The Matsui – Full Proof Mizunara Single Cask 70 CL 58%
Single Malt Japanese Whisky
Passionately created by Kurayoshi Distillery, this masterpiece is a Japanese single malt whiskey matured in a single Mizunara cask. Mizunara oak barrels are known for their rarity because Mizunara oak, due to its dense fibers, is difficult to process into barrels. The alcohols matured in this type of oak acquire unique, unmistakable aromas. This whiskey is also matured in Tottori Prefecture in a natural environment where the temperature changes significantly from one season to the next. It is then adjusted to an alcohol content of 58% vol with high-quality natural spring water from Mount Daisen.
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!
