Tag Archives: Jasmine

All You Need Is Love, An everyday dram, Springtime, Suntory - Hakushu

Suntory Hakushu 12yo – G-d Bless you!

Japan – 43%ABV – £46 | €54

“Hakushu!”

“G-d bless” said a kind yet unknowing man.  We’ll call him… “Kevin”.  He thought I sneezed when I said Hakushu.  No, that was not a sneeze.  It was me yelling out the name of a Suntory whisky that, with hope, will be available in America this year.

“Kevin” is your typical American who, when it comes to whisk(e)y only thinks of Johnnie Walker, Jack Daniels, Dewars or Southern Comfort… he has never heard of Japanese whisky.  In fact, if you told him that the Japanese produced whisky, he’d most likely remark, “Japanese whisky?!  I never knew the Japanese made Scotch!!”

Just the facts ma’am —

Only the Scots make Scotch.  Simple fact.  Scotch is a whisky.  Bourbon is a whiskey.  Rye whiskey is, you guessed is a whiskey.  And Japanese whisky is… whisky!  Silly do-do American (sorry to all of my compatriots!)!!

What’s my point here?  Oh yeah, I love Japanese whisky and I find it really frustrating that there is so little of it readily available in the US.  The good news, as I mentioned above, is that Suntory will be bringing Hakushu to the states very soon.  Currently we can enjoy Hibiki (a blended Japanese whisky; the 21yo made my Best Whisky tasted in 2010 award) and Yamazki which is a single malt.  Both are Suntory whiskies.

Hopefully, sometime soon, we’ll get Nikka whisky here in the US.  Until then Suntory’s got our backs.

A special thanks goes out to Yoshi M for the generous sample!

On the nose — Initial reaction: fruity, spicy, grapey, floral, malty and a touch of smoke.

Let’s break it out a bit though… I think we have a case of which came first, the chicken or the omelet.

Many aspects fighting to the fore such as mango and green apple (predominantly).

The floweriness is lovely here too (a bit of jasmine).

This is honeyed as well with a bit of vanilla.

Spiced gum drops.

Lemongrass and black raisins.

Nice and malty.

On the mouth — Much like the nose except there’s a smoked & spiced nuttiness here.

Very malty, gobs of malt – smoked malt (I must stress – this is not an overly smokey whisky).

Fruits abound (they’re all up in this shit)!

Think crabapples and green apple pie.

Smokey still though not overbearing… it’s balancing out the sweet and spice, right nice.

Finish — The finish is all on jasmine tea and spice.

In sum — A wonderfully balanced whisky that can and will hold it’s own against many Scotch whiskies.  This is perfect as an aperitif or as a mid-day dram.  I’m looking forward to this being available in the US.  It’s a keeper, an everyday dram for sure.

A World of Discovery, All You Need Is Love, An everyday dram, Let's celebrate!, Suntory - Hibiki

Suntory Hibiki 21yr – Absolute brilliance in a glass

Japan – 43%ABV – 700ml bottle – £103.40 | ¥13,700 – not available in the US and barely available anywhere other than Japan.

The Hibiki 21 year old was one of the biggest surprises for me in 2010.  This is not one I had gone out of my way to seek out.  Sure, I knew about it; read about and lusted after it but being that it was so hard to come by, I didn’t hold my breath on the chance that I may find a bottle.

So, if I read about it, learnt about and followed it with a drooling mouth, why-o-why was this such a surprise for me!?  Well, because one day it just showed up on my door step without me even knowing about it!  Seriously, when I opened the box to find a bottle of this from my friend Yoshi @ Suntory, I nearly wet myself.  Yoshi – a sincere thanks for this gift!

This whisky is a mix of malt & grain whiskies from the three different Suntory distilleries as well as a mixture of different cask types (American Oak, European Oak & Japanese Oak, etc…).  As with all whiskies, the age statement printed on the label represents the youngest whisky contained within the bottle.  There is some much older whisky in here too!

The Hibiki 21 has won three gold metals, three years in a row and has just won the title of “World’s Best Blended Whisky” in 2010 by the WWA.

Looks like I’m in for a treat here…

On the nose — Warmed car seat leather on a summer’s day.

Very perfumed, lovely.

Slight tones of engine oil which actually compliments the pipe tobacco notes I’m getting here – bringing back memories of afternoons with my Grandpa John and his house in Fairfield (Connecticut) – he loved his pipe (he loved his Scotch too).

Apricots, toasted walnuts, hazelnuts and burnt marshmallows.

Again, lovely nose.

On the mouth — Like drinking happiness.

Chocolates and jasmine tea – a good deal of jasmine actually.

Has a bit of a bite to it, too.

An apple orchard.

Vanilla bursts through and nuts follow closely behind like trustworthy sidekicks.

Finish — Like a body builder, the finish seems to grow in strength.

Gobs of vanilla, still nutty and the perfuminess comes through quite nicely.

In sum — This is one of the most balanced and delicious drams I’ve had this year.  I will be doing a 2010 “Year In Review” post and I’d expect this one to be way high up on the “best of 2010” list.  This can be both an everyday malt and a celebratory malt.

Other opinions —

Dr. Whisky seemed to love this.

Mark at Whisky Cast scored it a 96!