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Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $93.50
6 bottles: $89.42
Gold color. Aromas and flavors of honey and toasted vienna malt, white flowers and oak dust, orange marmalade, and...
12 FREE
BTI
94
UBC
92
Sale
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $54.34 $57.20
#14 Top 20, 2019. Mizunara oak is the modern signature of Japanese whisky, and Kaiyo- whisky enables inquisitive...
12 FREE
WKY
92
Sale
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $78.17 $82.28
This was aged in Japan's rare Mizunara oak for the entirety of its maturation, which includes three-month ocean...
12 FREE
WE
91
WKY
90
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $86.82 $91.39
The lightly smoky sea-breeze aroma entices on the nose. The palate opens with bolder peat smoke underpinned by...
12 FREE
WE
92
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $71.82 $75.60
Sandalwood aromas are robust and exhilarating on the nose. The cedar cask influence is immediately apparent in the...
12 FREE
UBC
95
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $49.98
6 bottles: $41.40
Get back to nature; this is a whisky to savor during a spectacular sunrise. Lychee, edamame, pea shoots, green apple,...
12 FREE
WKY
90
Sale
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $148.50 $199.94
Prunes, forest honey, vanilla seeds, dark chocolate cookies, and Brazil nut, with hints of chocolate orange and...
12 FREE
WKY
94
Sale
Spirits
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,...
WKY
91
Spirits
700ml
Bottle: $133.20
12 bottles: $126.54
Honey-tinged and citrus-laden nose with subtle suggestions of yellow apple skin, cherry compote, and maple. Fresh...
12 FREE
UBC
91
Sale
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $249.94 $349.94
Showing an attractive straw-gold color, this mature whisky has bright flavors of baked cereal grains, toasted vanilla...
12 FREE
UBC
92
Sale
Spirits
700ml
Bottle: $99.18 $104.40
A very soft and alluring nose reveals an elegant whisky that has myriad flavors of gingerbread, pound cake, malt...
12 FREE
UBC
91
Sale
Spirits
700ml
Bottle: $78.66 $82.80
Kurayoshi Distillery lies between Osaka and Hiroshima in the foothills of Mount Daisen, where it produces single malt...
12 FREE
WKY
92
UBC
90
Sale
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $65.77 $69.23
Ambrosial notes of sprouted grain, honey, bacon fat and orange blossom accompany deeper notes of toasted hazelnut....
12 FREE
UBC
93
WKY
92
Sale
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $79.94 $89.94
Number 1 in the 2018 Top 20. Notably balanced and elegant, the colorful palette of whiskies combines for tremendous...
12 FREE
WKY
94
BTI
91
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $92.70
6 bottles: $88.62
A smoky nose rises from the glass, but immediately finds harmony with spicy and bold flavors on the palate. Gorgeous...
12 FREE
UBC
95
WKY
95
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $299.94
It's the 100th anniversary of the marriage of Masataka and Rita Taketsuru, and there's plenty to celebrate, with...
12 FREE
WKY
92
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $49.30 $51.90
6 bottles: $46.02
This skillfully aromatic whisky smells softly herby, floral, and nutty. On the palate, it’s smoky with some...
12 FREE
UBC
90
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $65.55 $69.00
6 bottles: $63.17
The combination of mature single malts from Lowlands, Scotland and Niigata, Japan that have been double distilled in...
12 FREE
WKY
90
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $131.08 $137.98
6 bottles: $130.80
Steely and slightly smoky at first on the nose with undertones of white currant, pine, crisped toffee, and toasted...
12 FREE
UBC
92
WKY
90
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $155.13 $163.30
An intriguing nose combines exotic aromas of ripe banana, mango flesh, dried papaya, and key lime with indulgent oak...
12 FREE
UBC
94

Japanese Whiskey Japan

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.

All over Japan, farmers and wine producers take the production of alcoholic beverages including plum wine and sake very seriously. It is an industry which dates back well over a thousand years, and is held in high esteem in this far east country, where plum wines and sake often accompany meals and are used for ceremonial purposes. Whilst plum wine is produced in a relatively similar way to grape based wines, sake requires a complex process more akin to the brewing of beer, except using a rice mash instead of other grains. The rising popularity of both of these drinks in the west has seen the drinks industry in Japan increase dramatically over recent years, and both quality and quantity has risen alongside demand, and is expected to rise further.