Karuizawa 1990 for Whisky Live Japan 2009 [Road to #1000, Review #992]

Hi everyone,

Welcome.

Take a deep breath in. Let it go, out…

There is a scent of pine needles underfoot, the wind is rustling cherry blossoms nearby. Above you a vast volcano looms with some form of inner darkness that you cannot comprehend fully.

Karuizawa

The name is but a breath upon the gentlest wind.

Karuizawa

More forceful now. Impatient. Impossible to ignore.

Karuizawa

Volcanic. Muscular. Now supple and teasing, now devastating.

Karuizawaaaa…

Karuizawa 1990 for Whisky Live Japan 2009 60%

Colour: Light Amber

Body: Full

Nose: Beautiful nose, fresh wild strawberries, orange and raisin, ethereal juiciness and cherry, malt, leather and cologne. Its all pretty muscular and salivating. Mead and old wood and browning red apple and golden raisin and brandy and perfumed wood. Yeah, complex.

Water: Darker, more cherry, black coffee, and very dark chocolate.

Taste: Sweet start, raisin, great oils and dryness, some brandy and leather, plenty of oak, some chilli chocolate, black pepper, orange peel, cherry into the finish.

Water: Still some spices but finds a nice sweet balance, less oak.

Finish: Medium length. More oils, more cherry, some oak, leather and chocolate.

Bottled 2009 at 19yo from a Sherry cask. Incredible nose, taste is a little dry. My second experience with Karuizawa and I was not disappointed in any way. This stuff is amazing. Not quite as amazing as the 1983 I tired but if the taste was on par with the nose, it would be well on its way.

85/100

Thanks for reading!

Updated Distillery Rankings

Japanese Review #24

Whisky Network Review #992

Network Average: 75.2

Best Score: 94

Worst Score: 12

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent

Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as the Global Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and I am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and I am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.

Why is this here?

Karuizawa 1983: TWE Show Report

Hi everyone,

I knew I wanted to try this at the show. 

Karuizawa. A name some will never have heard of, others start to drool at it's mention.

Karuizawa. A distillery built by a volcano. Some say the Macallan of Japan. 

Karuizawa. Men have lost themselves in it's Sherried depths, others have gone mad searching for those Noh bottlings. 

Karuizawa. A name I won't soon forget.

This cost me 4 dream drams (£40) but that's pretty cheap for an early 80's Sherry Karuizawa. This was a private bottling by Number 1 Drinks Co. (who own the Karuizawa stocks). I got this at the scotchwhiskyauctions.com table.

Karuizawa 1983 Private Bottling 59.1%

Colour: Dark Amber

Body: Full

Nose: Dark and brooding. Earthy Sherry, some vanilla, sweet figs, dates, a little meaty, complex spice. Really complex.

Water: More complex (if that is possible!), wood and spice integration, more earthy, forest floor, autumnal, a beautiful black cherry note.

Taste: Mega. Sweet and complex, figs, raisin, spices, huge Sherry, really rich, mouth watering, cinnamon, ginger, wood spice.

Water: Softer but huge still, more paced out and longer development, long Sherry and stewed fruit, earthy, goes on and on. Chewy.

Finish: Long length. Sherry, spice, little oak, dunnage. Water softens with more soft spices and dunnage wood, oak.

92/100

Hugely complex, integrated, balanced and powerful.

Maybe not worth the huge prices these are fetching, but at least I know why now.

Review #213

Network Average: 75.5

Best Score: 92

Worst Score: 44

0-49 Terrible

50-59 Bad

60-64 Just About OK

65-69 Ok to Good

70-74 Good

75-79 Very Good

80-84 Excellent

85-89 Superb

90+ Magnificent