KANOSUKE SINGLE MALT WHISKY
MASH BILL – 100% malted barley
PROOF – 96
AGE – NAS (aged in re-charred American white oak ex-shochu casks)
DISTILLERY – Kanosuke Distillery
PRICE – free 200ml sample ($80 for a 700ml bottle)
KANOSUKE HIOKI POT STILL WHISKY
MASH BILL – blend of malted and unmalted barley
PROOF – 102
AGE – NAS (aged in new American white oak casks and used bourbon barrels)
DISTILLERY – Kanosuke Distillery
PRICE – free 200ml sample ($110 for a 700ml bottle)
KANOSUKE DOUBLE DISTILLERY BLENDED WHISKY
MASH BILL – blend of malted and unmalted barley
PROOF – 106
AGE – NAS (blend of their Single Malt and Hioki whiskies)
DISTILLERY – Kanosuke Distillery
PRICE – free 200ml sample ($120 for a 700ml bottle)
Kanosuke Distillery only fired up its whisky stills in 2017. But they weren’t newbies to distilling. Their parent company is Komasa Jyozo, a shochu distillery founded in 1883. Located on the southern Island of Kyushu, the distillery’s warehouses enjoy hot, humid temperatures that help draw cask influence into the whiskies faster than the colder northern climates, where Nikka, for example, is situated. And their three pot stills each have different designs, affording distinct impacts on the distillates that run through them.
Kanosuke’s products count among the truly 100% Japanese whiskies, with no scotch or other world whiskies stirred into the mix. They are aged with a wide variety of new and used casking strategies, including Komasa Jyozo’s own ex-shochu casks. Their whiskies may still be relatively young. But they’re fast gaining notice. In addition to the standard releases featured here, Kanosuke regularly puts out one-offs and other special releases, which get bought up by fans in Japan quickly.
Japan is a country that played a special role in my life early on. A recent trip there helped me reconnect to my admiration and respect for the Japanese people, their carefully considered culture and ethos, their history and creative approach to life. Although I’m intrigued by the subtleties of Japanese whisky, cost has generally been a barrier to my exploration of it. So when Kanosuke’s American rep sent me these 200ml samples of their core line-up, I was grateful for the intro.
Let’s get right into them. Here we are, one week after uncorking and the second pour into each bottle. These brief notes were taken using traditional Glencairns.
COLOR
ALL THREE – variations on honey and lemon yellows; if I really look patiently, maybe the Hioki is a very slight hint darker
NOSE
SINGLE MALT – vanilla, cream, sugary pineapple, caramel fudge
HIOKI POT STILL – slightly reserved, a sharply tart unripe yellow fruit, something faintly smoky like charcoal, thick sweet cream
DOUBLE DISTILLERY – flowery, both tropical and orchard fruity, cream, vanilla-caramel, light oak
TASTE
SINGLE MALT – sweet and creamy right up front, bright without glaring, the fruit and cream notes very nicely balanced
HIOKI POT STILL – that tart fruit note is less edgy here but still vibrant, with a sense of copper and wood vying for the edge around the softer cream and candy notes
DOUBLE DISTILLERY – bright yet rich, creamy, the tropical fruit, a milk chocolate note rolling in
FINISH
SINGLE MALT – a gush of the fruit notes up front, then mild oak and milder tannin alongside the creams and caramel, a lingering warmth like clear sunlight on a cool day
HIOKI POT STILL – the tart fruit regains its edge via some lingering oak tannin, plus a bit of copper zing, and still those thick sweet cream notes running underneath it all
DOUBLE DISTILLERY – the tropical fruit leans into an earthy note, the cream and light oak balance each other, a light peppery prickle from the proof
OVERALL
SINGLE MALT – a genuinely enjoyable young whisky with enough maturity about it to hold its own in the conversation.
HIOKI POT STILL – a spicy young whisky with a kind of pop-culture edge to it, more likely to tear up the dance floor than join the convo
DOUBLE DISTILLERY – the best qualities of the other two combined and balanced, and with an edgy wit up its sleeve
WORTH BUYING?
ALL THREE – Yes. However, given how very similar they are to one another, I’d say the cheaper Single Malt offers more value for its price than either the Hioki or Double Distillery do.
In every respect, these three whiskies are very similar. They’re like identical triplets. They look the same, and their individual personalities are definitely familial despite each leaning a bit this way verses that.
From a consumer standpoint, cost weighs heavily for me here. As a recommendation for a Kanosuke intro bottle, I’d say go with the Single Malt. It’s perfectly enjoyable. Fun, bright, and lively, without lacking interest. Being young non-age-stated single malt, were it a scotch it might be even half the price. But with Japanese whisky we are paying in part for their very limited real estate and geographically isolated location.
From a tasting standpoint, I might tend to lean toward the Double Distillery. It strikes a nice balance of the nuances offered by the other two. With just a bit of the Hioki’s edge etched around the Single Malt’s delicious cream and candy notes, the Double Distillery frames up the core fruit notes nicely. But priced at $120 to the Single Malt’s $80, I wouldn’t say what’s achieved here is $40 better.
I’m delighted by these. Had I paid full price for 700ml bottles of each, I’d be less delighted, to be sure. But as a graciously gifted intro to Kanosuke, I’m truly delighted.
This is a distillery I look forward to following as its whiskies continue to age and diversify. I greatly appreciate Kanosuke’s penchant for experimentation. The whiskies are legitimately fun to drink. They remind me of Irish whiskey in that sense. With Irish whiskey I always feel like I’m at a party with loud singing and dancing. Kanosuke conjures a similar mood and atmosphere. Despite their reputation for reserve, the Japanese do know how to party! Kanosuke has captured that spirit in these young and vibrant whiskies.
Cheers!
Last Call
I put some of the Single Malt to use in a cocktail with superb results. We’ll call it a Kanosuke Sour:
2oz Kanosuke Single Malt Whisky
1oz Meyer lemon juice
0.5oz Fiji Ginger Syrup
0.25oz Bordiga Amaretto
Shake and double strain
Zest and garnish with a Meyer lemon peel
The Right Spirit 