Kanosuke is another one of Japan's baby distilleries, and by that I don't mean they distill babies, despite the name of today's product. Owner Komasa Jozo produced a barrel-aged shochu for decades before firing up the Kanosuke pot stills in 2017. Their whisky is now old enough to be whisky, with some 3-4 year old bottlings appearing over the past couple of years. But before that, the company sold "New Born" spirit (1-2 years old) in 20cL bottles. Intrigued, I split one of these bottles with Dr. Springbank...
Distillery: Kagoshima
Range: New Born
Location: Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Japan
Ownership: Komasa Jozo
Age: 1 year (May 2018 - May 2019)
Maturation: "white oak casks"
Ownership: Komasa Jozo
Age: 1 year (May 2018 - May 2019)
Maturation: "white oak casks"
Alcohol by Volume: 58%
(from my half of the bottle pictured)
NEAT
Breakfast cereal oat clusters, pie crust, marshmallows, and caramel show up first in the nose, followed by a little bit of pine sap and some floral but farty ethyl. (Floral But Farty Ethel Merman is the name of my indie band.) Whew, that palate is capital 'N' New. Not far from raw spirit, kind of like malted rye white dog. Mostly burning, cassia, and peppercorns. And that's its finish as well.
DILUTED to 46%abv, or 1½ tsp of water per 30mL new born
The nose has simplified and focused into Nillas and graham crackers floating in ethanol. The palate has become very sweet, loaded with cherry candies up front, white bread crust and peppercorns in the back. It finishes like sweetened white dog.
WORDS WORDS WORDS
You may or may not have noticed that I did not begin this post's title with "Things I Really Drink". Though I do have this bottle, I'll be damned if I can get through 30mL of this stuff in a sitting. It's very raw without being actual new make. I should have bought their New Pot rather than this par-baked stuff. Their warehouses likely hold some five year-old single malt. I'd be much more interested in those casks than their New Born products.
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