Day 9: Yamazaki

Yamazaki is a small town just outside of Osaka that was the birthplace of Japanese whisky. The distillery was founded in 1923 and named after the town that still is prized for its pure spring waters and diverse climate. If you've never tried Yamazaki and you enjoy whisky you have to give it a try. There's not a lot better than the 18yr old in it's price range. When I first discovered this whisky several years ago it was $90. It now sells for over $150. And it's still worth it.



Thank you for your hard work sir




One of the giant copper stills. Unlike a lot of distilleries, Yamazaki uses different shaped stills in the various steps of the distillation process to yield a greater variety of characteristics in their alcohol.




The warehouse smelled strongly of oak and alcohol




I wish I had this collection (minus the bookends)




There are over a thousand bottles of various maturations of whisky on display here




You can also sample various whiskies at a very reasonable price





Yamazaki 25
Smoke, molasses, floral nose. Almost a coffee, or roasted barley aftertaste that is long and lingering. I think I may prefer the 18yr. Especially since this bottle costs around $1300

Hibiki 21
Toffee, caramel, melted butter, alcohol. Definitely needs time to open up. Syrupy and silky. Delicious. Better than the 17yr and the 12, but barely. At around $250 a bottle maybe I'll grab one someday




These two whiskies were part of the 5 I believe that are used to blend into the Hibiki 17yr. This is the only place you can sample all the blends of the Hibiki line. On the side is "Mother water" which is the water they use to make the whisky. I'm not going to lie, it was actually really tasty as well. They should bottle this and sell it too.

Mizunara (Japanese Oak only found in Hokkaido 52% alc)
Needs water, sweet toffee, amazingly floral. Haunting, and unique aftertaste, almost like roasted corn, the smell of young wood burning. I wish I could buy this in a bottle

White Oak (54% alc)
Dried fruits, grape, lots of alcohol. Grain/wheat finish with some bite. After adding water, I could taste some vanilla and oak as well.