Are you seeking sophisticated single malts, beautiful blends, or unique whiskies whose flavors encapsulate ancient production techniques? You’ve come to the right place. Our Japanese whisky tasting brief rounds up 36 bottles that span a wide range of styles from The Land of the Rising Sun.

Included here are:

• A host of blended whiskies, at which Japanese producers especially excel
• Two single-grain whiskies that demonstrate the depth even this simplest of styles can achieve
• Five standby single malts from the country's two leading distillers, which have maintained the excellence that first catapulted Japanese whisky onto the global scene a decade ago
• Four extra-mature single malts, including a rare bottling of silent distillery Karuizawa, that embody the highest excellence of the category
• A slew of koji whiskies—Japan's newest style—with a particular focus on Hakata, made from 100% barley
• Teitessa, a line of extra-mature whiskies made from malted rice, sans koji

We also check in on newer, younger whiskies, including up-and-comer Shizuoka, which is carrying on the legacy of Karuizawa, one of Japan's most storied silent distilleries, by using one of its original pot stills to make single malt. 

Finally, we wrap up with a "world blend" of whiskies from Japan and elsewhere, crafted by Suntory master blender Shinji Fukuyo. It may not be a Japanese whisky in name, but it follows the spirit of this industry in its dedication to blended balance.

Enjoy the reviews and your next pour. Kanpai!

Japanese Blends and Grains

Fuji Single Grain

Mount Fuji Distillery produces three different styles of grain whisky under one roof, and all are included in this expression, creating a complexity that's rare for the style. The nose begins with fresh tropical and floral aromas— pineapple, coconut, hibiscus, vanilla—and fragrant oak, but takes on a toastier quality when water is added. A rush of flavor upfront on the palate subsides into gentle sweetness: banana-pineapple smoothie, with coconut milk, vanilla, and gentle cinnamon and allspice. As on the nose, water brings out toasted and cooked notes. The finish is medium length, and sweetly spiced with horchata and vanilla frosted coffee cake.

Nikka Whisky From The Barrel

A blend of more than 100 batches of malt and grain whisky, not all of which are made in Japan. Honeyed and spiced on the nose, with orange peel, hints of dried fruit, vanilla, caramel, cinnamon, and toasted nuts; water brings out floral notes of orange blossom and honeysuckle. After a zing of lemon peel up front, generous baking spice takes over the palate, trailed by caramel, vanilla, oak, and milk chocolate-covered almonds. The medium-length finish rounds up spiced-sweet oak, milk chocolate, cinnamon, and orange peel. Benefits from a few drops of water.

Nikka Whisky Coffey Grain

Made in a traditional Coffey still from a majority-corn base, this is a delicate, somewhat shy whisky whose simplicity masks an intriguing depth of flavor. Aromas of sweet lemon, canary melon, pineapple, and vanilla cupcake set up a clean, structured palate of honeyed nuts, toasted coconut on vanilla cake, nougat, honey, and well-woven oak. It finishes short, with vanilla, sweet oak, and nutty grain.

Fuji Japanese Whisky

A blend of three grain whisky styles and one single malt, all made at Mount Fuji Distillery, this has a shy, but lovely and fresh nose: unpicked apples and pears, washed by a cool rain; light caramel and vanilla; toasted malt; and a slightly grassy aroma, with hints of sea spray. Nutty and malty on the palate, warm with oak, and sweetened by vanilla, caramel, and candied peach bits; herbal tea and tingling spice bring a welcome juxtaposition. It finishes medium-long and dry, tobacco leaf and spices mingling with nutty oak.

Nikka Whisky Taketsuru Pure Malt

The nose starts with a prickling tingle of salty lemon pickle, then warms up into just-baked shortbread topped with sweet nuts, vanilla, and green pear; water brings out fresher fruit—lemon peel, kumquat, and melon. Malty and strongly oaked on the soft-textured palate, with cacao nibs, salted cooked grain, oily-sweet lemon peel, and poached pears. A medium finish of maritime oak, tingling spice, and roasted nuts that gradually turn bitter.

