The Matsui Peated is a Japanese single malt whisky, released by one of the brand new stars on the Japanese whiskey scene: Kurayoshi Distillery. This variant is made from peat-smoked malt. After distillation, it is aged for 3 years in American oak casks, and finally bottled at 48% alcohol. The label features the Japanese artist Hokusai’s famous wave.
Colour: Amber.
Scent: Light peat smoke, malty notes and vanilla.
Tasting notes: Creamy with notes of butter biscuits, vanilla and a slightly smoky element with ash and peat.
Serving suggestion: Should be enjoyed neat.
Kurayoshi Distillery is located at the foot of Mt. The Daisen in Tottori, Japan. The location was chosen because of the good spring water, which Kurayoshi believes is one of the most essential parts of a good whisky, but also because of the climate. The temperature fluctuates a lot, and this causes a greater interaction between the spirit and the cask – therefore it is believed that the whiskey “ripens” faster than, for example, in Scotland. A large number of different types of casks are used, e.g. of the Japanese oak type, mizunara, but also casks made of e.g. cherry wood, wine casks and sherry casks.
The distillery is owned by the company Matsui Shuzo, which has been making shochu since 1910! They only got the license for whiskey production in 2015, in the wake of a huge whiskey boom in Japan, and in 2018 Matsui got another license for a distillery in Baba, Tottori.
In the 2020 edition of Jim Murray’s “Whisky Bible”, The Matsui Mizunara Cask was named Japanese Single Malt of the Year!
