Nikka 'Yoichi' Single Malt Whisky 750ml

JAPAN : HOKKAIDO : YOICHI DISTILLERY

100% Malted Barley

MED-BODIED, COASTAL PEAT, CITRUS PEEL, ORCHARD FRUIT, BRINE, USED OAK

Yoichi still heats its pot stills with hand-stoked coal fire — a method Masataka Taketsuru learned at Longmorn in the 1920s and refused to give up. Scotland has all but abandoned it for steam. The still base runs past 1,000°C, the charring coal contributes its own aroma, and the stills carry downward lyne arms that let the heavy compounds through instead of refluxing them away.

The setting does the rest. The distillery sits at the base of the Shakotan Peninsula on Hokkaido’s west coast, mountains on three sides and the Sea of Japan in front, with snowmelt water off the Yoichi River and sea fog off Ishikari Bay working on the casks. Nearly every reviewer reaches for brine or seaweed without being prompted.

Nikka withdrew the entire Yoichi age-statement range in 2015, and this no-age-statement bottling arrived in 2016 as the sole replacement. Predominantly used ex-bourbon oak, peated but nowhere near Islay level, bottled at 45%. Whisky Advocate 92 pts and its 2016 Japanese Whisky of the Year.

90 Proof

Please note: Spirits are only available for local delivery or in-store pickup. All orders for shipping will be cancelled immediately.