Nikka Single Malt Yoichi Limited Edition 2019 and Single Malt Miyagikyo Limited Edition 2019

The moment the first drop of whisky came off the still at Miyagikyo Distillery was an intense one. Founder Masataka Taketsuru, who is considered the Father of Japanese Whisky, tasted the first drop and whispered under his breath, “no…” – frightening everyone around him! But what he meant was, “No, it’s completely different from Yoichi.” And that was a good thing. Built in 1969, Miyagikyo Distillery located near Sendai in Japan’s Miyagi prefecture was the realization of Taketsuru’s second distillery – one that would be distinctive from his first, Yoichi, in Hokkaido.

 

Today, Nikka celebrates Miyagikyo by releasing two limited edition single malts that mark the 50^th anniversary of the Miyagikyo Distillery and how it created a distinctive counterpoint to Yoichi. Housed in frosted-black bottles, Single Malt Miyagikyo Limited Edition 2019 and Single Malt Yoichi Limited Edition 2019 will each retail for $3,500 in the U.S., with only 70 bottles of each available. Each expression is a composition of whiskies from the past five – 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. In the case of the Miyagikyo expression, the single malt contains some of the very first whisky coming out of the distillery. 

 

While Yoichi Distillery is located near the sea, producing rich, peaty whiskies, Miyagikyo is surrounded  by  mountains  and  sandwiched  between  two  fresh  water  rivers,  providing  excellent  humidity  and  air  quality conditions for soft and mild malt; it is also home to two Coffey stills. To reflect the distinctive environments of the two distilleries, each limited edition features a nod to its home – the background design of Yoichi denotes the sea, while the Miyagikyo expression is a nod to mountains.

 

Single Malt Yoichi Limited Edition 2019

(750ml; 48% ABV; $3,500  SRP; 70 bottles)

Nose:    Sweetness of butter and maple-syrup coated pancakes, oaky vanilla, and peatiness of the seashore

Palate:  Bitter dark chocolate, fragrant barley body, peat smoke

Finish:  Woodiness of oak, bright orange peel, trailing strong peat

 

Single Malt Miyagikyo Limited Edition 2019

(750ml; 48% ABV; $3,500  SRP; 70 bottles)

Nose:    Sweetness from deep, long-matured sherry, richness of pound cake, herbal fragrance like lavender honey

Palate:  Sherry-sweet body, soft depth of a cask, rich and mellow

Finish:  Bitter and sweet flavor, smoothness of cashews with a faint peaty trail

 

For more information about Nikka in the U.S., visit www.HotalingandCo.com.