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Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $61.55 $64.79
An exceptionally old fino, perhaps the oldest on the market, at about 15 years, from a gentle, gracious family, who...
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DC
96
WA
95
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $59.93 $64.79
The NV Villapanes Oloroso wears a dark amber-brown robe and has a very intense nose, showing some marmalade, dark...
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WA
91
Case only
Spirits
12 FREE
Case only
Spirits
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Sale
Spirits
700ml
Bottle: $58.27 $61.34
12 bottles: $28.50
Sale
Spirits
700ml
Bottle: $72.96 $76.80
12 bottles: $68.40
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Sale
White
500ml
Bottle: $68.06 $71.64
6 bottles: $64.80
A lively style of fino, with vintage orange marmalade, crushed peanut and old cotton cloth characters on the nose....
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DC
97
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $59.95 $63.11
6 bottles: $57.59
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Sale
Spirits
700ml
Bottle: $70.67 $74.39
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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...
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UBC
95
Sale
Spirits
700ml
Bottle: $63.54 $66.88
6 bottles: $54.12
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Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $55.18
6 bottles: $51.58
Color: Bright and vivid amber color. Aroma: Ripe citrus aroma, followed with sweet notes of dried apricot, jammy...
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Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $69.23
Ambrosial notes of sprouted grain, honey, bacon fat and orange blossom accompany deeper notes of toasted hazelnut....
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UBC
93
WKY
92
Sale
Rapid Ship
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $74.79 $78.73
This unique expression was developed in 2013 as a result of Nikka's continuous experiments to widen the variety and...
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Case only
Spirits
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $71.82
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White
750ml
Bottle: $65.94
12 bottles: $64.62
Natural sweet wine made from Moscatel grapes. It has a dark mahogany colour and a dense and wide texture. Laced with...
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Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $51.58
6 bottles: $47.98
Steely and slightly smoky at first on the nose with undertones of white currant, pine, crisped toffee, and toasted...
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UBC
92
WKY
90
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $57.55 $60.58
6 bottles: $56.98
An intriguing nose combines exotic aromas of ripe banana, mango flesh, dried papaya, and key lime with indulgent oak...
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UBC
94
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $70.66 $74.38
Double distillation in stainless steel produces a higher filling strength than single distillation, which may account...
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WKY
92
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $50.14 $52.78
6 bottles: $49.18
Manzanilla and fino casks were selected to mature this elegant single-distilled rice whisky from Shinzato Distillery,...
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WKY
90

Japanese Whiskey Semillon Sherry

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.

Semillon was, at one point not so long ago, widely believed to be one of the most grown grape varietals in the world. Whilst today the numbers of Semillon grapes has dropped considerably, it remains a widely planted grape with vineyards all over Europe and the New World dedicated to making the most of this special and flavorful varietal. The grapes are recognizable by their golden color, and the fact that they can take on a pinkish hue in particularly warm climates. The wines the Semillon grape produces are notably varied, and are often very crisp and dry, or sweet and soft, full of a wide range of flavors Commonly, dry Semillon wines are particularly citrus in flavor, with a delicate and summery bouquet. The vine is hardy and vigorous, and notable for being easy to grow and produce high yields from.

Sherry is made in a unique way using the solera system, which blends fractional shares of young wine from oak barrels with older, more mature wines. Sherry has no vintage date because it is blended from a variety of years. Rare, old sherries can contain wine that dates back 25 to 50 years or more, the date the solera was begun. If a bottle has a date on it, it probably refers to the date the company was founded.

Most sherries begin with the Palomino grape, which enjoys a generally mild climate in and around the triad of towns known as the "Sherry Triangle" and grows in white, limestone and clay soils that look like beach sand. The Pedro Ximenez type of sweet sherry comes from the Pedro Ximenez grape.

Sherry is a "fortified" wine, which means that distilled, neutral spirits are used to fortify the sherry. The added liquor means that the final sherry will be 16 to 20 percent alcohol (higher than table wines) and that it will have a longer shelf life than table wines.