Did the ¥3,000 Yamazaki tour yesterday. We have entered a total of 20 dates for the lottery over the last few month and have only had one hit, so don't expect to score immediately.

The tour content is almost identical to last time (pre-renewal). The "English" tour just means you listen to the English audio and are grouped with a bunch of non-Japanese, though the guide was able to answer some questions with the help of her phone.

The component tasting was fun as usually, with 4 small samples (White Oak, Mizunara, WIne Cask and Yamazaki) plus a larger pour of Yamazaki they suggest to use as a highball. A couple snacks are also included.
A real bonus is the fact they allow you to buy one 700ml bottle of Yamazaki after the tasting for ¥5,000.

In the gift shop, the only Yamazaki they had was the 180ml, packed with either bacon or chocolate, for ¥3,000. No Hakushu/Hibiki of course.

The new layout of the tasting room is a nice improvement. More room overall. Mostly standing but with a couple couch-like seats. No outside seating, unlike before.

There are two registers and two more women pouring, so pretty efficient. Some prices have gone up; I think Hibiki 30 was ¥3,000 a year or two ago. Plenty of nice pours for ¥400 and under though. Yamazaki Limited 2023 was just ¥300.

Although the limit stated is 6 per person, I ended up having 12 over 2 hours. Sounds like a lot, but these are just 15ml pours.

The women working the counter were quite friendly and a couple spoke excellent English. One came by our table and chatted for about 5 minutes. Another said she conducts the Premium tour in English. I think they have been trained to engage with the customers (or at least the foreign customers), which is a change from the last 3 times I have been there (over a 15 year period).