Karuizawa 1999-2000 Cask Strength 10th Edition

Karuizawa 1999-2000 Cask Strength 10th Edition

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Mahogany
60.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Raisins, cloves, apricots, chocolate, honey, hints of liquorice. With water, aluminium foil, black tea, fresh baked bread, more chocolate. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loose, warming, airy. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Cloves, chocolate, apricots, raisins, pears, hints of black tea, hints of chillies. With water, black tea, apple juice, aluminium foil, pears.
Finish: Long. Nutmeg, black tea, chocolate, fresh baked bread, raisins.

Comments: 

This has been vatted, perhaps from a couple of casks. Nevertheless, it's classic Karuizawa, with plenty of chocolate, raisins, and cloves. Water opens it up, with wonderful notes of fresh baked bread on both the nose and the finish. I'm very, very lucky to be able to have another magnificent whisky from this distillery.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Karuizawa 31 yo Sherry Cask #3555

Karuizawa 31 yo Sherry Cask #3555

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Mahogany
60.6% ABV
Dram

Nose: Raisins, golden syrup, vanilla, waffles, red grapes,hints of balsamic vinegar. With water, strawberries, orange blossom, honey, pomegranate molasses. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, loosens, hot, turns watery. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Orange peel, waffles, red grapes, balsamic vinegar, strawberries, hints of black pepper. With water, more sour, fresh baked bread, golden syrup, pomegranate molasses, hints of preserved walnuts. 
Finish: Long. Waffles, balsamic vinegar, pomegranate molasses, golden syrup. 

Comments: 

Cask #3555, bottled for the Whisky Exchange. Despite the incredible colour, this whisky isn't overly sherried, by which I mean there's not an overpowering hit of red grapes. It does taste a lot like a good Pedro Ximenez sherry though (at least in the finish). Plenty of tart sweet concentrated notes (like the pomegranate molasses). Heavy and complex, worth every penny.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Karuizawa 28 yo 1983/2012 Noh Sherry Cask #7576

Karuizawa 28 yo 1983/2012 Noh Sherry Cask #7576

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Dark amber
57.2% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cucumber, leather, raspberries, pears, dried apples, red grapes, magic marker, hints of roast pork. With water, honey, more dried apples, hints of cream, hints of elderflower.
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, loosens, turns watery, slightly astringent.
Tasting: Sweet. Ink, leather, raspberries, pears, red grapes, magic marker, honey, hints of roast pork. With water, sweeter, dried apples, calvados, hints of golden syrup.
Finish: Long. Chillies, leather, dried apples, honey.

Comments:

Sweet, but also fresh and astringent. Sherried Karuizawa has become something of a cliche, I feel, and it's always nice to find something that doesn't hew to that stereotype. Not that there's much left to find. This whisky is complex, slightly savoury, and opens up beautifully with water. What it opens up to is a world of apples and apple brandy. Delicious.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Karuizawa 28 yo 1984/2012 Cask #4021

Karuizawa 28 yo 1984/2012 Cask #4021

Official bottling
Single grain - West Honshu
Dark rose
64.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Leather, dried apricots, dried strawberries, peaches, peanuts, candied oranges, hints of smoke. With water, candied ginger, candied ginseng, hints of peat.
Mouthfeel: Light body, expands, airy, slightly fizzy.
Tasting: Bitter salty. Peanuts, leather, dried apricots, candied oranges, green peas, hints of honey. With water, more bitter, slightly sweet, candied ginger, cola nuts, red grapes.
Finish: Medium. Leather, leaf mulch, peaches, photocopy paper, honey.

Comments:

This whisky needs time. It's a sherry cask, but doesn't really taste sherried. Instead, it's peaty, earthy and savoury, with lots of dried fruit warring with light sweetness, peanuts and leather. Left on its own, with just a smidgen of water, it opens up into spicy, nutty territory with just a hint of sherry. Unusual, but very good.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Karuizawa 1990/2012 Cask #679

Karuizawa 1990/2012 Cask #679

Official bottling 
Single malt - West Honshu
Dark amber
56.1% ABV
Dram

Nose: Raisins, blackcurrants, vanilla, dried cherries, leather, cloves, hints of sandalwood. With water, less spicy, more malted grains, hints of oats.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens in the mouth, slightly astringent.
Tasting: Sweet. Raisins, chocolate, cloves, blackcurrants, vanilla, leather, hints of sandalwood. With water, saltier, leather, hints of smoke.
Finish: Medium. Chocolate, blackcurrants, leather, hints of sandalwood.

