World Whisky Review #49: Nikka Yoichi Single Malt

Distillery: Yoichi.

Region: Japan.

Age: NAS.

ABV: 45.00%.

Cost: Pour thanks to /u/L_Tyrion.

Color: 1.0, Deep copper.

This particular review was done blind with the only hint being “Japan”.

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Nose: There’s a lot of fruits in the form of lemon, pears, and white grapes. There’s a heavy, gas-like note that I get in some worm tub using distilleries (namely Craigellachie) as well.

Palate: Tons and tons of fruits. Kumquat, pineapple, pears and citrus all come out. The citrus is a mix of yuzu and satsuma oranges. A lovely malt note comes through as well. Overall, it has a very heavy worm tub whisky texture.

Finish: Medium in length. There’s the slightest trace of acetone here. Some chocolate dust pops in here and again along with orange peels, bergamont, and kumquats..

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Guess: The hint was Japan. The flavors on the palate were pretty reminiscent of Yamazaki 12 but the nose and texture tell me that it is not that at all. I get a ton of heavy notes that I associate with worm tubs but I also get no peat which rules some distilleries out. I’m going to guess a Mars Komagatake release, no clue which one, bottled around 45% ABV.

Reveal: Nikka Yoichi Single Malt.

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Conclusion: I don’t think I’ve experienced a whisky where I am completely peat blind to. This Yoichi Single Malt release should be lightly peated but I experienced absolutely none of the peat. What I did get was a rather delicious fruity whisky that had a nice heavy character to it. The nose teases a fruit basket and the palate absolutely delivers on that. The finish is nice wrapping things up with some chocolate and bergamont as well. Really tasty overall!

Final Score: 82.

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World Whisky Review #49, Japanese Whisky Review #21, Whisky Network Review #517

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Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.