Through invitation my Sunday afternoon was spent at
Whisky Cat 1494, where the captain of the ship, Yoshimura-san, conducted a
Taketsuru seminar/tasting. I couldn't think of a better way to spend my
remaining hours of the weekend before it was back to the grime on Monday. Bar
Whisky Cat 1494 runs off an ancient arcade and it is an establishment you
wouldn't stumble across by chance as its entrance is slightly camouflaged. The
only evidence that the premises is a whisky bar and not a normal residence is
the small pot still with a little kitty pocking out the top (hence the name) that
is fixed to the equally ancient door.
Once inside, however, there is nothing ancient
about this place besides the lovely array of old bottlings which consist mainly
of Scotch and a handful of Japanese whisky gems. The bar area, is reasonably
small but it posses all the right qualities one seeks when heading out for a
dram. The couple run establishment provides an extremely warm and friendly
environment that is perhaps one of my favourite things about the place, that
and some excellent Hakushu Owner's Cask bottlings.
Moving on from the bar, all the action took place
in "The Tasting" room which is situated directly to the right of the
bar. Huge wooden beams, high-ceilings, candle chandeliers and white walls
greeted all the participants on the day. The interior that is reminiscent of a
farm yard-barn (in a very positive way) paved way for the day's line-up, which
naturally included Taketsuru's full portfolio (excluding the 35-year-old): 12,
17, and 17 non-chill-filtered, 21, and 25-year-olds. For good measure a blind
tasting and surprise malt was also included.
The day started like any seminar/tasting with an
in-depth introduction on Taketsuru-san's familiar background and the pioneer's
upbringing that consisted of his studies in Osaka and Scotland, his marriage to
Scottish born Rita, and his endless efforts in the industry spanning from 1894
all the way up to his departure in 1979. This was conducted by Yoshimura-san,
which was then followed up with a video presentation from the distillery
manager of Yoichi who gave his personal tasting notes on the drams uniformly
put in front of us. Time was crucial and unfortunately a bit rushed so my own
notes on each expression are brief but hopefully will give you insight into the
brands character and its range of Pure Malts through my interpretation (no
water added).
Taketsuru 12-year-old Pure Malt: Fresh fruits,
banana and apples. The longer this sits the apple becomes more like
concentrated apple juice. Biscuits and silent peat were amongst very little
vanilla.
Taketsuru 17-year-old Pure Malt: The peat is much more evident here than its
younger brother of the family. Sherry, raisins, chocolate, and a heavy dose of
cereal (cornflakes) both on the nose and palate were the stand-outs. After time
oranges become present but not in its fresh form but more like a spicy
marmalade.
Taketsuru 17-year-old non-chill-filtered Pure Malt: Posses all the qualities of
the standard 17-yo but it is much more fresh. The peat appears to be fresher
and there is a bigger emphasis on dried fruits in particular figs.
Taketsuru 21-year-old Pure Malt: A massive sherry emphasis from the variety of
casks used. Lovely thick aromas of peach and figs were dominant. On the palate
the peat is sweet and sophisticated. This malt is lovely and warming with a chocolate
and honey finish.
Taketsuru 25-year-old Pure Malt: A lush range of
fruits in both dried and fresh form, just like the 21-yo but these fruits are
more tropical on the nose: mango, rock melon, and papaya. This is a powerful whisky
consisting of three key malts (one Yoichi and two Miyagikyo). It lingers with a
slightly bitter sherry finish. The background peat fights for recognition
amongst the thick fruit and sherry.
The blind tasting, which the majority of punters
predicted, including myself, was the 10-year-old Yoichi single malt. I plan to
do a review on this as well as the 17-year-old Taketsuru at Whiskies R Us so I
won't go into detail on this malt. This was followed by the "surprise
malt"; perhaps surprise was not the right classification as everyone in
the room on Sunday was more ecstatic than surprised. Nikka vintage whisky aged
34-years: This extremely sophisticated dram is compromised of whiskies
distilled in 1964 that were matured in Oak Casks for 34 years, prior to the
blending and bottling in 1998. This gem was my seventh malt of the day, although
sensational in every way, I dare say I could have got so much more from it if I
sampled this right of the bat.
To conclude I think it's reasonably fair to say
that the Taketsuru line-up posses many similar qualities throughout the age
range. Some age expressions emphasize qualities more so than others, while the
elder brothers of the family are the ones which break away and add different
characters to their younger siblings with sophistication and freshness. I
favoured the no-chill-filtered 17-year-old on the day, and some may agree,
others most likely not, the 21-year-old Taketsuru won my vote over the 25-yo.
The later is a fantastic and exotic malt by all means, but as a personal
preference the bitter but subtle finish knocked of a few points making the
former (21-yo) a winner, and a must have permanent malt for the cabinet.
