Exclusively Yamazaki

Friend and brother JE was in Osaka for a holiday and managed to persuade his missus to go visit Yamazaki. He graciously brought back bottles. One, the 2017 Yamazaki Limited Edition, and two, the Yamazaki distillery exclusive bottling. The LE comes in a 700ml bottle, while the distillery exclusive is in a 300ml one. Such consideration to travellers' duty free allowance...or a nefarious marketing ploy to get people to buy more - it probably is the same thing.

First up, the Yamazaki 2017 Limited Edition (43% abv)

Nose - A lot of umeshu up front. The plum liquor is followed by some faint spices, some raisins, a bit of vanilla. Some grassy scent, oak...I've seen reviews that describe this as a deep nose - can't say I smell the depth here. Maybe my nose is off, but this is good, not great.

Palate - Some fruity profiles...mango? Plum liquor getting in the way of everything. With some time, oak comes out, spices too. I guess this might be what you call...delicate, if not for the umeshu. Some hints of flowers, a bit of honey...but really, that plum liquor. Good, but somewhat off-balance.

Finish - tannic, woody, spicy. Some honey sweetness sticks around, but not a long finish, I think.

Overall - There's supposedly some 20 year old Yamazaki in here - they maybe should have left it alone as a super premium once-off bottling. This Limited Edition was brought back by JE from the distillery itself, where this bottle was sold for about SGD100. Which is about the right price. Retailers in Singapore are selling it for $400 though. That's a rip-off.

Yamazaki Distillery Exclusive

Nose - Ok, if you ever wondered what Yamazaki smells like without the powerful sherry influence in the 12 and the 18, this is it. Mangoes, malty porridge, a bit of baked bread. There's some coconut in this, and a touch of eucalyptus.

Palate - More of the same on the nose. I like this style of Yamazaki! More oak and tropical fruits than the Limited Edition. Certainly younger though.

Finish - short, clean.

Overall - This is naked, no frills Yamazaki. Good, and makes for a welcome change to the usual Yamazaki. Rougher, but somehow, I think I can grow to like this. It works great in a highball, by the way.

Thanks JE for the generosity!

National Day and a Multi-Cultural Society

Singapore celebrates its fifty-first National Day today, 9th of August, 2016. The main themes of the National Day Parade revolve around technological development, and the building of an inclusive society in future. What are the boundaries of this inclusivity? They seem to involve people of various races, religions, and the handicapped. However, the multi-cultural society approach isn't the most effective for creating a national identity, especially in a country that is constantly in flux, as population changes happen everyday, every year. How can a metropolitan city that welcomes all also be a nation-state with a strong sense of identity?

As both a country and a city, Singapore tries to keep its talent by appealing to a sense of national identity and rootedness, but wants its people to also reach out to the world and be global citizens who fly Singapore's flag. These are difficult tensions to hold together without a primordial past in which an identity can be built upon. There is only that many times you can use "Home" to generate feelings of being home. Tough task.

National Day coincides with the Olympics this year, and, there's nothing like a good sports tournament to ignite national pride, yes? Well, in Singapore, not really. Several of the sportsmen representing Singapore are naturalized citizens, and the table tennis team, in particular, has come under public scrutiny for the past decade or so. The women's table tennis team has actually been pretty successful, with players ranked in the top 10 internationally. However, most of the team are naturalized citizens from China, and this has led to some criticisms of Team Singapore's talent recruitment and development strategy. Thus, despite its recent successes, the Singapore Table Tennis team hasn't been the galvanizing force for nationalism that sports is in other countries.

And, our top seed, a naturalized citizen naturally, has lost to a player from Japan in the Quarter Finals in straight sets. Feng did not play at the standards that she is capable of, so that's a pity. What is this long preamble setting up for? Well. Japanese whisky, of course! And no slouch either...

Yamazaki 18 (abv 43%)

Colour: It camouflages well against my teak furniture. So that's teak-ish amber?

Nose: This whisky is deeply sherried, and it shows on the nose. Sultanas and raisins at first nosing, but this is a complex whisky. With a little time in the glass, some leathery notes float up, and with it comes some nice spices - the usual sherry stuff, I think. Cinnamon, cloves, and maybe a touch of lemongrass? Malty and slightly porridgey, but well within limits.

Palate: Rich sherry entry, then slight sour notes - grape skin, I think. The whisky turns a little bitter, then the oak makes a big entrance. Spices - I think cinnamon, cloves and a little bit of ginger - reminds me of the pickled ginger you get when ordering sashimi. Some menthol or eucalyptus as well. This spicy development is pretty neat. Wood tannins, and the whisky doesn't lose its malty feel. A little leathery still, which, I think, is a sign of a good sherry cask, since it is both fruity and leathery at the same time. The texture is a little drying, but on the whole, this is gentle on the tongue. The drying feel reminds me of concentrated black tea.

Finish: Ooooh. A whiff of smoke on the finish. Wood tannins, and warming spices - more clove than cinnamon. A little drying and leathery, but the long lingering spices keeps the finish fresh. Some fruitiness hangs around as well.

Overall: I really like this whisky. It's smooth, rich, complex, layered. A great balance between fruitiness, spice, and a more complex leathery and drying texture that I like in sherried whiskies. I think the finish is what pushes this up - the whiff of smoke at the end that I did not anticipate until it appears was delicious. A very pleasant surprise. That the fruitiness and spices stay till the end is really worth savouring and waiting for.

