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: Very Rich! Some classic strong Chichibu, malt, toffee, honey and apple pie/strudel notes. Banana, pineapple, cinnamon, dried mango and vanilla.
Palate: Wood spices and a rum like quality, I’m thinking Jamaica or Guyana. Lots of tropical fruits, banana, mango, pineapple, passionfruit. The malt, honey, vanilla and apple pie remain but take a back seat to the tropical fruits. Pepper and garam masala. Spicier with water added.
Finish: Apple pie, butter, dried mango, banana, then goes all minty fresh plus some oak. After a couple of minutes the fruits are back. Very good length and the fruits are even juicier with water added.
Last Word: This is a World Blended Whisky, with Chichibu Malt and Grain Whisky from other countries. I find it quite wonderful and now my favorite World Blended Whisky from Ichiro-san.
Rating: 91/100
Nose: Light for 61%abv and not particularly complex. Some vanilla, caramel, apple pie, acetone. A clay like note and a touch of peanut butter. Makes you work hard. Picks up with water added with some teak and a savoury BBQ note.
Palate: Much better here. Icing sugar, vanilla, caramel, oranges, mango slices, sweet peanut butter. Pepper, candy cane, peanut oil. A few sips in and some crystalised ginger. Toffee and more of the candy cane and apple pie with water added. Medium bodied.
Finish: Peanut butter, peppermint tea, candy cane. Fades quickly sipping neat but lengthens with water added.
Last Word: A really early example of a Single Cask Chichibu. Decent enough, but there are better example out there even if none of them are worth anything like the secondary market prices they fetch.
Rating: 82/100
Nose: Barley, vanilla wafers, banana, apple pie, dried pears, almond flakes. Dried mango slices, demerara sugar, orange peels. Sweet and mellow. With water some wild flower pot pourri.
Palate: Starts with a big hit of spices both hot and baking. Barley, apple pie, vanilla, butter, fresh baked scones. Oak, custard, tinned pears, apple sauce, olive oil. Water turns up the hot spices and oak and adds some orange juice. Medium bodied.
Finish: Custard, apple sauce, stewed rhubarb, oak, pennies. Water doubles the length and ramps up the oaky dryness and those metallic pennies.
Last Word: It will be interesting to see how the team at Chichibu manages their older stock as there is already some strong oak character even at 10 years old. Prefer this one sans H2O. A sweet, malty, spicy delight. The label is a drawing by the daughter of the owner of Bar Te-Airigh.
Rating: 90/100
Nose: Barley, lemon cough drops, sawdust, vanilla, custard, malt, orange zest, some acetone. With water oak and more citrus.
Palate: Icing sugar, sweetened lemon, white chocolate, orange zest, toffee. With water fig paste, tangy citrus, mint chocolate.
Finish: Long and sweet on melon, vanilla, icing sugar. Water addds length, some warming spices, malt and menthol.
Last: Best with water that adds complexity and length to the finish.
Rating: 87/100
Nose: Butter, malt, dried apples, pears, cantaloupe, apple pie crust, pepper. With water lemon merangue, green apple peels, apricot jam.
Palate: Pecans, dates, apples, vanilla, butter, malt, marzipan, fermented pears, lemon zest, limes. With water lemon merangue pie. Full bodied.
Finish: White pepper, white chocolate, green apples, lemon zest, lemon merangue pie. Some late apricot jam. Good length especially with water added.
Last Word: Nicely balanced between sweeter notes and some citrus bitterness. A very good Chichibu!
Rating: 88/100
Nose: Quite savoury plus cashews, incense, custard apples, pepper, nutmeg, peppermint, marsala, hint of struck match. Complex! With water some grilled pork.
Palate: Cherries, seared orange slices, cashews, marmalade, pepper, chili flakes, marzipan. With water raisins, sweet baking spices and gummy bears. Full bodied.
Finish: Savoury, baked pork belly, cashews, cherries, gummy bears.
Last Word: Great complexity! One of the best Chichibu Whiskies I’ve tasted.
Rating: 91/100
Nose: Crisp barley, pepper, lemon zest, lychees, green apples, nutmeg, vanilla custard, a little insence. A floral element with water added.
Palate: Barley, nutmeg, Sara Lee apple crumble, vanilla, pepper, dark chocolate, lots of malt. Water adds toffee, lemon squash soda, juicy oranges. Medium bodied.
Finish: Malt, apple crumble, balanced oak. Becomes quite ashy and then a mineral/metallic element.
Last Word: For lovers of malty whiskies. Really hits is stride with some water which adds complexity and lengthens the finish.
Rating: 89/100
Nose: Rich! Peaches, apricots, dates, scones with strawberry jam. Yeasty, hoppy, oak staves that have been soaking in whisky maturing in a ex beer cask.
Palate: Strawberries, stawberry ice cream, vanilla wafers, dates, chocolate, Hokkaido baked cheese tarts. With water raisin toast and brandy snaps. Full bodied.
Finish: Sweet on baking spices, hops, yeast, malt & vanilla wafers.
Last Word: A quite different style of Chichibu and no less appealing for it. Excellent!
Rating: 90/100
Nose: Initially acetone. Cinnamon and apple pie, fresh cut timber, pears, vanilla, With water there is a sweet bubblegum note. Not particularly complex but it’s fresh and lively.
Palate: Huge alcohol punch without water. For myself, needed a fair dash of water to open up. Then we have pickled ginger, fermented blueberries, tart apples, kiwi fruit, cranberries and butterscotch.
Finish: For a young whisky quite some cask influence. Apple sauce, leather satchels, kiwi fruit, tart red berries, black tea like tannins, pepper and butter menthols.
Last Word: Bit unruly and lacks in complexity but there is no doubt about the quality of the distillation.
Rating: 84/100
Palate: Fruit mince pie, plum sauce, currants, molasses, pumpernickel, sea spray, sherry, saddles bags, sweet pipe tobacco, cockles, caramel, vanilla, roses. Ever evolving!
Palate: Sherry, mixed nuts, orange juice, nutmeg, pepper, roses, peppermint, papaya, plum sauce, cherry cream filled chocolate, molasses, raisins.
Finish: Floral’s, macadamia’s, old leather, honey, marmalade, dried mango, peppermint, burnt eucalyptus.
Last Word: The ghosts of the flavors linger until the following day.
Rating: 92/100
*Note: A blend of Hanyu and Chicibu Single Malts and Kawasaki Single Grain Whisky.
Nose: Vanilla, quite floral, clay pots, earthy peat, hessian, hay bales, toffee, lemon juice, brine, hint of antiseptic band-aid.
Palate: Bonfire smoke, ash, Australian bush after a wild fire. Butter, eucalyptus oil, burnt vanilla, quite herbaceous. Brine, some peppery spice. Popping candy, not so much the candy but the popping sensation when your tongue smacks your palate. Water brings out more vanilla, the lemon, almond flakes, cafe late and mint dark chocolate.
Finish: Ash, black coffee, Lindt dark chocolate 90% cocoa, bonfire smoke, dried cigar leaf, vanilla. Water makes the coffee more late and adds in the hessian and hale bales from the nose.
Last Word: Would have said this before, but I’ve never had Heavily Peated Chichibu let me down yet going all the way back to the New Born. This is no exception!
Rating: 88/100 and quite outstanding for the young age!