Nose - caramel, floral notes, honey, fig, rich malt, mild peat, apple, cinnamon, sandalwood, sawdust, cocoa, walnut, dry oak, hay, vanilla, lemon, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - caramel, earthy mint, ginger, cocoa, coconut, cereal grain, sawdust, vanilla, honey, anise, orange, chili pepper, peat smoke, fig, apple, cinnamon, apricot, walnut, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with fig, chocolate malt, honey, and peppery ginger flavors. So will my next Japanese whisky experience be an improvement over the Yamazaki 12 Year I tried yesterday? Well some may argue this isn’t really Japanese, but that’s a discussion for another time. The nose is rich, fruity, and floral. The casks involved present themselves very well here. There are honeyed and sherried fruits from the Oloroso casks and perfume-like sandalwood and coconut presumably from the Mizunara casks, but I have less experience with those. The palate is equally rich, with more fruits, mint, pepper, ginger, and a nice nuttiness. There’s also a hint of peat throughout the entire experience, although I’m not sure whether this is a peated distillate. Overall, this is certainly an improvement over the anemic Yamazaki 12 Year. There’s a nice richness to it that I don’t usually find with Japanese whiskies. The Shin tastes rather youthful, but it does have a nice oiliness to the mouthfeel. I tried the 15 Year version a while back and liked it as well, but it’s too long ago to make an educated comparison. Thank you to @ContemplativeFox for providing the generous sample!