Ichiro's Malt Ten of Diamonds Celebration

It seems like yesterday when I decided to turn my personal experiences and passion for Japanese whisky into a readable format for everyone to experience. This entry marks a personal milestone as Whiskies R Us celebrates its hundredth post. In honor of this milestone, I would like to thank you and fellow bloggers for all the support and compliments. The journey has certainly been an adventure and I look forward to continuing this journey and sharing my experiences with all of you who share the enthusiasm. I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate this milestone than to have a dram, the question was which dram, especially since it is a mark of celebration. While considering which dram to consume for the occasion I was lucky enough to obtain Ichiro’s malt Ten of Diamonds from the famed card series. So here we go….

Distilled: 1990

Distillery: Hanyu

Bottled: 2011R

Released: 2012

Age: 21 years-old

First cask type: hogshead
Second cask type: American oak puncheon

Cask number: 527

Number of bottles: 585

ABV: 54.9%

Nose: An assortment of fresh and dried fruits; figs, prunes, and strawberries. Vanilla marshmallows, caramel éclairs, and mixed Vietnamese fruit chips: dragon fruit, jackfruit, yams, and pineapple. Amongst the array of sweetness an unusual distant background note kept lurking; latter on in the dram I associated this with prosciutto.

Taste: Smooth and silky yet light. Flamed grilled egg plant, a hint of mint, pineapple chips, and a measure of fennel and subtle spice.

Finish: In my opinion extremely short, but certainly pleasant. Initially there is a layer of clean spice with delayed waves of mint tea and pineapple juice which creep in.

Comment: Although initially the malt did not display any characteristics of smoke, once consumed and the empty glass sat for 5 minutes it displayed aromas of fresh wood chips and cottages. I’d like to hope that this might suggest smoke may become present on the nose gradually through consumption. This expression, along with Ichiro's other new releases, was supplied to selected retail establishments in small quantities. 

Update February 14, 2012: This expression, along with Ichiro's 3 other new releases (a post describing Ichiro's Malt card series can be seen at The Whisky Wall) was available in selected retail establishments in small quantities. The majority of these establishments, including Korosue in Kobe, quickly sold out. I have received word that Hankyu Umeda and the Takashimaya department store in Namba have a bottle or two remaining. Also I will make a quick visit to Isetan and see what the situation is like there.

Update February 22, 2012: On my recent travels to both Hankyu Umeda and Isetan I was told that both stores have sold out of Ichiro’s malt ten of diamonds. However, Hankyu Umeda have in stock a few bottles of eight of clubs.

Reviewed by Clint A

Image courtesy of Rakuten