With the holiday season already here, catching up with family and friends allows sharing quality whiskey. With so many choices in the market, doing a little bit of homework to match the appropriate whisky with the right audience goes a long way.
Whiskies from Japan, The U.S., and Scotland have enjoyed popularity for quite some time. Here are some suggestions for whisky aficionados of all knowledge levels and taste preferences for this holiday season.
Here are my Top 5 whiskies for the Holiday Season
Hibiki Japanese Harmony ($$)
From the land of the rising sun comes a whisky full of flavor, yet not overpowering. Suntory introduced the Hibiki brand in 1989 to cater to the average Japanese, who wanted to enjoy a refined and flavorful whisky without imitating the Scotch style.
The origin of Suntory goes back to its first distillery, Yamazaki, founded in 1923 in Osaka by Shinjiro Torii, a wine merchant who pioneered the entire Japanese Whisky industry with his distillery manager, Masataka Taketsuru.
Suntory has won awards for Distillery of the Year in 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2017 due to its subtle and complex style. More specifically, Hibiki Harmony is Suntory’s response to the shortage of the iconic Hibiki 12 years old that gained a cult-like status since 2014 when it won a double gold award at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
From Suntory’s website: “Hibiki is the paragon of harmony—launched in 1989 to commemorate Suntory’s philosophy of living in harmony with people and nature. The name Hibiki means “resonance” in Japanese.”
Hibiki Harmony is a Japanese blend bottled at 43% ABV, without an age statement, made with single malts from Yamazaki and Hakushu distilleries, blended with grain whisky from Chita distillery.
The whiskies in this blend age in white American White Oak, ex-sherry, and Mizunara (Japanese oak) casks.
Flavor Profile: Medium body. Elegant arrival with honey and caramel from the grain whisky, very subtle dried fruit, a bit of smoke, and a touch of incense coming from the Mizunara to round all flavors together. A very easy to drink and highly rehearsed blend.
Key Feature(s)
A versatile whisky. Drink it neat, and you will notice the fruit and wood profile crafted with balance and attention to detail. Drink it like a Misuwari (a Highball made with 2/3 of water and 1/3 of whisky) as many people drink it in Japan’s popular Izakayas and experience a very refreshing and enjoyable whisky during the hot and humid summer. A crowd pleaser!
Target Audience
- Japanese Whisky aficionados.
- Scotch Blends aficionados.
- Occasional whisky drinkers with an appreciation of delicate flavors.
Smoke Wagon Uncut and Unfiltered Straight Bourbon Whiskey ($$)
Nevada and H&C Distilling Company ages and bottles this straight bourbon distilled at Midwest Grain Products of Indiana, a.k.a. MGP. The distillery was founded in 2012 by Aaron Chepenik and Jonathan Hensleigh (a Hollywood screenwriter and director) in Las Vegas.
The mash bill contains 60% corn, 36% rye, and 4% malted barley. Smoke Wagon is a blend of high-rye young bourbons, and older bourbons (some with level 4 char) bottled in November of 2021 without adding any water at 56.60% ABV and without chill filtration.
The term “Straight” indicates that all bourbons in this blend are at least two years old. This expression is part of Batch# 108.
Flavor Profile: Balanced bourbon with the typical sweet caramel and fruit profile provided by the level 4 char with spicy notes and noticeable oak influence. Even at cask strength, it is gentle on the palate.
Key Feature(s)
Smoke Wagon delivers spices due to its high rye mash bill (36% rye) and high proof of 56.60% ABV. If you are looking for a fun and spicy bourbon to break the ice at your party, this is it.
Target Audience
- Occasional bourbon drinkers.
- Bourbon and rye aficionados.
Awards: 2021, 2020, and 2017 San Francisco World Spirits Double Gold Winner.
W. L. Weller Antique 107 Kentucky Straight Bourbon ($$)
Praised by bourbon aficionados, Weller Antique 107 is distilled at Buffalo Trace in Frankfort, KY. It is one of the most celebrated distilleries in the country. The distillery name comes from a story that migrating buffalo crossed a small portion of the Kentucky River near the distillery site.
The distillery lineage goes back to 1812 when it was part of the Rock Hills Farms estate, owned by Albert B. Blanton. Sazerac Co. is the current owner when it purchased the distillery in 1992.
Weller Antique was made originally in Stitzel-Weller Distilling Company. The name of the brand originated from William Larue Weller, a distiller of bourbon in the early 1800’s credited as the first one to use wheat (as opposed to rye) as a secondary grain in a mash bill of straight bourbon. Buffalo Trace acquired the Weller brand in 1999.
