Whisky: Hioki Pot Still Whisky

Country/Region: Japan/Single Grain

ABV: 51%

Cask: New American White Oak, Bourbon

Age: N/A

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Nose: Cream, oatmeal, banana, maple, coconut, donuts, refined sugar, vanilla, caramel, subtle fruit.

Palate: Light-bodied, sugary, coconut cream, coconut jam, pastry, butterscotch, vanilla, banana, wood.

Finish: Medium to short with a gentle sweetness and lingering hints of creamy coconut pudding desserts.

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Score: 5-6 (76)

Mental Image: Pancake Bar Tasting Session

Narrative & Notes: Creamy with plenty of  cooked grains and butter— oatmeal banana pancakes perhaps, with maple and coconut syrup. Powdered sugar and dried coconut reminded me of old fashioned cake donuts with vanilla and caramel icing, while a touch of juicy fruit gum hung in the background. Light-bodied with a vibrant sugary profile that churned toward coconut cream and kaya jam— a piece of kaya toast with a big slab of butter stuffed between layers of malty whole grain bread and kaya. A gentle butterscotch developed with more subtle hints of vanilla, banana, and lumber. The finish was medium to short with a gentle sweetness and lingering hints of creamy coconut pudding desserts.

This was an interesting whisky and a reflection of how much the whisky production scene in Japan has continued to grow. Komasa Jozo produces this single grain Japanese whisky at Hioki, a distillery near Kanosuke which is otherwise used for shochu and gin production, with a mash of 90% unmalted two-row barley and just a small portion of marled barley distilled on a stainless steel pot still (the same it uses for shochu production).

This was not bad— young and fairly basic, something like the marriage between a single grain scotch and an Irish pot still. I am tempted to call it an elevated version of the Green Spot, which was one of my gateway whiskies long ago.  The alcohol was well-balanced and integrated, I would never have guessed this was over 50%, though I am surprised it was so light on the palate.