Yamazakura Asaka

Yamazakura Asaka is the entry-level single malt from Sasanokawa Shuzo's Asaka distillery in Fukushima prefecture. Asaka, which opened in 2016, is the newer distillery arm of a company with a long history of blended whisky production under the Yamazakura and Cherry labels. This NAS release carries the Yamazakura name to bridge the company's blended heritage and its maturing single malt programme.

Matured in Ex-Bourbon casks and bottled at 46%, the expression sits in a gentle, accessible register. Ex-Bourbon wood typically delivers vanilla, soft caramel and light stone fruit to Asaka's clean, fruit-forward distillate. With no age statement, the vatting balances the freshness of younger casks against any older stock available. The bottling is made for the European market and serves as a solid introduction to Fukushima single malt.