Whiskies from around the world
Welcome back! Today I bring you a few whiskies from around the world. More specifically single malts, and even more specifically from Hungary, Germany and Japan.
I always thought that Scotch reigns supreme. Well, does it? Sure. They are making whisky for centuries, they have a head-start. How about other countries?
Hungary just released their first single malt that resembles a single malt and not a bourbon. So we only really just started now. But we have been contributing to whisky more than you know. Our white oak is very famous and used in the wine and whisky industry.
Germany is a huge whisky consumer market. They have been in the whisky making business for quite a while now. They opened a few distilleries already and they put out great stuff. Standing out for me St. Kilian.
Japan has a big whisky history aswell. They have been making Aqua Vitae for decades now. But it's not all good and well in Japan. They put out so many bottles of fake japanese whisky on the market that it's crazy. What do I mean by that? Well, they said on the label for example "Japanese Blended Whisky". What did it contain? Canadian whisky, Scotch and a drop of Japanese whisky. Their regulations were very light. But as far as I know they put new regulations in effect and now it's more tight, however it's still not enough.
Let's see the whiskies I bring you today.
GoodSpirit Experiment batch #1 Hungarian Single Malt Whisky - Natural Color, Non-chill filtered, 48%
Aged for 6 years.
Distilled: 04/05/2017
Bottled: 10.11.2023.
Cask type: first fill, medium and heavily toasted Hungarian oak casks
Distilled, matured and bottled in Hungary at 48% without chill filtration and coloring.
"On April 5th 2017, we distilled the malt from Munich and Pilsen in the brewery in Etyek for the first time. Eight small Hungarian oak casks were used for aging, two each from Dolium in Köbánya, Kalina in Mád, Weimert in Mecseknádasd and Roy Barrique. From each of the four vats, one cask was medium toasted, while the other was heavily toasted. In this way, we were able to experiment not only with malt (Munich and Pilsen) but also with maturation.
Of the eight casks, we have now bottled six, four casks in Batch #1, and two casks in Batch #2."
Nose: Fresh wood, like you can feel in a bourbon. Honey and floral notes. Caramel and almond. I don't detect strong malty notes but I think it's a pleasant, moderately complex scent. I like it at first.
Taste: Silky, sweet, caramel, vanilla, raisins. A hint of spiciness can be detected, which soon continues to smell and then sweet juicy fruits arrive. Pineapple, apricot and honey. Very pleasant, round. There is no sign of alcohol.
Finish: Medium length, wood, spice and honey. There is also a little burnt cask flavor here, I wouldn't call it smoke. It's hard to describe, but perhaps the taste is close to toasted wood.
GoodSpirit Experiment batch #2 Hungarian Single Malt Whisky - Natural Color, Non-chill filtered, 48%
Aged for 6 years.
Distilled: 04.05.2017
Bottled: 10.12.2023.
Cask type: first fill, medium and heavily toasted Hungarian oak casks
Distilled, matured and bottled in Hungary at 48% without chill filtration and coloring.
Nose: Oops. Well, maybe a little malty smell comes out of the glass. Lavender(?) Cloves, cinnamon. Caramelized apples and pears with vanilla sauce. Pomegranate and a generic cake scent.
Taste: Honey. Silky. Bitter coffee, Earl Gray black tea. Dark chocolate, dates and raisins. Then cloves and cinnamon can be found, supplemented with a little ginger. Bitter and sweet notes are in balance. Alcohol is nicely integrated.
Finish: It's a bit longer than Batch 1. Spicy, sweet, honey, slightly bitter, woody. It's very good.
The appearance of the bottling is very beautiful and sophisticated. The bottle is nice, the label and the cap are also fine, although a little tight, but that's all there is to it. On a more serious note, I finally see that Hungarian Single Malt is moving in the right direction. There is hope that I will still be able to sip a 30-40-year old Hungarian Single Malt in my lifetime. I think anyone who can, should buy it, taste it. I think it's worth it. Although I have a little bias in it because it was made in my beloved country. 81 / 100
St. Kilian Signature Edition 10 German Single Malt Whisky - Natural Color, Non-chill filtered, 49.5%
"Each Signature Edition single malt whisky bears its own signature of selected casks. Each batch tastes different - and has an individual character."
The St. Kilian Distillers was founded in 2014. They use two 6000 litre pot stills and produce close to 200.000 litres per year. White Dog won the "World's Best White Dog" award in 2018. And they have been winning awards eversince.
"In the Signature Edition TEN, the focus is on the different types of barley malt that were used in the production for this. With the maturation in ex bourbon and ex rum casks, an intense and full-bodied whiskey was created."
St. Kilian produces internationally award-winning single malt whisky in the Scottish tradition.
Made in Germany and inspired by whisky cultures from all over the world.
"In the Signature Edition Ten, the focus is on the different types of barley malt that were used in the production for this. With the maturation in ex-bourbon and ex-rum casks, an intense and full-bodied whisky was created."
1.4% Weyermann® CARAAROMA malt
2.2% Weyermann® Melanoidin malt
2.6% Cara Munch® malt
12.2% Pilsner malt
81,6% Münchner malt
Distilled in 2016/2017, bottled in 2022. So it's 5-6 years of age which is pretty nice for a distillery that was established 10 years ago.
Matured in a combination of 50L & 190L Ex Bourbon casks and 190L & 225L Ex Rum casks.
