Kurayoshi 12-year-old pure malt whisky review and tasting notes
The Kurayoshi 12 years pure malt whisky is a pungent distillate, full of splendid aromas of malt, rich, but with a tasty, full, never soft sip, rather it slaps you and then caresses your palate. First it seduces with the warm sweetness of malt, then attacks you with an assault of peat, but immediately the flowers and honey arrive, with splendid references of ginger and candied pears to act as a shoulder.
The oxidation is marked: the nutty flavors of almond and dried fruit are splendid and broaden the aromatic boundaries of a whisky of great courage, not easy to approach and certainly not affordable for the average unpretentious drinker.
In short, despite being a blended, the sensitivity of the Kurayoshi distillery emerges, once again the skill of the Japanese masters manages to shape a whisky that comes from Scotland and paradoxically transforms it, imbues it with Japanese character, with contrasts that are in a perfect balance of contrasts.
As always when it comes to Japanese whisky, we must go into detail, embrace an animist tasting philosophy made up of small details, of very light but unique nuances. They are small liquid poems bottled and once you open them the genius escapes and there is no turning back.
And you will find yourself spending money, because the only problem with Japanese whisky is not the fact that it is Japanese or not, but the extremely high price at which they are sold.
How Kurayoshi 12 is produced?
The base is made up of a selection of Scottish single malt whiskys, which are brought to Japan, in the Tottori district, where the distillery is based. Mount Daisen is not far away, like the sea and both affect the maturation of the whisky, increasing oxidation. Another very important factor is the water, which is filtered by volcanic rocks as it descends into the valley and this is perhaps the most important ingredient that characterizes this whisky. The skilful use of the American white oak barrels used to make Bourbon whisky does the rest.
Organoleptic characteristics of Kurayoshi 12 years pure malt
The bouquet is splendid a whirlwind of contrasts between sweet, oxidized aromas of ripe figs and dates, light peat, floral and medicinal traces, honey, ginger, burnt orange and malt dipped in caramel. Sea closes with salt, rocks and hot fruit. The variety is excellent, the depth pure: pure elegance.
On the palate it is smooth, velvety but embellished with mineral, citrus and spicy flavors. The oxidation feels clear, the sip is very soft and syrupy, but it is never dry, indeed between salt, peat and flowers it manages to draw an intriguing aromatic picture with good depth.
Its only flaw is that it is a bit chiseled, stylized and complacent, but the love for detail makes it postpone what could be a lack of depth. In summary it is an aesthetic Japanese whisky, aestheticized by a Japanese vision and culture, but in any case it is a small amanuensis work. Critics will say that it is not a Japanese whisky and in theory it is true, the single malts come from Scotland, but the transformation took place in Japan, so the difficult sentence is up to you.
Price of Kurayoshi 12 years
120-130 euros: an excellent price that reflects the great quality of this distillate. It is a particular edition, with a very limited edition, so if you find it it is also an excellent investment as a collector’s whisky or as an investment opportunity.
Food Pairings
Spoon desserts, trifle, chocolate, salmon terrines, brisket and pulled pork, chocolate salami, blueberry cheesecake, chocolate truffles.