I recently did a 3-way, Japanese whiskey tasting flight using samples generously supplied by my NJ connection: @PBMichiganWolverine. This single barrel whisky finished in second place behind the vaunted Hibiki 21, but ahead of Nikka Whisky From The Barrel. Please see that review for more details. This particular whisky is made from rice instead of grain or malt and was rather young when it was put into first-fill, ex-sherry casks for further aging. I believe this bottle runs about $45, which is a fantastic deal IMO. It’s copper/slightly amber in color, oily and makes some slow running, fat legs in the taster. Lots of heavy droplets form around the rim of the glass, as well. The nose immediately struck me as saki- which makes perfect sense, but after a little time I got an explosion of aromas like sweet raspberries, maple, nuts, green tea with mint and rice flour. It’s nicely complex for what I assume is a pretty young whisky. The palate is butterscotch and sherry, with vanilla and cashews, raisins and maple syrup. It’s effectively a liquid trail mix. There was a bit of a brash, cherry cough syrup note on the tail end, but it didn’t ruin the palate completely. The finish was medium length, very nutty with a raisin and prune flavor lingering for quite some time. It was mostly oily overall but did finish ultimately dry and warming. Overall, it’s a flavor bomb- there’s a lot going on and it makes me think the flavors are somewhat artificial, but I still wanted more after the glass was dry. Thanks again to my friend, Pranay for the pour. I wouldn’t mind locating a bottle of this for those nights I want a sweet, liquid dessert after dinner. This would fit the bill perfectly. 4 stars. Cheers.