Nose - Dark raisins, prunes, hint of dark soy, leather, almost like a PX sherry Taste - Sweet savory, tart berries, blackberries, dark chocolate, dark sweet soy sauce, lightly drying, carbonated soy sauce? Finish - Tart/drying but sweet, dark raisins, dark dried berries, dark chocolates Score - 88/100 Final Thoughts - Not sure how heavily sherried or how wet the barrels Hakata is aged in, but these feel like they were fairly wet and have quite a bit of sherry influence in them. Loads of dark raisins and prunes in this one. Once it hits the palate it gets a little less sweet which was nice, but it felt a bit tart/drying and the transition as you swallow feels almost like you're drinking a sweet savory carbonated soy sauce. Which is weird, but oddly not unpleasant? So far these feel like just very heavily sherried whiskies that capture more sherry influence than anything else. They're good, but just a bit boring because of that. Would I drink it if offered? - Yes Would I specifically order it? - Maybe Would I buy a bottle? - No NOTE - All reviews are done without factoring in price.
About this bottle
Hakata Whisky is distilled and matured at the Hikari Distillery (est. 1912) in Fukuoka, Japan. The whisky is made with 100% barley, part of which is fermented with koji, a type of mold typically used in shochu production. Sherry casks were used for maturation with the barrels housed in traditional-style warehouse. However, a few casks were matured in open-air warehouses with temperatures fluctuating from 95°F in the summer and 38°F in the winter. Hakata 12 Year is available in the US as of February 2023. (SRP $99.99)
How it tastes
Measured across 14 flavor axes. Tap a note to find other bottles that lead with it.
Reviews
Showing the most detailed of 6 parsed reviews.
Nose: Dark fruits including raisins, pomegranate, dark chocolate with a hint of soy sauce. Taste: Sweet and tart berries, maltiness; sweet but not overly so with a bit of spice. Finish: You get the sherry here along with some more maltiness. Not a lot of alcohol burn. Really like this one as I haven't had a whisky like this before.
Pomegranate, berry nose. Dense old funk and dry jowls. Figs, saturated sherry, date syrup. Sherry bomb. A little malt in the finish.
Tastes like chocolate covered strawberry and raspberry infused soy sauce coupled with umami, figs, ginger, orange peels, and cloves.
Orange, raisins, sherry, malted milk balls. Nice flavor profile but i get tired of the sherry/tannins quickly.
Raisins, orange peals, stewed fruit, honey. Sherry comes out on the finish.
Tastes like this
Closest flavor profiles across the whole catalog.
