Karuizawa Cask Strength

Karuizawa Cask Strength is a single malt from Karuizawa distillery in Nagano Prefecture, part of the wave of releases issued after the distillery closed in 2000. This bottling was released in 2013 for the Taiwan market at 61.7% cask strength, drawing on sherry-cask stock from the distillery's active years. Karuizawa was run by Mercian and used small pot stills with Golden Promise barley, giving the new-make an unusually rich, cereal-heavy character.

Maturation in an Oloroso sherry butt layered that base with dark dried fruit, bitter chocolate and leather, producing the dense, concentrated style that defines Karuizawa's legacy releases. At full cask strength, the whisky is bold and warming, carrying the kind of depth that comes only from long contact between a richly made malt and a well-seasoned sherry vessel. A small measure of water opens the nose considerably.