A 1984 Karuizawa from a first-fill sherry cask, bottled in 2012 for The Whisky Exchange under its koi carp label. It came out at a fierce 64.5% and filled 275 bottles.
About This Whisky
The Whisky Exchange unveiled this cask at its Whisky Show in London in autumn 2012, as part of a run of Karuizawa single casks carrying koi artwork. Number One Drinks drew it from the stock it had bought from the closed distillery. After 27 or 28 years in first-fill sherry wood the strength stayed very high, a sign of the cool, damp warehouse. Reviewers found it lighter and fruitier than many Karuizawas, with a faint trace of earthy peat smoke that the distillery's malt occasionally shows.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Plum and strawberry jam, raspberry and tobacco, with cedar, cinnamon bark and a veil of varnish.
- Palate: Hot but rounded. Christmas cake, allspice and ginger, then a thread of earthy smoke, turning drier and floral.
- Finish: Very long and dry, with herbs, dark chocolate and oak.
Serving & Food
This needs water. Add it a few drops at a time in a copita until the fruit comes forward, and taste slowly. Pair with aged Comté, Christmas pudding or roast duck with plum sauce.
How to Enjoy
Karuizawa drinkers curious about the brighter, less brooding side of the 1984 vintage.
Product Details
Distillery: Karuizawa (closed)
Series: Carpe Koi
Bottled For: The Whisky Exchange, UK
Vintage: 1984
Bottled: 2012
Cask: First-fill sherry cask #4021
Edition Size: 275 bottles
Bottler: Number One Drinks Company
ABV: 64.5%
Country: Japan
Volume: 700mL
About the Distillery
Karuizawa was founded in 1955 by the wine and spirits company Daikoku Budoshu, next to its existing winery at Miyota on the lower slopes of Mount Asama in Nagano. Distillation began in 1956. For decades nearly all of the malt went into the company's Ocean blended whiskies, and very little was sold under the Karuizawa name.
The founders wanted a Scotch-style malt from the start. Many of the old sherry butts were cut down to fit the old winery racks, which helps explain how intense the long-aged casks became.