treshin
Mars Iwai 45 Japanese Whisky
Blended — Nagano, Japan
Reviewed
September 16, 2021 (edited November 14, 2021)
Nose: Earthy, sweet and fresh. Good balance. Notes of orange zest, toffee, hay, pear, caramel. The orange zest note is upfront and stronger than what I've experienced in most whiskies while the sweet notes of toffee and earthy notes of hay alternate in the background. Light hints of sulfur. The sulfur note seemed to disappear after the first tasting.
Palate: Sweet, fresh and spicy. Orange zest, candied fruit, honey, white chocolate, steamed milk, herbal/medicinal, over-steeped green tea. Bitter green tea note is less present after the first tasting. The earthy notes from the nose were lost. Again, the fresh orange zest note was apparent and intermingled with sweet notes. I wasn't expecting the spicy notes
Finish: Earthy and slightly bitter (green pepper?). Short and single note.
This is a whiskey made for mixing so I had low expectations going in. The nose is decent though it lacks distinguishing notes. The taste is also decent with a distinguishing white chocolate/steamed milk note though I have to fish around for it. The spiciness was a bit surprising and similar to a bourbon's. For me, the finish was a bit lacking and forward on the bitterness. Would maybe be nice in a sweet cocktail.
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