On January 27, 2018, Yamazaki's 50-year single malt whisky was auctioned at Sotheby's Hong Kong for HK$2,337,000, setting a new world auction record for a single bottle of Japanese whisky. Today, Japanese whisky has become so hot that it frequently surpasses its Scottish predecessors in international whisky awards, such as the 2012 World Whisky Contest, Suntory's Yamazaki 25 years was selected as the world's best pure malt whisky.
Today, Wikipedia will take you to an in-depth understanding of Yamazaki whisky and appreciate the unique charm of Yamazaki whisky.
1. Japanese whisky that competes with Scotch whisky
The "Black Ship" in 1853 gave the Japanese their first exposure to whisky. Under pressure from the U.S. Navy's East India Fleet, Japan was forced to open its country. Later, whisky became a fashionable commodity as an "imported product". Japan's earliest "domestic whisky" is an imitation of food alcohol, coloring, spices and other blends.
The real Japanese whisky is brewed thanks to Nobujiro Torii and Masataka Takezuru.
In 1918, Masataka Takezuru studied whisky making techniques in Scotland with the patronage of Torii, and remained in Torii's distillery after completing his studies. However, due to differences in winemaking concepts, the two gradually parted ways. Torii believes that there are differences in innate preferences between Easterners and Westerners, so Japanese whisky should be adjusted in terms of brewing and blending, while Taketsuru adheres to the traditional Scottish method of making and continues to improve the existing equipment and technology.
In 1923, Nobujiro Torii established Japan's first whisky distillery, yamazaki Distillery, in the yamazaki suburb of southwestern Kyoto, and gradually developed it into the well-known Suntory Company.
In 1934, Takezuru also founded the Yoichi Distillery factory in Yushi, with its own brand: Nikka (Nichiko). Since then, there have been two different varieties of whisky in the Japanese market: the Suntory Company,which is sweet and soft in line with the Asian population (with three whisky brands yamazaki, Shirashu and Xiang) and the Nichiko company (with three series of bamboo cranes, Yuichi and Miyagi Gorge) that focuses on traditional Scottish craftsmanship.
Although Japanese whisky belongs to the Scotch whisky type, the production also adopts the traditional crafts and equipment of Scotland, importing peat from the United Kingdom for smoked malt, importing white oak barrels from the United States for wine storage, and even importing a certain amount of Scottish malt whisky original wine from the United Kingdom, exclusively for blending with self-produced whiskey.
However, with the development of Japanese whisky, it has also matured the characteristics of Japan, and it is more and more recognized internationally, and its reputation can sometimes even surpass Scotch whisky.
2. Spanning 3 Centuries: The Legendary History of Suntory Holdings Limited
We know that Yamazaki Distillery belongs to Suntory Holdings Limited, a Group of Japanese brewing and distilling companies headquartered at No. 1 Ban 40, Dojimahama 2-Chome, Kita-ku, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture.
Founded in 1899, it is one of Japan's oldest alcoholic beverage companies, producing whiskies that are also known worldwide and are one of the world's largest manufacturers of distilled beverages. In addition to alcoholic beverages, Suntory's business has also expanded into other areas, diversifying internationally.
Suntory was founded by Torii Shinjirō, who opened the Torii Shōten shop in Osaka on February 1, 1899, selling imported wines. In 1907, the store began selling Akadama Port wines. In 1921 the Torii shop became the Kotobukiya Company to further expand its business. In 1923, Torii built Japan's first malt whisky distillery, the Yamazaki Distillery, which began production in December 1924.
During World War II, Suya was forced to stop developing new products. In 1946, Shouya reissued Torres whiskey, which sold well after the war. In 1963, Shouya changed its name to the whisky it produced, Suntory. In the same year, the Musashino Brewery began producing Suntory beer. In 1997, the company became the sole bottler, distributor and licensee of PepsiCo products in Japan. On April 1, 2009, Suntory became a joint-stock company with the full name of Suntory Holdings Limited.
Third, the misty wonderland - Yamazaki Whisky Distillery
Located between Osaka and Kyoto, the Yamazaki Distillery was chosen by winemaker Masataka Taketsuru based on the purity of the local water, which is misty and humid all year round.
The direct train from Kyoto takes approximately 30 minutes, and the journey from Osaka is slightly longer, and the distillery also offers audiovisual guides in English and French.
The Yamazaki Distillery adheres to the traditional brewing process and makes extensive use of barrel fermentation tanks. This insistence is to make lactic acid bacteria can fully play a role and improve the overall flavor of the original wine. In 1987 and 1988, yamazaki distillery added 2 new direct-fire distillers and 8 barrel fermentation tanks to revive the traditional methods used less and less used by Scottish distilleries.
Direct fire heating distiller, as the name suggests, is direct heating distillation, so the temperature and fire power are very difficult to grasp, but the whiskey distilled by the direct fire distiller is often thicker, which is incomparable to the original wine produced by the steam distiller. The Yamazaki Distillery now has 12 models of distillers that can distill a wide variety of original sake and provide basic malt originals for Suntory's blended whiskies.
Thanks to the brewing process of the Yamazaki Distillery, Yamazaki whisky is well known both nationally and internationally.
Yamazaki: After being named "the world's first whisky" by the authoritative Whisky Bible, his value soared.
In recent years, Yamazaki whisky has once again attracted global attention. That's because, more recently, the leading critic of whisky, Jim Murray, named The Yamazaki's 2013 Shirley Barrel Special Edition "World's First Whisky" in his annually updated book Whisky Bible.
After receiving such an honor, Yamazaki whisky was in short supply in the market, and Luoyang paper was expensive for a while, but it was still difficult to find a wine. Due to the scarcity of its original liquor and other scarcity, experts predict that the price of Yamazaki whisky will continue to rise.