Hibiki Blossom Harmony (2022 Edition)

A lovely and intriguing nose of peaches, nectarines, rose petals, fresh lime leaves, green tea, and earthy chalk; with time and a little water, vanilla sugar emerges. Toasted grains and almonds, roasted peaches, and dried flowers on the palate, which is simple but pleasant. A medium finish of toasted nuts and oak, with lingering sweet-savory malt.

Nikka Days

A bright, sunny nose of lemon, banana, and pineapple atop a sweet vanilla-malt base leads into a sweet, grainy palate with more vanilla, soft oak, and scattered dried ginger. A sweep of malt at the turn becomes savory and nutty on the finish, with tobacco-laced oak to cap it off. Designed in part for cocktails, this whisky has a pleasingly chewy mouthfeel that's noteworthy at the low proof.

Standby Single Malts

Nikka Whisky Coffey Malt

The "Coffey" here refers to the type of still used to make the whisky, a design that dates to 1830 and predates modern continuous stills. Though restrained, the nose is perfumed with fruit: peach, nectarine, lychee, and pear, and a dripping honeysuckle sweetness, along with fresh coconut meat and vanilla. Water intensifies the fruit, as if it's been candied, and concentrates the floral aromas. A balance of fruit and wood makes up the palate, with fresh melon, pear, lychee and peach meeting dry and somewhat tannic oak. The finish is short, though roundly concluded, with coconut shavings, vanilla, and reticent oak.

Nikka Whisky Myagikyo

Embodying the masterful balance that put Japanese whisky on the map: sugary-sweet aromas of praline, butterscotch, candied almonds, and tropical fruit meet saltwater and earthy wet leather on the nose. Silky in the mouth, with flavors unfolding like a fan: kiwi, pineapple, melon, and grapefruit peel at first, then umami-rich nuts, leather, oak, and gentle roasted spices—white pepper, ginger. Spiced and leathery on the finish, with rivulets of grilled pineapple and long-lasting oak.

Yoichi 10-Year-Old

Age statements are back, baby! At least for Yoichi, which dropped them several years ago when demand for mature Japanese whisky soared. This new 10-year-old shows impeccable balance, with smoke serving as a buttress to lift up sweeter flavors so they can frolic across the palate. It starts with a cozy nose of toasted, warm, biscuity malt, baked apples, lemon curd, light baking spices, and toasted pecans drizzled with semi-sweet chocolate. Warm, well-integrated smokiness spreads like melting butter across the palate flavors of chocolate-covered orange peel, lemon curd, red apples baked with cinnamon, and shortbread crust filled with candied pecans. A medium-short finish fades softly, with chocolate and spice, and continued smoke to the very end.

Yamazaki 12-Year-Old

Aromatic stone fruit—peaches, nectarines—and soft citrus lead the nose, followed by vanilla, sweet malt, toasty oak, and whiffs of honeysuckle and jasmine. Softly textured on the palate, with peaches, toasted pecans, semi-sweet chocolate, candied ginger, leather, and oak; a few drops of water tease out lemon peel and gentle tannins, which add chewiness to the velvety mouthfeel. Leather and bittersweet oak, cacao nibs, burnt lemon peel, and dried ginger on the medium-long finish.

Hakushu 12-Year-Old

Suntory's peated single malt expresses itself with restrained musculature and a delicate touch. Green pears, lemon and lime peel, vanilla, shortbread, salted caramel, floral notes, and interwoven spice, especially ginger, on the nose. The palate sparkles with fizzy lemon and lime, saline, expressive oak, nutty-sweet malt, and cooked pears, underpinned by subtle smoke. Lemon peel, saltwater, white pepper, and oak balance out the medium finish.

