Nose - Dark raisins, prunes, hint of dark soy, leather, almost like a PX sherry
Taste - Sweet savory, tart berries, blackberries, dark chocolate, dark sweet soy sauce, lightly drying, carbonated soy sauce?
Finish - Tart/drying but sweet, dark raisins, dark dried berries, dark chocolates
Score - 88/100
Final Thoughts - Not sure how heavily sherried or how wet the barrels Hakata is aged in, but these feel like they were fairly wet and have quite a bit of sherry influence in them. Loads of dark raisins and prunes in this one. Once it hits the palate it gets a little less sweet which was nice, but it felt a bit tart/drying and the transition as you swallow feels almost like you're drinking a sweet savory carbonated soy sauce. Which is weird, but oddly not unpleasant? So far these feel like just very heavily sherried whiskies that capture more sherry influence than anything else. They're good, but just a bit boring because of that.
Would I drink it if offered? - Yes
Would I specifically order it? - Maybe
Would I buy a bottle? - No
NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.
109.0
USD
per
Bottle