12/7/2023 0 Comments Smooth japanese whiskeyThe mizunara is at times overwhelming, yet the solid Dewar’s (and Aberfeldy) base is strong enough to hang in there until the finish ebbs a bit. Creamy and just as coating as the mouthfeel. Coating and oily.įinish: Medium-length, turns quite chocolatey like a dark chocolate bar and incense ash. Mouthfeel is silky and light, just a hint of oak, with coconut and black pepper. Tons of perfume, oak astringency, coffee grounds and unsweetened chocolate. Palate: Ooh - there’s the mizunara and it’s strong. Light salinity, orchard wood freshly cut. Perfumy with a little pepper and a sandalwood or patchouli scent. Nose: Classic, soft Dewar’s nose, creamy and malty. Disappearing rims, random drops and syrupy legs. Official Website Dewar’s Japanese Smooth Mizunara Oak Cask Finish Whisky Review: Tasting NotesĮye: Light apple juice with a hay tinge. Perhaps its a bit unbalanced, but if you want to know this exotic wood’s influence, you can’t go wrong with a $29 bottle.ĭewar’s Japanese Smooth Mizunara Oak Cask Finish Whisky: SpecsĬlassification: Scotch Single Malt Whiskyĭewar’s Japanese Smooth Mizunara Oak Cask Finish Whisky Price: $29 The result is a great example of what mizunara flavor can be. The sandalwood and pepper are the stars for sure, but the liquid was dumped just before they became overwhelming. The mizunara is strong, yes, but doesn’t totally obscure the sweeter malt undertones of a classic Dewar’s blend. Oh, and did I mention? They did a truly solid job of it. Most mizunara-finished whiskies are at minimum $50+, with some creeping into the hundreds. Even considering the size of the Dewar’s empire, cost is cost, and this wood is expensive. So how in the hell did Dewar’s produce a mizunara-finished Scotch that’s both boldly flavored from the cask and at a ridiculously low price of $29? I honestly don’t know. In my experience, it also imparts considerably more flavor to the whisky in a shorter period of time, meaning a finishing is plenty to get the effect. Few distillers or producers use mizunara for an entire aging, mostly because of the leakage. That’s how Rabbit Hole, for example, could charge an MSRP of $1,295 for their Founder’s Collection Mizunara release in 2021 - exclusivity plus expensive ingredients equals pricey whiskey (yes, that one’s with an “e”). Finally, the wood has a loose grain compared to American, French, or Mongolian oak, meaning more evaporation and leakage of both water and alcohol.Īll of these factors add up to a barrel that can be between 4-10 times as expensive as a “regular” American white oak barrel, let alone a used one most of the world’s whisky ages in. A mature mizunara tree is anything but straight, making the cooper’s job of raising a barrel significantly more difficult and, by extension, making that skill that much rarer. The trees take up to 200 years to fully mature, a long cycle even for oak (for comparison, American white oak, the backbone of bourbon, takes about 80 years to mature). The trees themselves are mostly harvested from Japan’s north (Hokkaido especially) and are protected, meaning only a certain volume can be cut per year. Mizunara is, as mentioned, exceedingly expensive. Let’s look at each, shall we? In reverse order, of course. Or maybe the most interesting thing is how different the pricing is. The most interesting thing, though, is the variation in how whisky brands - particularly non-Japanese ones - are using these precious barrels. Until the past few years, mizunara oak was used only in Japanese whiskies, and even then was rare due to cost and availability. It also imparts unmistakeable flavors: perfume, particularly sandalwood, white pepper, shiso leaves, and a creamy oak. It’s expensive, takes forever to age (and when it does it’s knotted and twisted), and leaks like a sieve.
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