Yamazaki: Set a new record for the world's most expensive Japanese whiskey auction
On January 27, 2018, the total auction turnover of Sotheby's "Rare Wines" at Sotheby's Auction Company in Hong Kong, China reached HK$47,962,620.
It is said that the competition on the spot is fierce, and the telephone and the bidders present have successively raised prices, and Yamazaki's 50-year price has quickly exceeded one million yuan. In the end, the whisky was acquired by a buyer who called for a price.
Yamazaki: A blue chip stock in whisky, the market price is rising, and the appreciation potential is endless
In the field of buying alcohol, there are also blue chips, potential stocks and junk stocks. The famous blue chips in the whisky circle are Macallan in Scotland and Yamazaki in Japan. Because they are the most famous, excellent sales performance, better flavor, and active trading in the second-hand market. Also because of the above advantages, their initial price is also high, the short-term appreciation space is not large, suitable for long-term holding.
At the end of January this year, a friend traveled to Japan and found that most of the Yamazaki whiskies in many supermarkets and liquor stores had been sold. That's the power of blue-chip stocks.
Fourth, if you want to drink Yamazaki, you must know the price of his wine
Having said all this about Yamazaki whisky, can't wait to collect a few Yamazaki whiskies? Don't worry, the following encyclopedia jun has listed several masterpieces of Yamazaki whisky for everyone to choose from.
1. Yamazaki 1923 Single Malt Whisky
The Yamazaki 1923 Single Malt Whisky
This wine replaces Yamazaki for 10 years as the new entry-level model, also known as New Yamazaki.
Released in spring 2014, this wine is one of two Collector's Edition single malt whiskies from Suntory, Japan. Single malt whisky from the Yamazaki distillery is imbued with cranberry fruit aromas, a fragrance derived from ripe whiskies in Bordeaux wine barrels and sherry barrels. The single malt of this wine is ripened by Mizunara barrels, adding to the aroma of oak.
2. Yamazaki 10-year single malt whisky
The Yamazaki 10 Years Old Single Malt Whisky
This wine is made from original malt wines that are more than 10 years old, mainly from North American white oak barrels.
During the Great Depression of the 1990s, Suntory did not stop production at the distillery, but it carried out a large-scale reduction in production, resulting in a serious shortage of original wine stocks today, and it is impossible to continue to launch enough vintage wines. As a result, in 2014, Yamazaki was discontinued for 10 years due to a shortage of original sake, and was subsequently replaced by Yamazaki Vintageless Whisky.
3. Yamazaki whisky 12 years single malt whisky
The Yamazaki 12 Years Old Single Malt Whisky
Born in 1984 at the Yamazaki Distillery, this whisky is Japan's first and most iconic single-wheat whisky.
It is brewed from the original malt wine that has been carefully selected for more than 12 years, with an alcohol content of 43%, showing a golden and thick color, with a unique aroma of wheat and wood resin in wooden barrels, with a clear and delicate taste and a long aftertaste.
In 2002, the whisky won the ISC International Wine Competition Gold Medal award, which was widely recognized by international consumers.
4. Yamazaki whisky 18 years single malt whisky
The Yamazaki 18 Year Old Single Malt Whisky
The whisky won both gold at the 2007 International Spirits Competition (IWSC) and the 2005 San Francisco Worldv Spirit Competition (SFWSC).
The pre-tax price of this whisky at WS has risen from $1,340 in 2014 to $4,301 today, an increase of 221%. In recent months, its ranking in WS search has risen from 526th to 72nd.
This 18-year-old single wheat yamazaki is ripened in a water drum (Mizunara) and is produced by the hands of Master Fuku and Shinji. The result is a charming "oriental charm", a mellow whisky with a sweet aroma, a ripe fruit, a heavy and thick woody atmosphere, and a deep aftertaste.
5. Yamazaki 25 years single malt whisky
The Yamazaki 25 Years Old Single Malt Whisky
To commemorate Suntory's 100th anniversary, Yamazaki was released and listed in 1999. Produced in just over 1,000 bottles a year, the original wine is ripened in sherry barrels and has been brewed for 25 years, with a luscious aroma and a mellow and charming taste that is hard to forget.
In 2012, the wine won the WWA World's Best Single Malt Whisky Award for the second time for Yamazaki.
6. Yamazaki 1984 single malt whisky
The Yamazaki 1984 Single Malt Whisky
Introduced in 2009 by Yamazaki, this rare and precious vintage is a 2,500 bottle of the distillery's original 1984 barrel.
In 2011, the wine won Yamazaki's title of "World's Best Single Malt Whisky" with the highest gold content in WWA for the first time.
7. Yamazaki 35 years single malt whisky
The Yamazaki 35 Years Old Single Malt Whisky
Launched in 2006, the wine is blended in a high vintage original wine aged at Yamazaki Distillery from 1966 to 1970, blended with traditional straight-barrel distillers and matured in a special 90-litre sherry barrel.
8. Yamazaki 50 years of single malt whisky
The Yamazaki 50 Years Old Single Malt Whisky
The Yamazaki 50-year single malt whisky mentioned at the beginning of the article is the third edition of Yamazaki's 50 years released in 2011, with a limited edition of 150 sticks and an alcohol content of 57%.
Yamazaki's 50-year-old original wine, which is ripe in water gulls, is reddish in color and smells of sandalwood and floral, and is the first 50-year-old single malt whisky released in Japan.
The first and second editions of Yamazaki 50 years were released in 2005 and 2007, respectively, and each edition is limited to 50 sticks, which is more precious than the third edition, with an alcohol content of 54% and 53% respectively.
Drinkers share
Yamazaki's sake is temporarily introduced here, it may not be complete, I hope you will forgive me. If you have any questions about Yamazaki whisky, you can leave a comment below.