Akashi 5yo Bourbon Cask 1356

Akashi 5yo Bourbon Cask 1356

Official bottling
Single malt - Kansai
Amber orange
56% ABV
Dram

Nose: Magic marker, lemon zest, malted grains, green tea, gooseberries, hints of white pepper. With water, golden syrup, magic marker, hints of green tea. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, tingly, volatile. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Malted grains, lemon zest, gooseberries, white grapes, fresh baked bread, hints of white pepper. With water, malted grains, golden syrup, green tea. 
Finish: Medium. White pepper, fresh baked bread, lemon zest, malted grains. 

Comments: 

Cask 1356. Rich, slightly tannic and very cereally. Water brings out even more cereal, alongside some floral notes and slightly caramelised sweetness.

Verdict:

I like this.

Akashi 5yo Red Wine Cask

Akashi 5yo Red Wine Cask

Official bottling
Single malt - Kansai
Amber red
50% ABV
Dram

Nose: Red wine, wet stones, raisins, pears, apples, red grapes, dried blueberries. 
Mouthfeel: Heavy body, cool, tingly, volatile. 
Tasting:  Bitter sweet. Malted grains, cloves, oak chips, damson jam, camphor, apples, hints of dried blueberries. 
Finish: Medium. Camphor, apples, pears, oak chips, cloves. 

Comments: 

Active cask that masks most of the notes from the distillate. Jammy red fruit flavours, with a bitter herbal note of camphor. Was on the fence as to whether to add water but in the end didn’t.

Verdict:

I like this.

Akashi Blue Label

Akashi Blue Label

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Amber gold
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: Sandalwood, orange peel, clay dust, lemon zest, peaches, hints of camphor. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, volatile, expands. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Sandalwood, fresh cut grass, sage, lemon zest, peaches, hay, hints of clay dust. 
Finish: Short. Demerara sugar, orange peel, hay, fresh cut grass, hints of peaches. 

Comments: 

Quite herbal but sweet and light, with intense peachy notes on the back palate. It also has some grassiness on the finish. A very interesting and layered dram.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Akashi 3yo 2018/2022

Akashi 3yo 2018/2022

Official bottling 
Single malt - West Honshu
Straw
62% ABV
Dram

Nose: Leather, tablet, orange peel, vanilla, green tea, sandalwood, hints of cinnamon. With water, cream, condensed milk, hints of starfruit. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, warm, slightly astringent. 
Tasting:  Sour. Tablet, vanilla, green tea, condensed milk, cinnamon, leather, hints of orange peel. With water, green tea, leather, peat, cream. 
Finish: Long. Leather, peat, green tea, orange peel. 

Comments: 

Cask 101857 + 58. It’s tart stuff, but tart with the earthy sourness of peat rather than fruity acidity. Still, there’s some of that, especially with a bit of water. It’s also got notes of milk and cinnamon. Quite a lovely dram.

Verdict:

I like this a lot. 

Akashi Red Blended Whisky

Akashi Red Blended Whisky

Official bottling
Single blend - West Honshu
Golden
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: White grapes, green tea, smoked almonds, dried peaches, hints of leather, hints of tobacco leaf. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loosens, slightly sticky, mouth coating. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Dried peaches, fresh baked bread, raisins, tobacco leaf, mint, vanilla. 
Finish: Short. Mint, tobacco leaf, white grapes, hints of oats. 

Comments: 

Eigashima whiskies are always light and sweet, but over the years they've been getting more complex. This one has lots of cereal in addition to the fruity notes, and some alluring tobacco as well. Quite tasty and refreshing, especially with ice.

Verdict:

I like this.

Akashi Blended Whisky

Akashi Blended Whisky

Official bottling
Single blend - West Honshu
Orange gold
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: Cola nuts, photocopy paper, orange peel, peanuts, white pepper, hints of cotton sheets. 
Mouthfeel: Medium body, thickens slightly, slightly sticky, balls up on the tongue. 
Tasting:  Sweet. Cola nuts, peanuts, honey, molasses, cream. 
Finish: Short. Honey, white pepper, cream, orange peel. 

Comments: 

A proper blended whisky - the flagship White Oak contains some molasses spirit. I believe that this was created for the EU market originally, but can be found all over the world (I bought the bottle in Singapore). It's well constructed, reasonably complex, and very easy-drinking. It's almost swiggable.

Verdict:

I like this.

White Oak Akashi Meisei

White Oak Akashi Meisei

Official bottling
Single blend - West Honshu
Amber
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: Chocolate, coffee, malted grains, honey, hints of red grapes. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, thickens, mouth coating, slightly oily. 
Tasting:  Sweet salty. Coffee, red grapes, vanilla, blueberries, hints of candied orange . 
Finish: Medium. Chocolate, coffee, candied oranges, vanilla. 

Comments: 

Another offering from the Eigashima distillery, replacing an earlier expression that may (or may not) have had some non-grain spirit in it. This is all grain. It's decent, savoury and fruit-perfumed, nice mouthfeel too. There's a teensy hint of chinotto in the finish too.

Verdict:

I like this.

Akashi White Oak Single Malt

Akashi White Oak Single Malt

Official bottling
Single malt - West Honshu
Buttercups
46% ABV
Dram

Nose: White grapes, dried pears, guava, peanuts, cream, hints of walnuts. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, slippery, loose, slightly oily. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Raisins, dried pears, guava, palm sugar, peaches, hints of walnuts, hints of white grapes. 
Finish: Short. Guava, white pepper, peanuts, peaches, hints of photocopy paper. 

Comments: 

This is the sister bottling to the White Oak blend, the whisky that didn't taste like whisky. This one is definitely whisky though - ooked and dried fruits in abundance, with plenty of spicy pepper in the finish. The hints of paper and white grapes remind me of its sibling.

Verdict:

I like this.

Akashi White Oak Blended

Akashi White Oak Blended

Official bottling 
Single blend - East Honshu
Light gold
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: White grapes, photocopy paper, steamed rice, cotton sheets, hints of lavender, hints of peach.
Mouthfeel: Light body, watery, slippery.
Tasting: Sweet sour . Green tea, white grapes, steamed rice, cotton sheets, hints of lavender.
Finish: Short. Green tea, white grapes, peaches, cotton sheets.

Comments:

OK, this is very unusual. In fact, it doesn't even taste like whisky. And there's a good reason for this, because this is a blend of single malt from Eigashima distillery, distilled molasses spirit (isn't this rum?) from the same distillery, and possibly a smidgen of non-Japanese grain whisky. It's not really whisky by the usual definition. It is light, fresh, mild and gentle, with pleasant notes of freshly laundered cotton sheets, green tea, and steamed rice. I really like this.

Verdict:

I like this a lot.