Oct 18, 2019, 5:22 pm
Last edit by: armagebedar
This thread is about where to find whiskey in Japan. Extended discussion about where to find Japanese whiskey elsewhere is off topic and will be removed.
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Consolidated "Buy Whiskey in Japan" thread (was: Haneda/Narita Duty Free Whiskey)
Nov 12, 2018, 10:33 pm
#993
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: ATL
Programs: DL DM, UA Plat, HH
Posts: 103
Went to the Yamazaki distillery this week with a group of 4. Two of us had the “free” tour reservations but they let all of us in with a smile. Tour was short, tasting was long
. There was nothing to buy as all single cask bottles were sold out for the day (2pm), eve the distillery special. Here is the qr code we could scan for the tasting menu options:
Nov 13, 2018, 9:14 pm
#995
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: ATL
Programs: DL DM, UA Plat, HH
Posts: 103
Nov 14, 2018, 9:11 am
#996
Join Date: Oct 2018
Posts: 17
When I was at the distillery last week, I had the following:
Yamazaki flight - NAS, 12, 18 for Y900
Hakushu 18 for Y600
Hibiki 21 for Y600
Raw whisky component tastings Y100 each (I had two or three, the best was the sherry)
The distillery was completely cleared out except for a few bottles of The Chita that were available everywhere. Additionally, NGO Duty Free was a complete bust. Only Fujisanroku. There was one bottle of Hibiki 21 on display, but they said that the box was empty and they were sold out (for Y50,000).
I was only able to find a bit of Wild Turkey 8, Ezra Brooks 7 (for Y2,200, that's $14 cheaper than Michigan pricing), and Blanton's Gold. No Japanese whisky made it home with me other than a few minis of Suntory 10 Special Reserve.
Yamazaki flight - NAS, 12, 18 for Y900
Hakushu 18 for Y600
Hibiki 21 for Y600
Raw whisky component tastings Y100 each (I had two or three, the best was the sherry)
The distillery was completely cleared out except for a few bottles of The Chita that were available everywhere. Additionally, NGO Duty Free was a complete bust. Only Fujisanroku. There was one bottle of Hibiki 21 on display, but they said that the box was empty and they were sold out (for Y50,000).
I was only able to find a bit of Wild Turkey 8, Ezra Brooks 7 (for Y2,200, that's $14 cheaper than Michigan pricing), and Blanton's Gold. No Japanese whisky made it home with me other than a few minis of Suntory 10 Special Reserve.
Nov 15, 2018, 12:14 am
#997
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: SJC
Programs: AA 2MM PLT, HH Gold, Marriott Silver
Posts: 612
I was at the distillery this past Tuesday, for the last tour of the day (14:50). A caution to anyone else taking that tour - you'll only have ~~15 minutes afterwards at the tasting bar, which closes at 16:30, and not much more than that at the gift shop, which closes at 16:45. The other challenge to the last tour is that, while they had the distillery-only bottling available before our tour, it was sold out by the time we finished.
The tour itself was quite interesting, as was the tasting afterwards. Prices as above - generally the youngest age statement (i.e. Yamazaki 12) was 200Yen, the 2nd oldest (Yamazaki 18, Hakushu 18, Hibiki 21) was 600Yen, and the oldest (Yamazaki 25, Hakushu 25, Hibiki 30) was 2,900Yen. Note that they were not pouring any of the discontinued bottlings: Hibiki 12 and 17, Hakushu 12. There were 4 non-Japanese speakers on my tour, and interesting we each separately ordered the "Long Matured Whisky Set" (18/18/21) for tasting. My personal preference was the Hakushu 18, but it doesn't have a very long finish - the Yamazaki tempered by just a bit of water (it has a bit of an alcohol burn) might work best.
On the walk back from Arishayama yesterday, I stopped in a small shop which had Hibiki 12/17/21 all in stock - each just over 100k Yen! The 17 was priced fractionally lower than the 12, but at those prices . . .
The tour itself was quite interesting, as was the tasting afterwards. Prices as above - generally the youngest age statement (i.e. Yamazaki 12) was 200Yen, the 2nd oldest (Yamazaki 18, Hakushu 18, Hibiki 21) was 600Yen, and the oldest (Yamazaki 25, Hakushu 25, Hibiki 30) was 2,900Yen. Note that they were not pouring any of the discontinued bottlings: Hibiki 12 and 17, Hakushu 12. There were 4 non-Japanese speakers on my tour, and interesting we each separately ordered the "Long Matured Whisky Set" (18/18/21) for tasting. My personal preference was the Hakushu 18, but it doesn't have a very long finish - the Yamazaki tempered by just a bit of water (it has a bit of an alcohol burn) might work best.
On the walk back from Arishayama yesterday, I stopped in a small shop which had Hibiki 12/17/21 all in stock - each just over 100k Yen! The 17 was priced fractionally lower than the 12, but at those prices . . .
Nov 18, 2018, 7:27 pm
#999
Join Date: Nov 2018
Programs: CX DM, SingAir, Hyatt
Posts: 41
Has anyone seen the Hibiki 30 available at any Japanese airports recently? Do they still even display? (with sold out sign I assume). Was just at KIX and only had the Hibiki 21, Yama 18 and Hakushu 18 on display (with sold out signs).
Nov 19, 2018, 1:55 pm
#1000
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: TYO
Programs: Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 1,744
Yes, someone I know purchased one at Haneda two weeks ago. They generally only put out one per month. Unless you know someone working at the airport, good luck.
Nov 21, 2018, 9:59 pm
#1003
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Pacific Wonderland
Programs: ʙᴏɴᴠo̱ʏ Au, IHG Au, HH Dia, Nexus, Pilot FlyingJ Preferred
Posts: 5,336