Mars Iwai 45 Japanese Whisky

There's an old comedy bit by Dave Chappelle where he talks about how he likes to get high with white guys because when they get high, they only talk about other times that they got high ("dude, remember at Frank's last week? I was smashed man! two shots of Jager, tequila, four bong hits, man, beer, cheeseburger."). Whatever your thoughts on his comedy, it's applicable here, because in this entry, I'm going to talk about the last time I got really very drunk. It doesn't happen often. Generally speaking, I'm good at cutting myself off before we get there these days, but this past Sunday, it was both Halloween and NFL game day. So while my dad was coming over to watch the game, my brother-in-law was also coming over to watch the game and go trick 'r treating with my wife and my kids. I, on the other hand, was assigned the duty that night of handing out candy; I, also, was dressed up as The Dude from Big Lebowski, so yes, there are White Russians in my tale, but they don't enter into this until later. Given that both my dad and my brother-in-law are scotch fans, and given that I'd just picked up the Laphroaig 2021 Cairdeas release, we were leading with that as the main feature of the day. Since I didn't want to deplete the whole bottle (and believe me, the three of us could have killed it, even at cask strength, that afternoon), I decided I'd got two pours of Cairdeas (measured out with shot glasses) to cover the first and second quarters. Then we'd switch to Green Spot Montelena to bring it down a notch but still remain high quality. My dad had brought along Glenmorangie 10, so we threw that in after the Montelena. Then, with a glass of Zaya 16 Rum thrown in for good measure, we moved to Lot No. 40 Rye. At this point, my dad tapped out. "If I have any more, I'm not going to be awake for when the trick 'r treaters come," he said. And I maybe should have taken heed, but hey, we were getting into now, and my brother-in-law was up for more, so, he asked, what else do you have? Now forgive me for being a novice when it comes to Japanese whisky here. It tends to be on the expensive side, so the only other I've had, prior to my experience with the Mars Iwai 45 was Suntory Toki. But of course, when I was down the ocean this summer and had access to a store with brands they don't sell in my region, I spotted the Mars Iwai 45, and though I didn't pick it up on my first trip (where I nabbed New Riff Bottled in Bond Rye, Compass Box Peat Monster, Busker Single Pot Still, and the store pick of EC Single Barrel), I noticed it, and a few days later, decided to run across the 9th St. Bridge (OCNJ is a dry town, so the Circle Liquors is across the bridge in Somers Point) and pick it up. After all, Mars Iwai 45 made the 2020 Whisky Advocate Top 20, and it was only $33.99, and I certainly wasn't going to find it back at home in my own state. So, I added it to my collection, and there it sat unopened, until Halloween 2021, when my brother-in-law said, "What else you got?" By this point in the evening, I wasn't going big in terms of opening one of the grand bottles I've been saving for occasions. After all, I'd already done some damage to my palate and wasn't in a position to rate something of high quality...you know, give it deep thought. So, I riffled through my closet where I keep my collection and settled on this one. And my brother-in-law was over the moon about it. And his excitement was infectious. "A vanilla bomb!" he called it. "Complex!" And I got in the game, "Definitely delicious! Nice and fruity!" And then when we'd had our glass, I put the bottle away and on top of all that whisky, started making White Russians while he left with my wife and his wife and my sister-in-law, who'd showed up, to form a posse and go off hunting for candy (don't worry, the rest of them weren't drinking so my children were, in fact safe). Well, cut to a few days later, and this is why you can't always trust initial impressions at a tasting when you've just have four other pours. Is the Iwai complex? Is it delicious? Is it a vanilla bomb? Yes and no. Tasting it again with my wits about me, I don't find it particularly complex. The Whisky Advocate write up described it as bourbon-like, but I'm not getting that at all here. Rather, if you blinded it and handed it to me, I'd say it's one of the finest blended Irish whiskies I'd ever tasted. Up there with Writer's Tears but better. Certainly better than your standard Tully or Jameson. And this is mainly because the predominant characteristics are vanilla and fruits like apple and pear. The reason I'd take it over most Irish blends is it doesn't have the harsh bite at the end Tully and Jameson have, and while I can enjoy the spiciness of Writer's Tears in the finish, that's $7 more a bottle than this. So, while I'm sitting here comparing this to Irish whiskies, I'm wondering how it compares to other Japanese whiskies. From what I've read, my understanding is that it's not necessarily characteristic of the Japanese style excepting in that it's delicate, soft on the palate. But if other Japanese whiskies are anything like this, I am looking forward to exploring. As for handing out candy, there were a handful of other dads who came through with their kids and understood what I was supposed to be. The kids didn't get it, nor would I expect them to. To most people, wearing my bathrobe, pajama pants, and a white undershirt with sunglasses on, I looked like I'd just rolled out of bed at 5 PM with a hangover and went to hand out candy as I was. When my wife got home, she took over. I went back inside, and though it was only 8 o'clock, I put on a Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episode and passed out on the couch. So, that was the last time I got drunk, and it was fun, and it raised the quality of this Iwai up a notch over where it actually falls, but hey, ain't nothing wrong with that. I had a hell of a good time. The Dude abides, man. The Dude abides....

