Category: Japanese whisky

The popularity of Japanese whisky has risen to incredibly heights, and one of the most famous brands of Japanese whisky is Yamazaki. Yamazaki 18 year old is superb sipping whisky. but it is far from perfect.  The whisky itself is dominated by oak and projects subdued tannins, saw dust, sherry and sappy wood. The other character in the whisky hides beneath that almost murky granulated wood, but occasionally shines through with orchard fruit, citrus, rose Turkish delight and subtle floral notes. It is an absolutely delightful sipping whisky that I enjoyed for a good hour, but its heavy oakiness seemed to detract from that enjoyment.

Last seen for $275, this is an outrageously expensive whisky and to be absolutely honest I would not rush out and buy this whisky, even at half its asking price.

★★★★★

The Nikka Pure Malt Black is a Japanese whisky comprising of whisky primarily from the Yoichi distillery. It is bottled at 43% alcohol volume, but packs a mean Judo chop to the palate! (which then dies too quickly). This whisky has been praised by other reviewers, but I struggle to see what all the fuss is about. It struck me as a little unbalanced towards the sweet side, and it was somewhat dominated by sherry which suffocated the peat and smoke I was expecting.

Nikka writes that Yoichi produces “rich, peaty and masculine malt”, and that this distillery’s whisky gets a distinct flavour and aroma from the use of “finely powered natural coal” used to heat the pot stills. That’s the first time I’ve heard a whisky described as “masculine”… I better not touch that one.

This whisky is described as having a strong peated flavour, so I blind tasted this whisky alongside other peated whiskies including the Ardbeg Galileo, Lagavulin 16 Year Old and Sheep Dip “Old Hebridean” 1990. The Nikka Pure Malt Black was, in my opinion, the least impressive. That said, it is still very good in my view.

Tasting Notes – Nikka Pure Malt Black 

This whisky is not, as Nikka claim, heavily peated or rugged in the sense that it is “masculine”. It is in fact light and soft, with undertones of peat rising up through the sweetness. The sweetness is syrupy and at its foundation is sherry and light caramel.  

Nose 

Initially dull on the nose, the soft and sweet peat rises up with very mild licorice and sugary candy gently shines with bright fresh apple slices; Granny Smith (green) apple in particular. This has a distinct candied sweetness about it, that balances nicely against the peat and oak.

Taste 

An initial burst of sweet peat morphs into sparks of dry grass burning gently (no apple in sight!), and then a sweetness develops in the form of sugary sherry that has undertones of burnt caramel that releases a mild bitterness with helpings of oak and cocoa. The sweetness does become quite syrupy after a while, and this sugary character lingers on the palate. Again, this has a distinct candied character within the theme of peat; though I would disagree that the peat in this whisky is in any way dominant. In fact, I would say the sweetness dominates somewhat. I also would not say this whisky is “rich”, as it has quite a brittle body to be called “rich” and while it has some clout this is short lived.

Finish

The finish is pleasant, but the sweetness is one dimensional on the finish with some sparks of peat. The finish is not powerful, and I was a little disappointed with the weakness of the finish. Even still, I really like this whisky.

★★★★

This whiskey gracefully meets the nose with a blast of rich oak and citrus, as nutty almonds give softness to the sharp bite of glazed cherries and brandy; lovely Christmas cake on the nose with icing to boot.