I am very impressed with the packaging. Nice premium feeling cardboard box in which you can see the pot still shaped bottle and the whisky in it. The cork is also very modern and is not made out of the usual stuff but rather it's a complete plastic cork and you have no chance to break it or anything else. The label is also nice and informative.
Nose: Very full and sweet right away. The youth doesn't come through. The rum cask is very dominant and I suppose that they used a very active Ex Bourbon barrel too. Tropical fruitiness, sweet vanilla, molasses and peaches. Some coconut alongside with some banana and sugarcane. Toasted spicy oak in the back. Some chocolate and freshly baked bread with a thick, lovely maltiness.
Taste: Very thick and sweet. But wait, spiciness appears. Very nice. Vanilla, freshly baked bread and milk chocolate. Pineapple, mango and banana. Sweet molasses, rum and a warming oak spice. 49.5% abv. it's just perfect. There is no alcoholic sharpness, it's very well balanced and feels more than 5-6 years.
Finish: Very surprisingly the finish is extremely long. Sweetness is creeping around in my mouth with a hint of spicy oak. Lots of vanilla and tropical fruits.
Overall this single malt whisky is amazing. I am looking forward to trying more from the lads at St. Kilian and I hope they will continue putting out stuff like this on the shelves. 87 / 100
Kanosuke Japanese Single Malt Whisky Limited Edition 2022- Natural Color, Non-chill filtered, 59%
The Kanosuke Distillery went into operation in 2018. The Kanosuke Distillery is named after the 2nd generation leader of the company, Kanosuke Komasa. The distillery is located on a 9,000 square meter tract of land along the Fukiagehama Beach on the west coast of Kagoshima Prefecture.
The two-story distillery house features 3 unique pot stills, compared to the typical 2 pot stills, commonly found in small distileries. Each of the three pot stills has a different neck shape and Lyne arm angle. By utilizing the three different pot stills and blending between the three, Kanosuke is able to create richer flavors and aromas from their whiskies.
Kanosuke's motto is "Japanese whisky, richer and more mellow." With the release of their New Born whisky, they are on the right path to realizing this vision.
"Single Malt Kanosuke 2022 LIMITED EDITION 59% 700ml" is a single malt Japanese whisky which embodies Kanosuke Distillery's concept of "MELLOW LAND, MELLOW WHISKY" and was produced using all 3 of our pot stills, aged in several varieties of oak barrels, and blended together after 3 years of maturation."
Nose: Brown sugar, cinnamon rolls. Figs, dates and plums. Cacao and coffee comes through with a hint of fresh leather. Some licorice and a hint of earl grey tea. A faint vanilla note. A bit hot on the nose because it's probably a younger malt. With time it opens up a lot and becomes even more deep and complex.
Taste: Punchy. pungent, strong. Fig jam, raisins, plums and cinnamon rolls. Still quite abit of heat. Honey, eucalyptus. Little bit of espresso candy and cacao. It's quite intense but keeps evolving and revealing quite abit of complexity.
Finish: Pears and apples, sweetness, and then more custard. Coffee grounds, mint leaves, and apple juice.
This thing is awesome. I really hoep they will put out older and moer refined bottlings. VERY IMPORTANTLY at a better price. This bottle is over 200 euros. I wouldn't pay that. 89 / 100
Yoichi 10 year old Japanese Single Malt Whisky - Natural Color (?), Non-chill filtered (?), 45%
Yoichi distillery is a japanese whisky distillery. It is located at Yoichi, a town in the Yoichi District, Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan.
The distillery is owned by Nikka Whisky Distilling, and was opened in 1934. It is the older of the two distilleries owned by Nikka Whisky, the other being the company's Miyagikyo distillery near Sendai.
Masataka Taketsuru, the first Japanese who mastered whisky making in Scotland, valued the climate and natural features of the north. Yoichi, the place chosen by Masataka was close to the sea, surrounded by mountains on three sides and in many ways similar to Highland in Scotland. A cold climate with an appropriate humidity, crisp clean air and fresh water - everything necessary for his ideal whisky was available. The proximity to the sea is one of the distinctive features of Yoichi. The sea breeze gives a briny hint to the whisky during the maturation.
Taketsuru set a pot still using direct coal-fire when he built the Yoichi Distillery. This still was similar to pot stills at Longmorn Distillery where Masataka had the first practical training in Scotland. This traditional coal-fired distillation is hardly seen today as it is difficult to control temperature and requires highly skilled craftsmen. However, the distillation process at Yoichi has remained very traditional to this day. The characteristics of Yoichi Single Malt such as boldness and toasty burnt flavors are unique features of this distillation.
Nose: A very strong and dominant note of sandalwood. Tar and light smoke. A very nice honey note creeps up slowly along with grassy and herbal notes. Green apples. Very strong malty notes along with buttered salted toast. Last but not least some fresh green-ish bananas.
Taste: First thing that hits your palate is ash. Sandalwoof again along with a faint note of vanilla. Honey and green apples again. The body is quite thick and buttery. Black pepper and cough syrup. Unripe fruits.
Finish: Medium length, clean, crisp, light touch of pepper and honey.
Overall this is not better by much than the NAS Yoichi. I think this is a bit of a marketing gimmick to be able to sell for more money. I would not buy a full bottle of it, just because of it. It's a bit overrated.
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Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this little tour around the world. To many more. Sláinte.