Yamazaki 12 Year

Nose - Very fruity floral sweet aroma, faint candied plums, baked apples, Asian pears, faint hint of fresh hay, and very light floral honey. Taste - Hits the tongue spicy sweet with a slightly sour apple taste, hint of bitterness like that of a slightly charred baked apple skin, more floral honey. Tastes like an apple orchard with a cider mill in the background, with freshly mowed grass. Finish - Lingering warmth followed by a light bitterness as if you bit into an apple seed. Imagine a really juicy Asian pear that has been drizzled with a light floral honey, the juice has diluted the honey sweetness a bit, but it still lingers on the tongue. 90/100

Konichiwa Yamazaki san. Sweet but complex on the nose, rice crispies, vanilla and orange mixed in with a bit of honey set on a backdrop of sherry and wispy smoke. Taste is incredibly smooth, sweet yet balanced. ginger root, orange blossoms and possible samurai blood? I receive with great honor.