A short stroll among some of Japan’s new-wave distilleries


April 2, 2025

A short stroll among some of Japan’s new-wave distilleries

It's always a joy to find ourselves back in the Land of the Rising Sun, if only in our glasses... In fact, in some cases, it’ seems that we'll also be heading to Islay, in a way.

Ichiro’s Malt & Grain (60.2%, OB, La Maison du Whisky Singapore, Japan, single cask, refill bourbon barrel, cask #14838, 247 bottles, 2023)

A third-fill barrel having previously contained some peater. Colour: full gold. Nose: extremely fresh and citrusy, taut like freshly chopped rhubarb drizzled with lime juice, with a sprinkling of bay leaf and verbena oils, then yellow melon and pretty soft vanilla, although the high strength does make itself known as well. The peat stays well-behaved for now. With water: Japanese bean cake, obviously. Mouth (neat): an explosive fruitiness straight down the citrus line, with hints of camphor and olives wrapped in gently honeyed custard. With water: same story. Lovely lemon, a touch of fresh sorrel, and still that lingering honey in the background. Finish: same again, only with ashes now playfully peeking through in the aftertaste. Comments: a very lovely blend, wonderfully tight and chiselled.
SGP:562 - 87 points.

Akkeshi 3 yo (58%, OB, Japan, single malt, Claude x Salud friendship cask, 2025)

This should be peated. We’ve already tried peated Akkeshis, but those were more lightly so. Colour: light gold. Nose: we're straight on Islay, with something that feels like a blend of A and CI, at least on the nose. Charcoal, seaweed, tar, ashes, smoked fish, plus a touch that’s both farmy and mentholy with a singular coastal twist that now sets it apart. With water: oysters show up, along with bandages and mercurochrome. Mouth (neat): fat and even closer to A, with a distinct lemony feel and hints of tiny herbs seemingly kilned for days. Then tarred and liquorice-laced olives, and the expected saline touch. With water: swims beautifully, the peat turning even more citrusy and coastal. Finish: long, with almond milk and lapsang souchong in the aftertaste. Comments: of course it’s simple at this age, but it’s a simplicity engineered with precision. I really do like this little Ar… kkeshi a lot.
SGP:557 - 88 points.

Togouchi 2019/2024 (51%, OB, Japan, single malt, Taiwan exclusive, Islay cask, cask #5288, 198 bottles)

Not a ‘Japanese world blend’ at all here, this was distilled at Sakurao and matured at Togouchi Cellar. Colour: pale gold. Nose: this one starts off a little more on porridge, cereals and ale, then it grows increasingly peaty and lemony, in a very classic and rather lovely fashion. Those wafts of damp chalk in the background are still working beautifully. With water: a little fresh wood, but also langoustines and rather soft ashes. It’s all very delicate, very pretty. Mouth (neat): very fruity, with peat more enclosed within mandarin—including the zest—which gives it almost a touch of cask-aged gin. Fresh banana, then a fruit salad. With water: balance is perfect, lemon/rhubarb/ash, but beware, the drinkability index rises steeply. Finish: long, very fresh and maritime. Could we order a platter of a dozen oysters? Comments: the progress the name Togouchi has made recently is truly impressive—thanks to their own single malts, of course. And perhaps also to that Islay cask in this instance.
SGP:565 - 87 points.

Since we're with Sakurao...

Sakurao 2018/2024 (58%, OB, Japan, single malt, cream sherry hogshead, cask #6105, 205 bottles)

From Sakurao 2 cellar. Colour: reddish amber. Nose: heaps of roasted chestnuts, black truffle and fresh rubber, leather, gunpowder, burnt wood, black tea... It’s really water that will settle the matter here, as often. With water: still a good dose of powder, but also pipe tobacco ashes from an old briar, and always those black truffles (tuber melanosporum). Mouth (neat): heavy on the roasting, now much more on burnt cakes, dried meats, orange marmalade and black nougat. Three tonnes of deeply roasted almonds. With water: bay leaf, geranium and smoked paprika come barging in. Finish: long, still very ‘gunpowdery’, but now also peppery. Roasted chestnuts and Seville oranges resurface in the aftertaste. Comments: a bold beast, very, very singular and even spectacular, in a rather dry and earthy style.
SGP:472 - 85 points.