Extra-Mature Stunners

Asama Japanese Single Malt (Selected from 1999 and 2000 Vintages)

After ceasing operations in 2000, Karuizawa has been long lamented as one of the great lost distilleries of the world. This vatting of some of its last casks, bottled in 2012, shows why. It starts with a meaty, sulfury, salty nose of prune-sauced pork loin, roast beef with mushroom gravy, and raisin-suet pudding glazed with brown sugar, and rolls into a palate that’s just as umami-forward, but also pulls in blackcurrants, leather, roasted hazelnuts, dried figs, unsweetened chocolate, tobacco leaf, and ample oak. Bitterness from chocolate and oak alike on the medium-long finish, with pops of dried sherry fruit and roasted nuts. Since this release has long since sold out, the price reflects the current average value as determined by Whiskybase.

Hakushu 18-Year-Old Mizunara (100th Anniversary Edition)

Released in honor of Suntory's centennial, this seamlessly peated and superbly balanced whisky reinforces the company's well-earned reputation for quality. Green apple candy, guava, cashew, cedar, and chai spices trip across the sweetly peated nose, and reappear on the richly fruited palate. Watermelon and apple Jolly Ranchers, guava, lemon peel and an array of spices mingle with saline, hints of fresh ginger, and sweet peat smoke, with no trace of ashiness or char. A few drops of water evolve the mouthfeel, making it more tannic and dry, with emerging, peppery oak that persists into the long, smoky finish.

Fuji 30-Year-Old Single Grain

Well-aged grain whisky has become easier to find in Scotland but is a rarity in Japan, making this example desirable for two reasons—because it’s also delicious. Coconut, green apple, and rancio on the nose, with a balance of light sweetness—vanilla and coconut cream—with solvent-led mature flavors on the chewy, full-bodied palate. Sweet leathery oak and more rancio on a full, lengthy finish.

Yamazaki 18-Year-Old Mizunara (100th Anniversary Edition)

A special release celebrating the centenary of Suntory, this whisky was aged solely in casks made of mizunara oak. The nose is zesty and vivid with salted lime, melon, clementine, and pear, bright notes that are balanced by woodsy cedar, brown sugar, furniture-polished oak, and exotic spices. Chewy and drying tannins add dimension to what is otherwise a fairly light-bodied whisky, while mature flavors of green pear, melon, salty malt, and rancio-laden oak emphasize that depth. Incense and rancio on the finish; it takes a long, long time for the last note of polished oak to dissipate.

Focus on Shizuoka

Shizuoka Pot Still W 100% Imported Barley (1st Edition)

Made in Japan from imported Scottish and German barley, including some peated barley, and rather oceanic in character, with tumbling waves of salted lemon and lime, pickled ginger, smoked vanilla sugar, seaweed, and sweet peat on the nose. The full-bodied palate's rolling tide of sea and smoke, generous oak, and saltwater swirls amid pops of lemon, fresh ginger, black pepper, and lime zest. Mouthwatering salinity, peat, and oak, sprinkled with black pepper, carry the current of the lengthy finish.

Shizuoka Prologue K

A generous nose, packed with pungent, briny peat, rich cinnamon, sweet almonds, and bright tropical fruits: mango, pineapple, guava. These notes continue on the palate, integrated with vanilla, lemon peel, allspice, and nutmeg. More smoky, salty peat, persistent cinnamon, and sturdy oak on the medium-length finish. A well-structured young whisky that hints strongly at future complexity. Made on a wash still from the legendary Karuizawa Distillery (hence the "K").

Shizuoka Prologue W

A delightful nose of biscuity malt, fresh banana, and sweet, oily lemon, suffused with rich, slightly salty smoke, which deepens to an earthier and more savory character after water is added. A consistent palate follows, sweet with shortbread, banana chips, and pineapple rings, peppery, lemony, and buoyed by salty-sweet smoke. The finish is fairly short, but allows the enduring smoke to fade nicely.

Shizuoka Contact S

This young single malt starts off earthy, boggy, and peaty but not smoky, with bulgur, cooked greens, and bits of dried apricot on the nose. The palate displays an appetizing character with mouthwatering salinity, lemon peel mingled with cinnamon, and rich, savory peat; water draws out fresh herbs and generous spices. Tobacco leaf, savory oak, enduring peat and, with water, cinnamon on the medium-length finish.

