was not unusual for Yamazaki/Hakushu single malts to be labeled as pure/blended malts.
Nose: Quite woody and a little musty. Hints of molding oranges, lemon, tinned pears.
Palate Honey, lemon, solvent, soap flakes, pepper, a little sherry, woody and again the molding oranges.
Finish: Pretty much as per the palate with some late coal. Not much to it really.
Last Word: Not to my liking tasted neat. Made a fair mixer.
Rating: 75/100
* An alternate review from Whiskies R US
Nose: Earthy peat, malt, bubblegum, lemon, treacle, over-tanned leather.
Palate: Peat, ash, boot polish, coconut, bubblegum, eucalyptus.
Finish: Coconut, peat, ash, eucalyptus.
Last Word: Lacks the complexity of this 2010 release. Still pretty good though, especially for the money.
Rating: 85/100