JAPANESE WHISKY
Hibiki Harmony: 8/10
This was the very Japanese whiskey I’ve tried and decided to try based on word of mouth and hype. I also decided to take a chance and buy a bottle at Bev Mo, which wasn’t too bad at around $65. I was pretty happy with my purchase because it did not disappoint and it also came in a nice looking bottle which can double as a decanter after you’ve finished the product.
Nose: floral, oak, light smoke
Palate: honey, light sherry, light peat, candied orange
Finish: medium, sweet, light bitterness, honey
White Oak Akashi: 6.5/10
Saw this in a casino and was really interested because I’ve never seen it before, so I was pretty stoked to try it. I was talking to the bartender a little about whiskeys and it seemed like he knew what he was talking about and said he liked this. He didn’t know shit…
Nose: sweet, honey, pear, oak
Palate: honey, pears, oak disappears, boring
Finish: short, dried fruits, peach, boring
White Oak Akashi: 6.5/10
Saw this in a casino and was really interested because I’ve never seen it before, so I was pretty stoked to try it. I was talking to the bartender a little about whiskeys and it seemed like he knew what he was talking about and said he liked this. He didn’t know shit…
Nose: sweet, honey, pear, oak
Palate: honey, pears, oak disappears, boring
Finish: short, dried fruits, peach, boring
Iwai Mars Whisky: 5.5/10
I actually got this for a gift for my brother in-law and he was nice enough to crack it open and drink it with me. Unfortunately, after trying it, it felt like I did him wrong and he was punishing me by making me damn near finish the bottle with him. What an asshole… (love you bro!)
Nose: apples, wood, peat, cherries
Palate: citrus, raisins, pepper, spice, ginger
Finish: medium, spicy, butter, bitter back end
Yamazaki 12: 8.4/10
Probably after Hibiki, this was one of the other, most hyped up or talked about Japanese whisky that I heard about. I tried it at a local bar and had some high expectations, luckily my expectations were met. I thought it was pretty damn good; however, its price point per bottle (especially now with all the mark-ups) probably wouldn’t make this a daily drinker type of thing, but still…hella good!
Nose: zest, fruity, citrus
Palate: sweet, light spice, citrus, dried fruit
Finish: medium, fruit, zesty, very enjoyable
Yamazaki 12: 8.4/10
Probably after Hibiki, this was one of the other, most hyped up or talked about Japanese whisky that I heard about. I tried it at a local bar and had some high expectations, luckily my expectations were met. I thought it was pretty damn good; however, its price point per bottle (especially now with all the mark-ups) probably wouldn’t make this a daily drinker type of thing, but still…hella good!
Nose: zest, fruity, citrus
Palate: sweet, light spice, citrus, dried fruit
Finish: medium, fruit, zesty, very enjoyable
Nikka Whisky: Super Rare Old: 7.7/10
Never even heard of this before and probably something I would never go out to look for, but luckily my buddy saved me a little to try before it was all gone. It came in a cool ass looking box with it’s own drinking glasses. This isn’t a very common bottle to find…duh, “rare old” on the bottle, so I’m glad I was able to try a little before it was all gone…
Nose: apples, oak, pear, orange zest
Palate: bananas, vanilla, light oak
Finish: medium, vanilla, citrus
Hibiki 21: 8.2/10
Daaaammnnn…Hibiki 21…bought my buddy a HALF shot of this for his birthday just so he (and I) could try it. Shit was $65 for a HALF shot!!! A bottle is over $500 and ain’t no way in HELL Ima spend that much on a bottle I havent even tried yet, so it was good I was able to get a little taste. Now, I’ve said before that I never let price and age dictate how I rate a whiskey, but damn…I’ve heard soooo much hype behind this one I was expecting a lot more and was sadly disappointed. If Ima pay that much muthafuckin money on a bottle it better blow me away! and Blow me at the same fuckin time!!! Unfortunately it didn’t do either…
Nose: apples, raisins, dates, orange peels
Palate: vanilla, cinnamon, raisins, citrus
Finish: long, spice, snickerdoodles, pepper
Hibiki 21: 8.2/10
Daaaammnnn…Hibiki 21…bought my buddy a HALF shot of this for his birthday just so he (and I) could try it. Shit was $65 for a HALF shot!!! A bottle is over $500 and ain’t no way in HELL Ima spend that much on a bottle I havent even tried yet, so it was good I was able to get a little taste. Now, I’ve said before that I never let price and age dictate how I rate a whiskey, but damn…I’ve heard soooo much hype behind this one I was expecting a lot more and was sadly disappointed. If Ima pay that much muthafuckin money on a bottle it better blow me away! and Blow me at the same fuckin time!!! Unfortunately it didn’t do either…
Nose: apples, raisins, dates, orange peels
Palate: vanilla, cinnamon, raisins, citrus
Finish: long, spice, snickerdoodles, pepper
Kaiyo Japanese Whisky: 6.6/10
Someone told me I needed to try more Japanese whiskies…so I was like…OK!!!
I mean, after all…I’m OBVIOUSLY doing this for the greater good…that’s what I tell wifey anyway…I decided to pick up this Kaiyo Mizunara Whisky cuz I kept seeing it everywhere I went…So I said, fuck it! Why not!?? After cracking it open it was just, mehhh …I mean the bottle was about ~$55+ and for around that price range u can definitely find a better dram, but oh well…lesson learned…Has anyone else tried this? If so, what were ur thoughts??? Cuz other than the go to hibiki, hakushu and yamakazi whiskies I can’t seem to find another Japanese whisky that tickles my fancy…So if anyone out there has any suggestions, it wud be much appreciated…
Nose: orange marmalade, lemon cake, vanilla
Palate: orange, grapefruit, oak, sweet
Finish: long, bitter, sour, spice
Hakushu 12: 8.1/10
Discontinued….damn…another one bites the dust. Seems like all the Japanese whiskies with age statements are going away so you better go git u one!!! This one was gifted to me from wifey for Father’s Day (after I bought it for myself, ha!) It was a little harder to find, but luckily I was able to grab the last one. It is pretty damn tasty, better than most Japanese whiskies I’ve tried so far and stays on the level of the Hibikis and Yamazakis. So if you can find some, buy a couple cuz you might never see them in the wild again!