Of course, the catch with Yamazaki 18 is the price...some shops are selling this at almost $900. Madness. Complete madness. So, many, many thanks to DW's dad, who gave this to me as a gift for helping out at DW's wedding...A most generous gift... yum...Though, between this and the Hakushu 18, I think I actually prefer the Hakushu - more distinctly Japanese. This feels too much like a Speyside. A very good Speyside, but a sherried Speysider nonetheless. The Hakushu's a bit more unique.

And yes, this makes it onto the hall of fame...

CNY goodies part 4 - "World" whisky tasting

Our battle against time continues. 15 whiskies in 15 days. Can it be done?? Today is Day 13. No time to lose if the challenge is to succeed.

A bunch of stuff in today's bag of tasting notes - Hibiki 12, Ardbeg 10, Penderyn Aur Cymru Madeira, and Yamazaki 12. 

Hibiki 12 - This one has been discontinued, and prices have skyrocketed since the discontinuation was announced. Used to be one of the staples of the Suntory line of whiskies. A nice, amber colour.

Nose - Fruity. A little plum, somewhat like the Hibiki Harmony Master's Select. But this one is more complex. There's some sweet oak, and caramel. A little sherry? Some sweet red fruit in any case. Vanilla, and a little floral. Pleasant, well-balanced.

Palate - sweet. Suggestions of a little nut, like almonds. Oak. Sweet plum. Vanilla, and some spices. This one is really more complex and better than the Master's Select, in my opinion. Or maybe I just haven't given the Master's Select a fair hearing.

Finish - A little short. Some tannin, and thus, a little drying. Spices and wood.

A good, balanced dram. Japanese craft evidently on display.

Ardbeg 10 - Ardbeg is the quintessential peat monster. This tasting was contributed by PY, who is definitely a guy, despite having a name that often gets mistaken for being feminine.

Nose - ash and meat. Like a barbecue. Then some charcoal smoke. Exactly like a barbecue then...oddly, some vanilla as well. Or something sweet.

Palate - Immediately a bit drying. Herbal/medicinal, ashy, and more charcoal smoke. Sweet as well. Spicy on the way down. There's a little alcohol burn in this one. On second sipping, an odd taste. Reminded me of the brine in canned tuna. PY gives me an incredulous "huh? canned tuna??" Guess it's just me then.

Finish - spicy, and some drying tea tannins. Fiery, like swallowing warm coals. Leaves a little sweetness at the back of the throat.

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Second session consisted of the following 4 drinks. With me tonight was JP, who gave the taster bottle of Yamazaki 12. He got to try the Kavalan Solist Sherry and the Edition Santis. I won't be writing new notes on those, but just noting some of his remarks that differed from mine...

First up was the Penderyn Aur Cymru Madeira (46% abv). This one came courtesy of CP, who also helped me to get the Santis. Thank you!

Colour - straw

Nose - Leathery. Tanned leather. A little grain, and a little yeast, with that bit of sour scent that yeast has. Doesn't smell very promising, but we'll see.

Palate - a little sour. Then it becomes bitter. According to JP, this is the bitter that comes at the back of traditional Chinese medicine. Licorice, then rubber, tar. A little peppery. JP and I were making funny, grimacing faces at one another. Maybe some people like this profile of flavours, but we don't.

Finish - rubber and licorice. Burns a little.

Overall - mm. As the first Welsh whisky that I've ever come across, it was worth a try. Like an adventure in a YOLO sort of way. But I don't think I'll be rushing to get a full bottle anytime soon.

Yamazaki 12 - Less famous than it's 18 year old brother, but prices are also going up.

Nose - Sherry was the first to hit. A little bit of a citrus fruit. First word that came to JP was yuzu. Hmm. I thought it was something a little heavier than yuzu.  A bit of oak. Quite a lot of honey.

Palate - Sherry on entry. Rather sweet. A bit of spice and just a small whiff of smoke in the middlle. Vanilla backdrop. A lot of honey. This one is sweet.

Finish - a bit drying. Light smoke and spice. Like honeyed water with cinnamon.

On the whole, very nice. Not in the same class as the 18, but you can taste the progression. Some distilleries produce whiskies whereby the various ages are matured in very different ways, and thus taste very different. This one tastes just like a younger version of the 18. The 18 becomes richer, rounder, and more matured, but the basic is the same. Good quality and product control by the folks at Yamazaki.

JP's impression of the Santis and Kavalan: 

Santis - not really beer-like until the finish, as opposed to the beer I found upfront. He smelt more vanilla than I did, and some icing sugar. I can see why he found those notes, but perhaps that's not quite how I would describe them. On the whole, we agree that this is nice, pleasant, too dangerously easy to drink. JP says that he can almost taste the Alpine water that went into this whisky. JP also very versatile, being a good sipping dram as well as something to round off a more complex drinking session.

Kavalan - JP did not enjoy this much as I did, with the rubbery notes hitting him first. He found the rubber quite off-putting. Concluded that he wasn't much of a sherry bomb guy. Ah well.

So, 6 whiskies over 2 sessions that take us around the world. 1 Scotch, 2 Japanese, 1 Swiss, 1 Taiwanese, and 1 Welsh. That was fun!
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We are on 14 now...Getting really close...Will we succeed...? Or will I have to cheat...?!? Bring out an old tasting note? Write a new note on something that I already have a review for? Or what?

The clock is ticking.