Shizuoka Pot Still K 100% Japanese Barley (First Edition)

A sturdy base of earthy cooked malt underpins brighter aromas of lemon and orange zest, sea spray, and pine bough. The same juxtaposition takes place on the palate, which is chewy but remains fairly light-bodied; balancing brightness and earthiness, zingy lemon and orange peel skate across sea salt-topped shortbread, toasted nuts, vanilla, and spiced oak, notes that continue into the medium-short finish.

Blackadder Raw Cask Shizuoka (Cask #781)

Cooked, earthy malt forms the base of the nose, supporting citrus grove and orchard fruits: lime, pomelo, grapefruit, apples, and pears. There's also vanilla, fresh ginger, and canary melon, and it all becomes freshened with the addition of generous water. The palate is a tumble of flavors, appealing but smushed together: lemon zest, ginger, white pepper, saltwater, earthy malt, and generous oak. It finishes medium-short, with salty oak, ginger, and pepper.

Blackadder Raw Cask Shizuoka (Cask #1357)

This was matured in a Japanese red wine cask, which feels awkward at times, as if pasted on to the young spirit. There are fruit, leather, nut, and semi-sweet chocolate flavors and aromas, plus an interesting spice character, atop a thickly malty and nutty base. The palate is tannic, drying, and chewy; water brings out lemon peel, saline, roasted hazelnuts, and intriguing herbaceousness. It finishes short, with leather, spiced dark chocolate, and salted herbs.

A Trio of Koji Whiskies

Fukano Edition #2223

Distilled from koji rice, with the delicate aromatics that define the style: cherry and orange blossoms, fragile tea roses, fresh apricots, mirabelle plums, and an earthy-floral perfume quality. The nose translates well to the palate, with fresh apricots, plums, cherry wood, and a touch of nuttiness, freshened by citrus spritz. A little water brings out wood spice, tannin, and tea leaf, adding further dimension. It finishes soft and medium-long, with savory roasted cashews, flower oils, and cooked pineapple.

Takamine 8-Year Koji Whiskey

Made from koji barley, double-distilled, and named for a pioneering Japanese bourbon distiller, this is a delicate and expressive whisky that takes time to fully blossom. It starts with a honey-cereal nose, enveloped in dry wood shavings and intertwined with soft, ripe stone fruit that becomes more expressive with a scant few drops of water. Mouth-filling and visceral in texture, even at 80 proof, the palate weaves spiced dry oak and cedar with plum, cherry, and nutty, toasted grain. It's soft on the finish, with nuts, leather, and oak.

Ikikko 8-Year-Old

Distilled from rice and barley using koji, though the cask sings louder than the grains, starting with aromas of antique leather, sulfured dried fruit, dry-roasted hazelnuts, brown sugar, clay, and a current of baking spices. On the palate there are sugared nuts, dried figs and dates, leather, polished oak, rancio, and warm spices that bloom and deepen with a few drops of water. It finishes short but neat: unsweetened chocolate, dried ginger, rancio, and leather.

Focus on Hakata

Hakata 12-Year-Old Sherry Cask

Restraint and fullness of flavor strike a perfect balance in this barley koji whisky, starting with the nose: dark raisins, dried raspberries, figs, blackberry jam, dark chocolate, roasted hazelnuts, dark caramel, leather and oak furniture, and candied orange peel. A warm umami character saturates the palate and finds a complement in dark dried berries and cherries, raisins, Mission figs, cola syrup, leather, rancio, and dark chocolate. Soft texture throughout, but pleasingly chewy, lasting into the finish. One of the best koji whiskies currently available.