Comments:

Not your usual Karuizawa. Instead of full-on, winey, vinous red grapes, this whisky has a savoury, slightly leathery (rancio?) undertone throughout. With water, it opens up, becoming saltier and even slightly smoky. Tricksy, but a real treat.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Spirit of Asama 2nd batch

Spirit of Asama 2nd batch

Official bottling 
Single malt - West Honshu
Dark amber 
50.5% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cream, apples, cherries, plums, hints of brown paper, hints of leather. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, volatile, tingly. 
Tasting: Bitter sweet. Apples, cherries, plums, vanilla, hints of pears, hints of leather. 
Finish: Long. Apples, vanilla, plums, hints of leather. 

Comments: 

Fruity, a little leathery. This is Karuizawa without the sherry influence. Anything from the distillery is a treat, and this is a special one. Shame the bottles are so overpriced. Thanks to the Mizuwari Whisky Bar for a little sample, fresh from an unopened bottle.

Verdict:

I like this.

SMWS 132.1 (Karuizawa 28 yo 1984/2013)

SMWS 132.1 (Karuizawa 28 yo 1984/2013)

2013, SMWS
Single malt - West Honshu
Mahogany
59.9% ABV
Dram

Nose: Oak, leather, pine, wood polish, toffee, hints of plums. With water, marmalade, more plums, hints of wintergreen. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, sticky, volatile. 
Tasting: Sweet. Wood polish, roast ham, toffee, butterscotch, jalapenos, hints of plums. With water, even sweeter, more plums, marmalade. 
Finish: Long. Marmalade, toffee, wood polish, butterscotch. With water, plums, wintergreen. 

Comments: 

Typical sherry casked Karuizawa - absolutely delicious. This one was just a little strong, but with water, opened up marvellously, with great notes of plums, plums, pudding and ume everywhere. Big notes of wintergreen cut through all of that sweetness, preventing it from getting too cloying.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Spirit of Asama 55%

Spirit of Asama 55%

Official bottling 
Single malt - West Honshu
Red copper
55% ABV 
Dram

Nose: Cream, green tea, sulphur, raisins, liquorice, hints of grass and banana. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, watery, mouth coating. 
Tasting: Bitter sour. Green tea, raisins, cream, liquorice, hints of grass. 
Finish: Long. Green tea, raisins, cream, grass, banana. 

Comments: 

Quite sulphury! But not all that unpleasant, which was quite unusual. The sulphur notes blend well with the astringent tea notes and aniseed notes. Unusual but good combination. Quite fruity, like a young bourbon, but with big hits of grassiness. This is a vatting of 77 Karuizawa casks, quite possibly all that's left of it!

Verdict:

I like this.

Karuizawa 1982 Sherry Cask (for The Whisky Exchange)

Karuizawa 1982 Sherry Cask (for The Whisky Exchange)

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Deep red brown
56.1% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cream, blackberries, strawberries, chocolate, hints of cherry.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, smooth, loose, spicy.
Tasting: Bitter sweet. Cream, chocolate, blackberries, strawberries, cherries, honey.
Finish: Long. Cherries, honey, hints of wet leaves.

Comments:

Incredible. Huge sweet and spicy flavours, redolent with red fruits. Very autumnal, with big hits of blackberries and in the background, an earthiness like the smell of wet leaves. This is fantastic whisky, worth every penny.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.

Karuizawa 15 yo 1992/2007 (for WhiskyLive)

Karuizawa 15 yo 1992/2007 (for WhiskyLive)

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Cough syrup
60.6% ABV
Bottle

Nose: Raisins, mint, coca cola, cloves, vanilla, sarsaparilla, tobacco leaf. With water, even sweeter, dried apricots, molasses, orange peel.
Mouthfeel: Medium body, loosens, watery, tingly.
Tasting: Sweet. Brown paper, raisins, mint, coca cola, cloves, dried apricots, leather, tobacco leaf. With water, sarsaparilla, orange peel, marmalade notes appear.
Finish: Long. Chillies, cloves, coca cola, mint.

Comments:

Cask 3434, 308 bottles. Bottled for WhiskyLive London 2009. I opened this bottle to celebrate my son's arrival. The whisky is fragrant and herbal, more like a tonic than a drink. It tastes a little like Coke. Perhaps that shouldn't be surprising - Coke was originally sold as a herbal pick-me-up. This whisky is pretty good at doing that too!

Verdict:

I like this a lot.