Hakushu Themed Chocolates

The marriage of top quality single malt Japanese whisky with artisan made chocolate should not be overlooked. ROYCE’ chocolate confections have skillfully produced yet again another top quality “nama” chocolate using only the best ingredients that include Suntory’s 18-year-old Hakushu. “Nama” basically refers to “fresh”, recently made, and straight from the factory to you. This edition is part of their extensive portfolio, which also includes Yamazaki’s Sherry Wood fresh chocolates. The divine white chocolate in my opinion is precisely balanced with the right amount of Hakushu and rich ingredients, which ROYCE’ is renowned for, making it a top quality chocolate.


The outstanding palate of Royce’s Hakushu fresh chocolates is apparently attributed to a high content of fresh cream made from locally drawn milk in Hokkaido, where the company is established. The fresh Hakushu themed chocolate is unfortunately seasonal and tends to be available in Japan around February in time for Valentine’s day, where in Japan, the general custom of this day is only for men to receive chocolates from admires. As mentioned in the Yamazaki Sherry Wood post, some could arguably say that mixing a perfectly good whisky such as the Hakushu 18-year-old with chocolate is a wrongdoing, I most likely would have said the same until this particular chocolate melted in my mouth on consumption and provided a whole new experience. There seems to be a lot going on with the fusion of whisky and chocolate, in particular Japanese whisky. 

ROYCE' International Outlets

Hakushu Sherry Cask

Chris and Nate over at The Whisky Wall have once again posted some very interesting information. This time around it is regarding the mouthwatering combination of Suntory’s Hakushu single malt matured in Sherry Casks. This limited release, no age statement, which was bottled this year is something I will certainly lookout for and hope to get my hands on. What a delight. Keep an eye out, as Whisky Wall has said they will be updating their post as they get more info.

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: 2011 - 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. 

Reviewed by Clint A

Image courtesy of Rakuten

Highball Choccies

Japan: a country that has arguably revolutionized the humble highball. A drink considered to be of yesteryear has become trendy amongst patrons who swig copious amounts of the popular beverage with relish. The mass highball advertising of Japan’s whisky giants, in particular Suntory and its Kakubin brand, have created a boom. So it is only natural, and just in time for valentines, for the country to bring out highball choccies. This is where I can comfortably use the familiar saying “only in Japan”. Although not produced by Suntory, the packaging of these chocolates, which consists of Scotch whisky and carbonated water, ironically resemble the giant’s famed image by using their trademark yellow, and a character that could be arguably said reflects Uncle Tory. For those interested in the novelty, these chocolates appear to be available in most supermarkets throughout Kobe, and I would presume other areas of Japan. 

Year of the Dragon - Suntory Old

To introduce the beginning of the New Year, which 2012 falls in the year of the dragon in conjunction with the Chinese zodiac, Suntory produced a limited release Suntory Old to celebrate the festivities, like they do almost every year. At the end of 2011, bottlings of Suntory Old began to appear across the nation sporting an intrinsic gold label with dragon graphics to commemorate the New Year. These bottlings, all though abundantly produced at the time, have now dwindled in availability. The bottle, which is housed in a bright red box (apparently signifies luck) and sports the same design as the label, retailed at the everyday price of 1,680 yen. These novelty bottlings were largely purchased and given as gifts throughout the New Year that is part of the practiced end-of year gift giving. Kansai readers who are interested in getting a bottle, whether it be purely for consumption, sentimental purposes, or as a nice ornament for a shelf, will be happy to learn that certain Daie and Co-op stores in Kobe have a few bottles remaining.  Some high-end department stores in Japan also sold an additional exclusive edition of Suntory Old for the festivities, in a ceramic dragon decanter.

Whisky Shop W - Original Store Bottling Third Edition

Arguably the perfect present one could receive or give for Valentines, especially when one cannot come up with something original for the supposed admirer. The master blenders at Hakushu have done it again: come up with yet another limited Hakushu bottling exclusive to Whisky Shop W, which Suntory recommends giving as a present on the worldwide celebrated day. The original whisky bottling, which is the third installment of a series of single malt whiskies is said to denote a marriage of chocolate, cinnamon, and acidic fruits such as grapefruit and strawberries. Besides the content, the packaging is relevant to the occasion with the elaborate bottle etched with gold lettering on a red label, along with a heart shaped leaflet around the neck of the bottle. Like the coexisting original whiskies at Whisky Shop W, this bottling is limited to 1,500 bottles and is officially available from today, January 20^th. The 300ml original whisky is bottled at 48 percent and retails for 3,150 ten. Purchases can be made online.

The Cask of Hakushu 1998

Age: 9 years - Distilled: 1998 - Bottled: 2008 - Wood type: white oak - Cask type: hogshead - Cask number: CD40728 - Bottling: 94/246 - ABV: 56%

Nose: Clean; a distinguishable trademark of Hakushu. Oak, barley-fruity mix: raisins. Sweet: custard, faint hint of licorice, heather-honey, chopped almonds, and vegetation.

Taste: Busy, a medium spice numbs your tongue on arrival before drifting of to a presence of oak, sweetened barley and custard tart. The licorice lurks softly but quickly disappears.

Finish: Short medium. Sweet spice, mid ground makes way to a hint of sandalwood before rolling away to a finale of vanilla custard.

Comment: I reviewed this without the addition of water. I have a feeling that this would become creamy and silky if added, never the less certainly enjoyable without water. It appears that this expression is limited to 1,600 bottles throughout Japan, and is currently available on certain Japanese online sites. This bottling is priced very reasonably and making it very affordable.