Hakata 16-Year-Old Sherry Cask

Treading with cat-like grace, this barley koji whisky balances aromas of leather, dates, dried figs, and dark chocolate-covered candied orange peel with blackcurrants, berries, and vivid tropical fruit. The full, generous palate is viscerally chewy, like mochi, with flavors of dried fruit, leather, nuts, rancio, and a rich vein of dark chocolate. Raisinets, dried figs, roasted hazelnuts, and leather on the long finish.

Hakata 10-Year-Old Sherry Cask

Distilled from koji barley. The nose is restrained and serene, grounded in earthy umami while still highlighting lush sherry notes of dried plums and raisins, supple leather, dark chocolate, dry-roasted walnuts, molasses, and a touch of cedar. Chewy on the palate, where leathery oak and rancio undergird dried figs and raisins, semi-sweet chocolate, hazelnuts, and savory cooked meat, with a top note of white pepper and dried ginger. The texture carries through to the medium finish of dark chocolate-covered roasted nuts, figs, and leather.

Hakata 18-Year-Old Sherry Cask

Sulfury sherry suffuses the nose with boggy wet canvas and raw walnuts, though brown sugar, molasses, and dark berries creep in sweetly. The palate is tannic, and chewy yet silky: as springy as a hand-pulled noodle, with dried and cooked dark fruit, dark chocolate, and leather. A long finish of chocolate, leather, and savory black tea.

Focus on Teitessa

Teitessa 30-Year-Old

The best of Teitessa's lineup, thanks to its deft balance of sherry cask with delicate spirit. Rich, soft, and inviting on the nose: raisins, dried figs, toasted hazelnuts, old cracked leather, and rancio, with a thread of minerality running through. The dry, rounded palate is soft in texture, gliding in on dark chocolate, leather, hazelnuts, rancio, and dried, oxidized figs. A scant few drops of water awaken just enough tannins to bring out some chew, which carries into the finish's oxidizing dried fruit and leathery oak.

Teitessa 20-Year-Old

Smells and tastes like late-summer abundance: fruit that's so ripe it's been left to ferment on the vine. Bananas, pineapple juice, dripping melon, plus chamomile and jasmine on the nose; water brings out sandalwood. The palate balances sticky fruit—cooked banana, caramelized pineapple, overripe melon—with woody spice, leading into a medium finish of spiced melon and lingering savory oak.

Teitessa 27-Year-Old

The nose mixes delicate, aromatic tropical fruits—pineapple, lychee, canary melon, citrus—with a bracing vein of salty, earthy seashell minerality. Lychee, banana, and melon meet restrained, but very oaky oak, spiced and somewhat bitter, on the palate, along with sandalwood and cedar; water summons the salty mineral note. A muted finish of lychee and spiced wood.

Teitessa 15-Year-Old

A very reticent whisky, starting on the nose with its faint whiffs of peaches, Nilla wafers, light caramel, and toasted pistachios. A mild and simple palate of warmly nutty cereal, vanilla, light oak, and dried pineapple and peach. Sweet oak and toasted nuts on the medium-short finish. What's here is pretty, but there's so little of it.

Teitessa 25-Year-Old

A delicately aromatic and ripe nose of applesauce, cooked pears, banana, overripe melon, custard, and lychee gives way to more savory and at times bitter notes on the palate: wheat berries, burnt rice, roasted pine nuts, dried apple skins, and bittersweet oak, lightened only a little by cooked pears and bananas. Short, with bitter oak, on the finish.

A Singular World Blend

Suntory Ao

A "world blend" by master blender Shinji Fukuyo that incorporates whiskies from Suntory-owned distilleries five countries: Ardmore and Glen Garioch in Scotland; Cooley in Ireland; Alberta in Canada; Jim Beam in the United States; and Yamazaki and Hakushu in Japan. The nose intrigues with kelpy peat and ashy char alongside cereal, baking spice, and generous oak, with fresh orange emerging after water is added. Bright lemon soap leads the front palate, giving way to milder vanilla and coconut, while peat smoke and char, hot spice, and oak are integrated throughout. The finish is short and mellifluous, focused on oak and nutty cereals.