Three Japanese days on WF, day 1


September 14, 2026

Three Japanese days on WF, day 1

As so often when tasting whiskies from one particular country, we’re faced with a sizeable dilemma: should we mix the distilleries, or stick to dedicated sessions, as we almost always do with Scottish malts?

Both options have their pros and cons, the first is more fun and throws the differences between the distilleries into sharper relief, while the second is more coherent, more precise, and better at bringing out all those nuances related to age, casks, perhaps even vintages, or indeed to the various blenders and bottlers… Right, I think we’ll go for the fun version, the mixed bag, choosing what we taste as we go along and according to whatever takes our fancy. Fine with you?

Hibiki 12 yo ‘Travel Exclusive’ (43%, OB, Japanese blend, 2026)

I had tasted an earlier version of the 12 yo… twelve years ago and had found it a little average (WF 72), but that was a long time ago. It would appear that this new composition has been completely reformulated. Colour: white wine. Nose: a lovely touch of green tea to start with, followed by pure barley, wet chalk, vanilla, then spruce wood, perhaps even mizunara, and finally apple compote with little mentholated touches. It’s delicate and refined, with no obvious grain notes and no coconut. In short, it’s subtly composed. Mouth: livelier, with menthol and resinous wood more to the fore, while apple and pear compote with vanilla provides a solid base. A few notes of papaya, but discreet ones, while the peppers gradually take over. Finish: fresh kumquats and bergamots now arriving, which we like a lot. Strangely, the peppers become more discreet, whereas it’s usually the other way round. Comments: I think this is much more to my taste than the older version. The oak is a little noticeable, that said we’re still some way from the old 17 yo (WF 87).
SGP:451 - 83 points.

Since we’re having some blends…

Ichiro’s Malt & Grain (59.1%, OB for Nauspirits, South Korea, sherry hogshead finish, cask # B0039, 296 bottles, 2025)

Our usual colossal mistake is to taste these blends after Chichibu, which is rather like sending them into the ring with one hand tied behind their backs. Not this time, although there will indeed be some Chichibu later… Colour: full gold. Nose: varnish, coconut, a little acetone, this baby seems to have plenty to say, but it needs water. With water: white chocolate with grated coconut, white turron, pancakes, maple syrup… The varnish has disappeared! Mouth (neat): it’s rich, spicy and wonderfully resinous, but also very much on bitter orange and pepper, all things we like a lot. An amusing touch of ripe strawberry. With water: fresher, with bay leaves, peppermint, green pepper, and a little liquorice wood. This is a very malty and rather vigorous blend. Finish: long, with small plums and green apples… Japanese ones? Very lovely lime in the aftertaste and a faint smokiness. Comments: I like this lively and animated blend rather a lot.
SGP:461 - 85 points.

Ichiro’s Malt & Grain ‘The Artisan Flow – Ume Drift’ (61.2%, OB, Spirits of Salud, 2026)

Ichiro’s Malt & Grain ‘The Artisan Flow – Ume Drift’ (61.2%, OB, Spirits of Salud, 271 bottles, 2026)

Picture not the actual bottle, I’m sorry. Colour: full gold. Nose: much more compact, with candied oranges and thuja wood, a little camphor, and altogether much closer to malt. The alcohol is keeping the beast under wraps a little, but we’ll soon sort that out… With water: crystal-clear, patchouli, lime blossom, potting soil, pistachio cream. This is pure malt, isn’t it? A little rubber tree sap. Mouth (neat): extremely powerful, fat yet sharp, rather like a grapefruit liqueur at 90% vol. with the pips still in the bottle. I’m barely exaggerating… With water: it loosens up, moving towards bergamot and a little touch of good-quality Weissbier. Finish: long, very fresh, while remaining fat and textured throughout. Shall we dare mention Italicus? Too late, we just did… Comments: magnificent ultra-malty blend, refreshing yet vigorous. The citrus signature is superb.
SGP:661 - 88 points.

With blends like these, do we even need to bother with malts, you may ask? Of course we do…

Kanosuke 2020/2026 ‘The Rainbow Girl’ (61%, OB, shochu and red wine casks, 258 bottles)

The shochu makes me keen, the red wine makes me nervous. Strange, isn’t it? Colour: amber. Nose: there’s an immediate sulphury side but, very, very strangely, it’s actually pleasant. The rest is shared between black pepper, cedarwood, beef jerky and umeshu, with even a surprising old Armagnac side. With water: earth and old fabrics come along to complete the picture. The sulphur is still there, utterly unperturbed. Mouth (neat): it shakes you about a little, but this unlikely pepper + beef jerky + umeshu combination works extremely well. With water: geranium, bitter orange, aubergine, bell pepper, pencil shavings and green walnut. Finish: long, lively yet rounded at the same time, great fun and rather typical of double maturation. Comments: there are some rather bewildering aspects but also bags of fun. Surely worth a few extra points because of that.
SGP:462 - 87 points.

