Saxophone was the last of the 2006 Jazz Instrumental casks to reach the bottle, in July 2019. The whiskey was distilled in Kentucky, re-racked at the Chichibu distillery in Japan in early 2012 and left there for over seven years. Cask 1616 gave 210 bottles at 54.4%.
About This Whisky
The whisky had its first maturation in Kentucky from 2006 to January 2012, followed by the move to Chichibu and bottling in July 2019, about thirteen years in total. At 54.4% (108.8 proof) and 210 bottles, it is the longest-aged and largest of the 2006 Jazz casks.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Brown sugar and vanilla, toasted oak, a little dried apricot and warm baking spice.
- Palate: Broad and chewy, with caramel, stewed fruit and cinnamon riding on a firm oak frame.
- Finish: Spicy and lingering, with vanilla and wood well after the swallow.
Serving & Food
Leave it in a Glencairn for ten minutes before the first sip, and try it both neat and with a splash of water. It works with Peking duck, a cheese board with Manchego or a bowl of spiced candied nuts.
How to Enjoy
A good pick for anyone who likes older, oak-rich American whiskey with a Japanese twist in its story.
Product Details
Producer: Distilled in Kentucky, USA; second maturation and bottling at Chichibu
Brand / Series: Ken's Choice Jazz Instrumental, Saxophone
Country: USA (distilled) / Japan (matured and bottled)
Region: Kentucky / Saitama
Category: American Whiskey, second-matured in Japan
Vintage: 2006
Bottled: July 2019
Cask: #1616
Outturn: 210 bottles
ABV: 54.4%
Proof: 108.8
Volume: 700mL
About the Distillery
Ken Matsuyama's Ken's Choice bottlings grew out of his Shinjuku bar, and the Jazz Instrumental run is the one most people know: single American casks, each labelled with an instrument. The barrels were distilled in Kentucky in 2006 and 2007; the distillery has not been disclosed, although Wild Turkey is the usual guess among merchants.
All of them finished their ageing at Chichibu, the Saitama distillery Ichiro Akuto has run since 2008 through Venture Whisky. Rather than empty the casks together, they were bottled in stages, and Saxophone came out a year after the first three instruments.