Karuizawa 26 Years Old 1984

Karuizawa was a single malt distillery in Nagano Prefecture operating from 1956 until it closed in 2000, with the site demolished in 2016. The distillery, run by Mercian, produced whisky from small pot stills using imported Golden Promise barley, and its Oloroso sherry cask maturation made it one of the most distinctive single malt producers of its era. This bottling was distilled in 1984 and matured for 26 years in a Sherry Butt before being released by the distillery in 2010 for the Japanese market in the traditional 750ml format.

The 26-year Oloroso maturation in Nagano's mountain climate gave a profile of dark cherry, dried figs, raisins, leather and a thread of bitter chocolate, typical of what the distillery produced from its sherry-heavy cask policy. Bottled at 57.1% cask strength for the home market, this official release predates the surge in global interest in Karuizawa that drove the distillery's profile to its current heights.