Saburomaru 4 yo 2019/2023 (59.65%, The Auld Alliance, Japan, single malt, heavily peated cask, 185 bottles)

More new-wave Japanese whisky, this is very cool… We’re at Wakatsuru Distillery, a sake brewery in Tonami. We already tried a great one (for Rudder). Colour: deep gold. Nose: perfect, on cherry stem tisane, old copper and brass bits, Parma ham, heather honey, wisteria flowers, a wee chunk of smoked herring, and a nice touch of… funk. With water: the waxes and vegetable oils emerge. All very good signs! Mouth (neat): there you go, you instantly know this is a winner, you could just slap on 90 points straight away. Tobacco cake (if that were a thing, though I doubt it—it would likely be toxic), then rather fatty peat and a complete set of all the peppers in the world. With water: is this really four years old? I’m about to request an audit. Anyway, what now appears are heirloom apples, taking centre stage—a small marvel. Finish: perfect, ideal, rich yet lifted and elegant. Ash-baked apples. Comments: of course, one could question this whole ‘heavily peated cask’ business, but let’s abstain and simply enjoy finishing our glass. Which, obviously, we never do, with very few exceptions.
SGP:664 - 90 points.

We’re really quite fond of these young Japanese, so we’re going to keep going...

Mars Tsunuki 5 yo 2018/2024 (57%, OB for Lucky Choice ‘chapter 1’, Japan, sherry puncheon, 557 bottles)

From a series called ‘The Dragon Awakes’, which sounds pretty G.O.T. if you ask me. Well then, we know what to expect here… Colour: copper amber. Nose: we’re back to oven-scorched cakes and tarts, quite a bit of soot, cigar ash, very dark chocolate, an abundance of walnuts, then saddle leather and an old biker jacket. That was one heck of a puncheon! With water: it almost folds in on itself, which is rather unexpected. Soot, slag, ashes, old beeswax polish… Mouth (neat): precise, jammy, on zest and marmalade, then mint, chlorophyll and tar. Also a rather stunning polish-and-clove combo. With water: candied oranges take over neatly. Finish: long, with a touch of ginger and—let’s face it—a bit of gunpowder again. Oops, it drops a point or two at this stage. Comments: this really is a splendid Tsunuki. Now, one just wonders under what conditions they’re shipping a sherry puncheon from Jerez all the way to Japan.
SGP:564 - 88 points.

Chichibu 2018/2022 (63.9%, OB for La Maison du Whisky Singapore, Japan, Flower Series #2, single malt, second-fill bourbon, cask #7087, 227 bottles)

Chichibu in refill bourbon? Hang on, we’re coming!!!… Colour: very pale gold. Nose: almond cream, barley syrup, mirabelles and quinces, tangerines and a few ashes. And loads of ethanol, so let’s not get too silly just yet… With water: fresh baguette, damp cardboard, plaster… Mouth (neat): sublime citrusy and ashy precision. Honestly, it’s a bit like a young Rosebank from the old days. With water: this is exceptional. A full showcase of citrus fruits (on world tour), top-notch green pepper and always that ash. A single drop of pear liqueur. Finish: frankly, same again. Comments: of great beauty, this is a rich yet chiselled Chichibu.
SGP:654 - 91 points.

We ought to stop there, but we’re going to add another Chichibu for Singapore, simply because we love Singapore (and Chichibu, of course) ...

Chichibu 2017/2023 (64.2%, OB for La Maison du Whisky Singapore, Japan, Flower Series #3, 1st fill bourbon barrel, cask #7248, 207 bottles)

At this strength, it’s an alcoholic assault—I’m fairly certain that’s regulated by the Geneva Convention, it seems only uncultured brutes seem to ignore that one nowadays. Colour: full gold. Nose: clearly a more assertive bourbon barrel imprint here, with marzipan, buttercream, a hint of kirsch, lightly mentholated vanilla custard (agreed, sounds odd), then a full stream of blood orange juice. With water: twelve orange cakes and a dab of leather conditioner. Mouth (neat): an explosion of exotic fruits, vanilla, papaya, guava, banana liqueur… all that’s missing is a little paper parasol and a couple of sparklers to complete the scene. With water: the texture turns wonderfully oily and sharply citrusy—it’s so dazzling you might be tempted to drizzle it over grilled sole fillets. Bon appétit. Finish: long and creamy, fairly gentle, though still led by citrus. A curiously sweet note lingers in the aftertaste. Comments: splendid, of course, just ever so slightly overshadowed by the previous one.
SGP:651 - 89 points.

Check the index of all Japanese whiskies we've tasted so far