Karuizawa 29 Years Old 1983

Karuizawa operated in Nagano Prefecture from 1956 until 2000, when it closed permanently, with the distillery demolished in 2016. The site, run by Mercian at the foot of Mt. Asama, relied heavily on Oloroso sherry casks and imported Golden Promise barley to produce single malts of deep colour and concentrated dried-fruit character. This bottling was distilled in 1983, spent 29 years in a Sherry Butt and was released in 2012 by the distillery itself for the Taiwan market at cask strength.

At 59.4%, the spirit carries the full depth of Oloroso maturation over nearly three decades: dark cherry, dried fig, fruitcake, leather and warm wood spice, all woven together by the long, cool Nagano winters. Bottled officially under the Karuizawa label, this is a direct estate release rather than an independent bottling, and belongs to a series of cask-strength single casks the distillery issued for select markets in its final operational years.