Kanosuke 2018/2026 ‘Peated’ (57%, OB for The Whisky Exchange, 1st fill bourbon cask, cask 19044, 156 bottles)

50ppm peat here. Colour: gold. Nose: straight away, that light, windswept kind of peat that, in the old days, we used to call ‘aerial peat’, a term we pretty much reserved for Caol Ila. Wrongly. Slightly unripe apples, soaked ashes, small shellfish and lime liqueur. With water: barley and fig leaves take over. Mouth (neat): very precise, slightly oily, with apple liqueur, green pepper and ashes. With water: the saltiness of Caol… I mean peated Kanosuke, comes through in full force. Finish: all that was missing were oysters, wakame and smoked oil. Comments: simplicity, almost modesty, is its greatest asset. We can only applaud.
SGP:466 - 88 points.

Yamazakura Asaka 2020/2023 (62%, OB, for Mizunara Hong Kong, bourbon, cask #20090, 227 bottles)

Colour: pale white wine. Nose: it could hardly be more about barley, grapefruit and chalk. With water: and it doesn’t budge an inch. Mouth (neat): wonderfully sharp, rhubarb, unripe kiwi, green apple, lime. With water: same. Finish: long, lively, pin-sharp and vertical. Comments: never has a whisky this simple been this good, it’s almost binary, at any rate anti-fractal. We love this too, that self-evident simplicity almost reminds us of The Fall. We loved The Fall.
SGP:562 - 89 points.

We’re flying high, perhaps a little too high…

Saburomaru 2021/2026 (58.7%, OB, Wakatsuru, for Taiwan, oloroso butt, cask #210156)

Colour: amber. Nose: walnut wine and orange liqueur are running the show here, at least for now. A very faint touch of bacon, then vineyard peach liqueur, which is slightly unexpected and gives it an almost Cognac-like side. A very lovely nose, in any case. With water: driftwood, or at least wet wood, bamboo, teak… Mouth (neat): powerful, almost phenolic, with orange cordial, pink peppercorns and a charcoal side. Excellent. With water: you’d swear there was some peat in there, although we’re not entirely sure, which is great fun. Otherwise, magnificent notes of speculoos, one of our favourite little biscuits. In the world, not just in Belgium. Brown sugar. Finish: long, clean, a little woodier (sandalwood, cedar) but everything remains balanced by orange… and mango, making a late but rather conspicuous appearance. Comments: absolutely terrific, this little Saburomaru for Aren Trading in Taiwan!
SGP:652 - 89 points.

Mars Komagatake 7 yo 2017/2026 ‘Yakushima Ageing’ (57%, OB, for The Whisky Exchange, Tsuki Dashi, bourbon cask, cask #2001, 168 bottles)

I know all this business about ageing cellars can sound a little ‘chichi’, almost like terroir with a roof on it, but having tasted quite a few of these already, I’ll dare say it really does make a difference. Colour: pale gold. Nose: peanut oil, sesame oil, mandarins, Grand Marnier (Cuvée du Centenaire) and a little ski wax. Yes. With water: fresh white wood, hay, herbal teas, chamomile… But the peanut oil remains. Or peanut butter. Or perhaps a little burnt butter. Mouth (neat): the mandarins dominate absolutely everything! With water: not that much change, this is a very vertical, simple and rather magnificent palate. A touch of ginger. Finish: same, but with a saltier base. Comments: our favourite style. I know, we keep banging on about it. In any case, after some empirical assessment, we reckon Yakushima is the place for ageing Komagatake.
SGP:561 - 88 points.

One last one for today, if you don’t mind, and let’s stay with Komagatake…

Mars Komagatake 8 yo 2017/2025 (59%, OB, for Dram Good Stuff Hong Kong, sherry hogshead, cask #3553, 236 bottles)

Dram good stuff, obviously, who could possibly object to that. Colour: golden amber. Nose: it’s woodier, with sandalwood and balsa, also cedar, while bitter orange and marmalade gradually manage to regain control. Some absolutely lovely pink peppercorns and sweet paprika too. With water: a faint touch of metal polish and ‘old English motorbike’, how amusing! Mouth (neat): superb, taut, packed with oranges of all kinds and peppers. It’s simple, effective, almost elementary, yet magnificent. Provided you like bitter orange and pepper, naturally, indeed the pepperiness even starts tickling your lips. I promise. With water: cedarwood, rosewood, sandalwood, even a little gewurztraminer, all rather unexpected, but not detrimental in the slightest, quite the opposite. Finish: long but a little rougher, with a slight touch of green tannins, melon skin, not-quite-ripe fig… But there’s plenty of charm in all that. Grapefruit comes along to restore order in the aftertaste. Comments: less easy-going but fascinating to follow in your glass. Anyway, there hasn’t been anything interesting on television for ages. Who still watches telly these days, apart from best buddies DJT and VVP?
SGP:551 - 88 points.

Okay, over the next few days, expect an epic Yoichi vs. Miyagikyo duel and more Japanese whiskies, including Chichibu, and even some anonymous Japanese. Now that takes some nerve…

Check the index of all Japanese whiskies we've tasted