Chichibu Tokyo International BarShow 2018 7 Years Old 2011

The Tokyo International Bar Show is one of Japan's most prominent trade occasions, and Chichibu in Saitama has released dedicated single casks for it on several occasions. This 2011 vintage was bottled in 2018 at 7 years old and cask strength, a bespoke release for the Japanese market from Venture Whisky and founder Ichiro Akuto.

The maturation is a single mizunara cask, the Japanese oak variety that brings incense, sandalwood, temple-wood and slow-building depth to a spirit patient enough to wait for it. Seven years in Japanese oak is enough to give a real impression of the wood while preserving Chichibu's vivid, fruit-forward core. At 61.3%, the spirit has the weight to carry the resinous oak and still show the distillery's clean, floral new-make character underneath.