Wow, thanks for all the great information Duke787.
I spent some time today looking at NH outbound through ORD and JAL return.
I like the idea of going through ORD outbound for Polaris Lounge access. Tough part is 110K awards are fly DEN-ORD day 1, ORD-NRT day 2, and arrive Day 3 in Tokyo because of time difference. One benefit would be additional time in lounge prior to NRT flight. Also could see how early to get into ORD day 1 and overnight there.
I'm not overly concerned about the lack of F on the domestic leg. DEN-ORD is 2 hours so certainly acceptable to have the F on the ORD-NRT portion.
As to the whiskey question, I'm a huge fan of whiskey and already noticed those options on both NH and JAL. Will certainly be taking advantage of the offerings.