Karuizawa 15 Years Old 1992

Karuizawa distillery in Nagano Prefecture was closed in 2000 after decades of single malt production under Mercian. Its sherry cask programme drew on a variety of wood types, and this single cask from the 1992 vintage is particularly specific: an American White Oak Oloroso sherry butt, a combination that layers the broader grain and lighter spice of American oak under the dried-fruit density of Oloroso extraction. Aged 15 years and bottled in 2007 at 60.6% cask strength for global release.

The noted flavour profile includes chocolate, dried fruit and new wood, which maps precisely to what American White Oak sherry maturation gives at this age: the American oak contributes a vanilla and cedar freshness alongside the darker Oloroso fruit and the typical dried-cherry and leather Karuizawa character. At 60.6% the expression is full-bodied and clearly structured, the different wood notes layered rather than blended into a single undifferentiated richness.