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700ml
Bottle:
$42.18
$44.40
12 bottles:
$39.90
Showing a nose combining earthy aromas of barley cake, toasted walnut, and campfire smoke with more fruit driven...
750ml
Bottle:
$32.36
$34.80
12 bottles:
$30.78
Number 19 in the 2020 Top 20. This new, higher proof Iwai (pronounced EE-why) was designed for cocktails; however,...
750ml
Bottle:
$47.43
$51.00
12 bottles:
$43.32
This carmine dram has a soft, mellow nose of raisin, earthy red wine notes, wet slate, prune flesh, stewed rhubarb,...
750ml
Bottle:
$249.94
$349.94
Showing an attractive straw-gold color, this mature whisky has bright flavors of baked cereal grains, toasted vanilla...
700ml
Bottle:
$78.66
$82.80
Kurayoshi Distillery lies between Osaka and Hiroshima in the foothills of Mount Daisen, where it produces single malt...
750ml
Bottle:
$87.93
$90.59
Takamine Koji Whiskey is made with the patented Takamine Process, which uses an ancient Japanese mold, koji, to...
750ml
Bottle:
$40.18
$43.20
12 bottles:
$38.76
The nose is slightly fruity with hints of lemon, cherry, toffee, oats and sea air. The palate is perfectly clean &...
750ml
Bottle:
$98.89
$102.00
6 bottles:
$98.40
Salted caramel, yellow apple, brown sugar, angelica fruits, mild peat.
Japanese Whiskey Siegerrebe Vranec Zinfandel NV
Whisky might not be the first thing that springs to mind when we think of Japanese fine produce, but over the past one hundred years, this fascinating and multi-faceted country has diligently forged a unique whisky identity which is growing in popularity, and which is entirely its own.
The story of Japanese whisky begins in 1918, when Masataka Taketsuru was sent to Scotland to undertake a tour of single malt distilleries in the Highlands, and bring home a knowledge of whisky and distillation skills. He returned full of inspiration, helped no doubt by his new Scottish wife, and alongside his friend, Shinjiro Torii, set up what would become a successful whisky industry.
Today, the Japanese whisky industry is spread over a relatively small handful of distilleries, which continue to use Scottish techniques and recipes, but with a hefty dose of distinctly Japanese experimentalism. This is displayed most obviously in the barrelling techniques the Japanese use - to create a distinctly Oriental set of tasting notes, native Japanese oakwood casks are used for ageing, alongside casks taken from plum wine producers, which impart a beautiful set of floral flavors to the whisky.
While some distilleries produce some excellent single malts, the majority of Japanese whiskies are blended, which reveals a unique set of flavors and aromas ranging from honeysuckle and orange blossom, to toffee and acetone.
The precise origins of what became known as the Zinfandel grape variety are uncertain, although it has clear genetic equivalents in both Puglia and Croatia. However, when it was brought to the New World in the mid 19th century, it became known as the Zinfandel, and has been consistently popular and widely grown ever since. These very dark and very round grapes have a remarkably high sugar content, resulting in relatively high levels of alcohol in the wines they are made into, with bottles often displaying as much as fifteen percent. What makes the Zinfandel such an interesting grape, though, is the fact that the flavors produced by this varietal vary considerably depending on the climate they are grown in. In cooler valley regions, the Zinfandel grapes result in wines which hold strong flavors of tart and sweet fruits; raspberry, redcurrant and sweet cherry, held in a very smooth and silky liquid. Conversely, warmer regions result in more complex and spicy notes, including anise, pepper and hedgerow berries.