Nose: nuts, fruit, orange peels, light peat
Palate: citrus zest, like a freshly cut grass, light peat
Finish: short, hints of peat again, orange zest, apples
Hakushu 12: 8.1/10
Discontinued….damn…another one bites the dust. Seems like all the Japanese whiskies with age statements are going away so you better go git u one!!! This one was gifted to me from wifey for Father’s Day (after I bought it for myself, ha!) It was a little harder to find, but luckily I was able to grab the last one. It is pretty damn tasty, better than most Japanese whiskies I’ve tried so far and stays on the level of the Hibikis and Yamazakis. So if you can find some, buy a couple cuz you might never see them in the wild again!
Nose: nuts, fruit, orange peels, light peat
Palate: citrus zest, like a freshly cut grass, light peat
Finish: short, hints of peat again, orange zest, apples
Ohishi Brandy Cask Japanese Whisky: 5.5/10
I first tried this at Whiskies of the World and I remember in the midst of trying all these different and great whiskies during the event I remember finally getting to a table offering Japanese whisky. The one thing I DID remember was that this whiskey did NOT stand out to me. It was very blah and very forgettable…so I decided to give it another shot recently and WOW! Still fucking forgettable….so that is what I will do, forget all about this one…on to the next one!!!
Nose: orange citrus, toffee, dark berries, grapes
Palate: orange, vanilla, brown sugar, nuts, more grapes
Finish: medium, sweet, citrus, boringness
Ohishi Sherry Cask Japanese Whisky: 6/10
OK…I like whiskies finished in sherry casks and since the Ohishi brandy cask was very, mehhh….I decided to give the sherry cask a chance…and WOW!! I can’t believe Ohishi went 0 for 2 with another blah expression…I mean, it was slightly better than the brandy cask, but thats still not saying a lot. I think I’m done giving Ohishi chances, cuz at this point im just wasting liver function…and if Im going to destroy my liver, Ima make it count!
Nose: sherry, nuts, dried fruit, citrus, light peppery spice
Palate: vanilla, chocolate covered raisins, citrus, ash
Finish: long, more spice, dark fruit, strange sour/bitter back end
Ohishi Sherry Cask Japanese Whisky: 6/10
OK…I like whiskies finished in sherry casks and since the Ohishi brandy cask was very, mehhh….I decided to give the sherry cask a chance…and WOW!! I can’t believe Ohishi went 0 for 2 with another blah expression…I mean, it was slightly better than the brandy cask, but thats still not saying a lot. I think I’m done giving Ohishi chances, cuz at this point im just wasting liver function…and if Im going to destroy my liver, Ima make it count!
Nose: sherry, nuts, dried fruit, citrus, light peppery spice
Palate: vanilla, chocolate covered raisins, citrus, ash
Finish: long, more spice, dark fruit, strange sour/bitter back end
Nikka from the Barrel Japanese Whisky: 8.1/10
Finally found it!! This shit right here?? Nikka! Nikka…this shit right here?!?! is puurrrddyy damn tasty…The bottle goes for about $50-60 and is dope as shit too. It’s shaped like a brick…imagine building a house with full Nikka bottles…I’d never leave and just stay home drinking from the bottles…wait, I already do that…nevermind…I’m already living the dream!!!.
Nose: orange zest, lemon, vanilla
Palate: honey, brown sugar, orange candy
Finish: long, very spicy, oak, tangerines
Hibiki 17: 9.1/10
So far all the Hibikis I’ve tried have been good, not great and to be honest the only one worth it’s price point is the Harmony, but I do have to say this 17 is the best one so far..It’s well-balanced, sweet and not too spicy like the others, which include the 21. Then again, is it worth its price point? In secondary markets a bottle might go for over $400+ which means you might find a 1 oz pour of this for well over $50+. Personally, I’m not willing to spend THAT much on 1 oz, but then again, if you ballin’ out and money ain’t no thang feel free! And of course invite me to drink with u and buy all my drinks cuz, hey! What’s money between 2 friends, especially if 1 has an expendable income (you, I’m talking about you) I’ll be here waiting for ur invite! Thaaaaanks!
Nose: pears, citrus zest, apples
Palate: sweet, apple pie, vanilla, cereal sweetness, sweet butter
Finish: long, spice, pound cake, maple syrup
Hibiki 17: 9.1/10
So far all the Hibikis I’ve tried have been good, not great and to be honest the only one worth it’s price point is the Harmony, but I do have to say this 17 is the best one so far..It’s well-balanced, sweet and not too spicy like the others, which include the 21. Then again, is it worth its price point? In secondary markets a bottle might go for over $400+ which means you might find a 1 oz pour of this for well over $50+. Personally, I’m not willing to spend THAT much on 1 oz, but then again, if you ballin’ out and money ain’t no thang feel free! And of course invite me to drink with u and buy all my drinks cuz, hey! What’s money between 2 friends, especially if 1 has an expendable income (you, I’m talking about you) I’ll be here waiting for ur invite! Thaaaaanks!
Nose: pears, citrus zest, apples
Palate: sweet, apple pie, vanilla, cereal sweetness, sweet butter
Finish: long, spice, pound cake, maple syrup