Yamazaki 10 Years Old

Yamazaki 10 Years Old, bottled in 2007, is a single malt from Suntory's Yamazaki distillery in Osaka Prefecture, Japan's first malt distillery, set in the river valley of Shimamoto between Osaka and Kyoto where three rivers meet and humidity aids the spirit's slow development. This global release captures the youngest aged tier of the range at 40%, a snapshot of Yamazaki before its later reformulations and price.

Raised in Ex-Bourbon wood, American oak gives the listed vanilla and dried fruit their footing, with the soft orchard fruit of the house spirit underneath. At ten years the malt stays light and delicate, the wood lending sweetness without weight. It drinks gently and rounded, an easy and approachable pour that shows the balanced Yamazaki signature in a lighter, more accessible form, the deeper sherry and mizunara character held back for the older expressions in the range.