Suntory Hakushu 12 Year Old Japanese Peated Single Malt Whisky (750ml)

This golden, silky single malt mingles vanilla and honey with fresh apple and pear aromas. These notes are echoed on the palate alongside a wave of peat smoke. Add a splash of water to offset the modest but persistent alcohol heat and further coax out the fruity-smoky flavors. (KN) (12/2015)

Although only two years older, this expression of Hakushu — the first to be launched in the U.S. — shows a fleshier side to the distillery’s wares. While it has retained the freshness of the 10 year old, it shows more pineapple and grapefruit on the nose, with a little fragrance of jasmine and osmanthus. On the palate, it’s fresh and lively with a hint of persimmon and a tickle of smoke. Recommended. (DB, Spring 2012)

This Suntory distillery is located in a mountain forest in the southern Japanese alps. The whisky has cool, mint/basil, bamboo, kiwi and green melon aromas with the faintest hint of smoke. (10/2014)

Suntory's Hakushu, known as the "forest distillery," was built in 1973 as a sister distillery to Suntory's Yamazaki (previously the only Japanese single malt available in the United States). The facility is located at a high-elevation site next to the pristine waters of the Ojira River, which are used to dilute the whisky itself. Hakushu distillery uses different styles of oak barrel to age their single malt, but mainly hogshead, which, according to the distillery is, "suitable to the clear air and cool humid climate." The 12-year old from Hakushu is lightly peated and very delicate in its flavor profile. The light and fruity style of the whisky is quite similar to the Yamazaki 12, but the smoke really makes up for any lack of richness. We've seen insane price increases over the last five years on Japanese whisky and inventory getting tighter and tighter, but for a limited time, we have Hakushu 12 in stock and available to sell, and at a fraction of the price you'll see at many other retailers across the country.