[63.1%・Around 5 Years Old・Distilled in 2009・Bottled in 2014・Official Bottling・Cask No. 2357・Single Cask Release]
Nose:
The nose is on the sharp side at first but still retains a sense of cleanness, quite spicy with a pinch of salt. The nose eventually softens to allow some coconut notes to surface. Later, there are hints of butterscotch and some fragrant apricot notes.
Palate & Finish:
Quite a rich showing of vanilla and toffee on the palate, there’s some salted caramel in the mix as well as a floral side that slowly unfolds. Then comes a clean cut of spices to bring out the manuka honey note.
Lingering, lively spices in the finish, there is a fine brush of honey note remaining.
Thoughts:
Still very much a house style Chichibu despite the use of French oak cask. Rich in character but perhaps the details are not too even as some notes are far more powerful than others..
✓ [Recommended if you like the style/ distillery]
-Nicholas
WhiskNick 