Chichibu Single Cask #9125 8 Years Old 2012 (Red Wine)

The Chichibu distillery was founded in 2008 by Ichiro Akuto, whose family had distilled at the closed Hanyu plant, and works on a small scale in the Saitama mountains. Production is small, around a third of a million litres a year, with floor malting done by hand on occasion and every stage run under one roof. Wide day to night temperature swings drive the wood interaction, which is why Chichibu reads older than its years suggest.

This is unpeated single malt, matured in a red wine cask. At 8 years, helped by an angel's share near double Scotland's, the make tastes older than it is, the esters rounding into stone fruit and the oak settling. The wine lends red berry fruit and a light tannic grip. The palate leans on tropical and orchard fruit, mango and apple, with a clean cereal note beneath.

This bottling was distilled in 2012, from cask 9125 and bottled in 2020. It is a run of 229 bottles, released for USA. Single casks like this are the heart of the Chichibu name, each one a different reading of the same young, fast matured spirit. At 58% it drinks well neat, with water settling the oak.