Whisky: Komagatake 4 Year (2015) Cask 1940 for Total Wine

Country/Region: Japan

ABV: 62%

Cask: Bourbon

Age: 4 Years (Distilled May 2015, Bottled Sept. 2019)

Nose: Malty, honeycomb, persimmon, subtle citrus and spearmint, cocoa powder, bubble gum, cotton candy, hints of melon and burdock.

Palate: Medium-bodied, oily, bubble gum, cotton candy, subtle fruits, touch of salt, spearmint, wood resin.

Finish: Medium-length and peppery with fruity hard candies, wood resin, and a kiss of salt.

Score: 4-5

Mental Image: Candy Tasting Board

Narrative & Notes: Malty and herbal, the aroma featured a confounding combination of sweet desert-like elements from malty sugars to a slightly waxy sweet honeycomb. Interspersed among those dominant elements was persimmon with subtle hints of orange and spearmint, cocoa powder and malt with hints of vanilla, and a bushel of bubblegum-flavored cotton candy. Occasional hints of salt, melon, and burdock rounded out the experience. Medium-bodied and oily, the flavor profile featured bubblegum, cotton candy, and subtle fruits with a delayed hit of salt and herbs. Oily candy notes hit first, while honeycomb, melon, guava, and Saturn peaches arrived later. A touch of salt popped as the fruits faded with spearmint, cocoa, and wood resin. The finish was medium-length and peppery with fruity hard candies, wood resin, and a kiss of salt.

I do not care for cotton candy or bubblegum notes, so if you like those sorts of candied flavor profiles, I am sure you would enjoy this more than I did. I appreciated the heavier mouthfeel and found the interplay of fruit and salt lovely, though some of the wood resin at the end seemed a misfit. While I did not touch on it much above, the spirit was sometimes feisty with a prickle that turned toward pepper by the end. A few drops of water tamed the spirited malt but elevated more candy flavors which left the profile even more overly saccharine for my taste.

Overall, a fascinating introduction to Mars and the Shinshu distillery. I have had my eye on trying some of their products for a long time, and I am glad I finally have a chance to dive in with several of them!

Image Credit: Whiskybase