N: Corn, honey, very ripe pear, and mango. The pear needs more: it's like taking a first bite of a fresh pear - first the skin as you approach, then the juice as the flesh gives way, and finally the open, aerated, already oxidizing bite. If I knew my pears better, I feel like I could name a specific type - Bartlett, maybe? Moving on: some garden herbs and black tea. Good bit of ethanol, but it's tolerable. 2nd pour brings a huge vanilla frosting note with a side of shaving cream. P: Super sweet corn, honey cake, butterscotch, toffee. Bit of astringency on the sides of the tongue. Caramel and honey candy when you draw air across it. Some dried fruit and maybe a dash of coffee. Finish is lightly spicy with cinnamon dark chocolate, honey roasted almond, and coffee cake. Surprisingly long finish too. This is a Japanese take on bourbon. Supposedly uses a classic wheated bourbon mash bill - what that means exactly in ratios, I don't know, but it does undeniably drink a bit like a wheater. In fact, couple of drops of water felt like it almost turned into Maker's. But it also has that classic Japanese character where the notes are precise, defined, nothing is muddled. And there's an underlying herbal nature that reminds a bit of young rye, but really feels more like tea, and that strikes me as a Japanese touch (influenced by some classic Scotches). Finally, the finish heat is far below average for a bourbon and that feels a bit like tuning for the Japanese market - just can't recall a particularly hot Japanese whisky I've had. Muted heat may be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your tastes. All in all, this is interesting and the price is fair for the quality and unique experience. Worth grabbing a bottle or two. _______ A bunch of regular Distiller reviewers are now chatting in real time. Please join: https://discord.gg/crpksjtkMu. (If the link is expired, post a comment and I can get a new one.)

This was not too high on my list, but I received it as a gift, so here we are. In doing some research, I’m happy to see that the Mars Shinshu Distillery is its own operation and this stuff isn’t just sourced. 70% corn, 30% malted barley NAS aged in bourbon barrels at 45% ABV. Let’s check it out. Nose: A little boozy. Malt and cereal grain. Baked apple-cinnamon literal. Brown sugar, vanilla, and toffee. Coconut and banana. Honey. Palate: Brown sugar oatmeal. Baked apple. Cinnamon. Sugar cookie, vanilla, and toffee. Plenty of malt. Honey, golden graham. Sandalwood. Canned pears. Dried apricot and some peach. Some ethanol but good flavor overall. Finish: Sugar cookie. Sandalwood. Caramel, vanilla, and toffee. Almond. Coconut. Cinnamon, white pepper, clove, and nutmeg. Relatively short finish, though it’s nice while it lasts. This has definitely exceeded my expectations. It’s clearly a young, boozy whisky, but it has a good amount of flavor. Sweet malty notes and some dried fruit makes for a nice profile. At $35, this is a fine deal for what I believe is some authentic Japanese whisky. It would definitely benefit from further aging before bottling, but as it is this is decent stuff. I have it at a 3.25, but after factoring VFM into the equation, I’m going with a 3.5/5.

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.

Well this is a delicate little gem. A lot like 45s ego after he lost the election. Very light in color, so light in color even though its from Japan, at first sight it won't offend The Proud Boys. So "stand back and stand by" while I tell you about this delicate little gem. The nose is light and refreshing sweet apple and berries, and a little bit of peanut brittle. Very gentle on the nose, what you would expect from its light color. The palate it also quite gentle, but I can pick up quite a bit of complexity. A smooth mouth feel with a long finish that starts with a dash of creaminess and a green caramel apple sucker, not the real thing. It then finishes pleasantly sweet and long with no burn or spice. Overall, I liked it, but I won't be adding it to my collection.

The palate of this whisky shifts towards a maltier personality, featuring wood dust, mint, and a slight malt funk at the outset. As it lingers, it unfolds into cereal notes along with unripe melon and lemon zest, presenting a spirit-forward profile with minimal wood cask influence, indicative of its younger age, marked by classic notes of fresh cut grass and wet hay. The mouthfeel is adequate but unremarkable, and the increased alcohol content to 45% ABV prevents it from feeling diluted, potentially enhancing its presence in cocktails. However, despite the higher ABV, the finish is unexpectedly short and can quickly become bitter, transitioning from the malty and fruity nuances of the nose and palate to flavors reminiscent of black tea and buttered popcorn.