The distillery enjoys a cult-like status due to its award-winning brands such as Blantons, E.H. Taylor Jr., Elmer T. Lee, George T. Stagg, Buffalo Trace, and the limited edition Pappy Van Winkle (the most sought after brand).
Old Weller Antique 107 is a full-body wheated bourbon with no age statement, bottled at 107 proof (53.5% ABV) and with a mash bill of corn, wheat, and malted barley (undisclosed proportions)
Flavor Profile: A creamy palate with plenty of caramel, cinnamon, apple, and spices. The wheat offsets some of the sharp flavors from the corn.
Key Feature(s)
- A full-body bourbon with a creamy and sweet flavor profile from the wheat should be darling among bourbon enthusiasts.
- With demand being much greater than the supply, the OWA 107 is hard to find in retail stores. Not to mention, Weller bourbons presumably have the same mash bill as Pappy Van Winkle, thus increasing the frenzy for the wheated bourbon.
Target Audience
- Bourbon aficionados.
- Bourbon connoisseurs.
Awards: Best of Class: Straight Bourbon and awarded a Double Gold medal at the 2021 New York World Wine & Spirits Competition (NYWSC)
Bruichladdich Classic Laddie Scottish Barley Islay Whisky ($$)
Bruichladdich was founded by the Harvey brothers in 1881. The distillery sits opposite the western shore of Loch Indaal on Islay, an island off the west coast of Scotland.
The Laddie, as it is affectionately known by the people in Islay, is one of the most innovative distilleries in Scotland, known for its sweet passion fruit flavor profile combined with sea salt and a touch of smoke. Scots use the word “Laddie” to refer to a boy or young man, a suitable name for a young and flavorful single malt.
Initially, Bruichladdich’s single malts were used mainly for blends. However, in 2000 Jim McEwan (former Bowmore distillery manager) took the distillery to a whole new level with innovative single malt styles and marketing, gaining international recognition and interest from Rémy Cointreau, which bought the distillery in 2012.
The distillery produces three brands of single malts: Port Charlotte, Octomore (both peated), and unpeated Bruichladdich.
The Classic Laddie is an unpeated single malt (100% organic malted barley from Islay) with no age statement aged in ex-bourbon (1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th fill), ex-wine (Syrah, Pauillac, Cabernet Sauvignon, Franc, Muscat, and Merlot), ex-sherry (Tempranillo) and bottled at 50% ABV.
Flavor Profile: Medium body. Floral, fruity, vanilla, oak, and malty flavors. The alcohol level amplifies floral, malt, and fruity notes that otherwise go unnoticed at lower strengths.
Key Feature(s)
- Every bottle of The Classic Laddie has a batch code printed on the back of the bottle that reveals the unique recipe for that bottle.
- After entering the code on the distillery website, the origin of the malt is revealed.
- My bottle is from Batch 21/090, made from 82 casks, four vintages, three barley types, and twelve cask types. The youngest vintage is 2013. Thus, this malt is at least 8-years old.
Target Audience: Scotch Single Malt aficionados.
Talisker Distillers Edition 2007-2017 ($$)
Talisker distillery was founded in 1830 by Hugh MacAskill. The distillery sits in the Isle of Skye, one of the largest islands on the northwest coast of Scotland. Surrounded by the majestic Cullin Hills, Skye offers plenty of options for those with a passion for the outdoors.
The malt is a component of Johnnie Walker blends, currently owned by Diageo, who made it part of the Classic Malts lineup in 1988. The distillery produces a single malt known for its iodine, sea salt, peat, smoke, and peppery flavor profile that has given them numerous awards.
Talisker Distillers Edition is a single malt (100% malted barley) with no age statement, aged in ex-bourbon, finished in ex-sherry (Amoroso), and bottled at 45.8% ABV.
Flavor Profile: Rich sherry arrival with vanilla. The Amoroso sherry dials down the peat and smoke, thus creating a balanced and exciting expression of Talisker.
Key Feature(s)
- The main factor that defines this malt is the finishing in ex-sherry casks because it enhances the whisky perfectly by adding a fruity note to a peppery and already full-bodied whisky. An exceptional malt you may enjoy on a winter night seating in front of the fireplace.
Target Audience: Scotch Single Malt connoisseurs.
Awards: Best Islands Single Malt at the 2013 World Whiskies Awards.
Do you want to know more about Tokyo’s Izakayas?
Visit https://jw-webmagazine.com/5-best-izakaya-alleys-in-tokyo-2f0720eb6454/
Have a great holiday season with your loved ones, and don’t forget to post your comments on my Instagram account and Official Facebook Page.
Check many more reviews here. Cheers!
Legend
$50 or less $
$51-$100 $$
$101-$150 $$$
$151 or more $$$$
