Tastes

This tastes like crap and is what daring college kids here in Japan chug to get smashed.... (they call it the Black Nikka Challenge 😅) it's about $7 for a 700ml bottle here in Japan and can be found in just about every store. I'd recommend saving your money and skipping this completely unless you want to try the Black Nikka Challenge....

The nose is quite reminiscent of sherry, it has notes of dried fruits, vanilla, toffee, and a some of wood (likely the mizunara). The palate is vanilla, and fruits like apple, orange, dark cherries, some cereal and then loads of spice cumulating in a decently long finish of wood, spices, and a bit of sherry and tartness. *I recommend using a copita glass when drinking this neat as opposed to a normal glencairn glass (which I used for the initial review) as the sweetness and sherry/vanilla notes are more pronounced and the spiciness is mellowed out, which enhances the overall experience of drinking this whisky.

This is like a Japanese take on bourbon. The nose is sweet, light and refreshing, with some fruity and vanilla notes. The palate is light as well with cereal notes being the most prominent, accompanied by vanilla and a bit of fruit such as peach and banana. The finish is short but it fits well with this light whisky. There is no spice or smoke what so ever, and I can see many non whisky drinkers enjoying this. It goes quite well on the rocks and I can definitely see this as a picnic drink or as a staple on a hot summer day.

Bottom line: drink diluted on the rocks (ice) or mixed. Nose is sweet and creamy with notes wood, tobacco, leather, spices, honey and citrus (which ruins it). Palate is woody, vanilla, with hints of toffee and then tart wood. Finish is very short which is a good thing frankly as it isn't pleasant with notes of grass and more tart wood.

*Got this as a 50ml sample bottle. Nose is sweet and fruity, with notes of orange, honey, lemon peel, and then banana bread and a tiny bit of mango. Palate is sweet and fruity as well, with notes of vanilla, tropical fruit, then a bit of tobacco, spice and tartness, cumulating in an oaky finish which wasn't pleasant frankly....

Lemon pastries, with a touch of toffee on the nose. Very sweet with a decent amount of spice and a warm oily feel on the palette. The finish is disappointingly short and bland however, which is what really holds this whisky back the most in my opinion. There is also no sherry character to be found despite some of this whisky being aged in sherry for 3 years.

To really open up the flavors of this whisky warm the glass with your hands for about 30sec.