Not Your Average Glass Of… Japanese Whisky
Our next unique spirit has spent the last twenty-five years in barrels in Japan before hitting the shores of the United States. In October, 2009 Suntory Distillery brought its 1984 bottling of its Yamazaki Whisky to the United States. Limited to only three hundred bottles, the origins of this whisky can be traced back to the Suntory’s first experiments with aging in Japanese mizunara oak casks.
During the 1940’s as American oak casks became hard to come by, Suntory began experimenting with Japanese mizunara oak. Though initial downsides to this approach were barrels that leaked and contained overbearing aromas, it was soon discovered that after an extended period of aging in these barrels, the whiskey became imparted with unique sweet flavors and aromas.
Flash forwarding to the year 1984, Suntory using a combination of whisky aged in these Japanese mizunara casks, as well as American and Spanish oak casks began the process of creating Yamazaki 1984.
Twenty five years later, and the product is deemed ready to be bottled and distributed.
The end result of this project is an elegant yet robust whisky that leads in with a nose akin to something that was aged in sherry casks.
A remarkable spirit that caresses the palate with nuances of sea salt before opening up and revealing beautiful flavors of hazelnut cream, cocoa, the occasional hint of mint, and burnt oranges.
Yamazaki 1984 completes the love affair with your palate with a sweet smoky finish.
Yamazaki 1984 retails for approximately $575 and is available for purchase at Astor Wines and Spirits.
That would be a Yamazaki worth trying.