Article originally appears at Forbes
Chivas Regal, a division of Pernod-Ricard, is releasing in the United States the first, blended Scotch whisky that has been partially finished in casks of rare, Japanese mizunara oak. The whisky was first released in Japan in October 2014. It has since been rolled out elsewhere, and is now available in the US. The expression appears to be based on the 12 YO Chivas Regal expression in the Chivas core range.
Mizunara oak, typically called Japanese oak, has been used for aging Japanese whiskies since about 1930. During the Second World War, Japanese whisky makers were unable to source supplies of European or American white oak, so they turned to a native oak variety instead. The term is derived from mizu (water) and nara (oak).
The “oak” is actually two different species; Quercus mongolica or Mongolian oak and Quercus crispula or Japanese oak. Both types of wood are utilized in barrel making. Mongolian oak is quite rare and slow growing. It takes about 300 years before a tree can be used to fashion barrels, compared to 100 years for the American white oak. Quercus crispula is slightly faster growing and can produce a useable tree after about 200 years.
Neither species grows straight, and both tend to have a lot of knot holes. A typical 100-year-old American white oak trunk will yield between 20% and 25% of its trunk into useable barrel staves. The yield from both Japanese and Mongolian oak is less than 10%.
Moreover, the oak wood tends to be soft and porous. Barrels made from it are prone to leaking and easily damaged. A new barrel of “mizunara oak” from Hokkaido, the region considered to produce the best quality wood, costs around $7,000 per barrel, almost 20 times the cost of a typical American bourbon barrel.
The wood typically imparts aromas and flavors of sandalwood and a kind of Japanese incense called kara to maturing whisky. Kara incense is made from the resin impregnated heartwood of the Aquilaria tree.
Compared to American and European oak species, Japanese oak is particularly high in trans-oak lactones and vanillins. These lactones, when dissolved in alcohol, can impart very strong coconut aromas, as well as notes of exotic spices.
Bowmore was the first Scottish distillery to age its whisky in casks made from mizunara oak. The original Bowmore Mizunara Oak Finish was a blend of Bowmore whiskies aged 12 to 18 years, which had been finished for a few months in specialty made casks crafted from mizunara wood.
On a recent visit to Bowmore, however, I did notice additional casks of Bowmore Mizunara Cask Whisky being matured and was told that this whisky would remain in those casks for several years, rather than months.
In Japan, mizunara casks are typically puncheon size, roughly 70 to 100 gallons, about one-third to one-half the size of an ex-bourbon cask
There have been a number of other distillers that have finished their whiskies in mizunara casks. Glendalough, an Irish craft distillery, released a 13 YO, Cooley sourced single malt whiskey that was finished for a period of 6 to 12 months in mizunara casks.
Bainbridge Organic Distillers, a craft distiller on Bainbridge Island, Washington, released a single grain whiskey called Yama, which had been exclusively matured in small, 10- and 15-gallon barrels of Quercus crispula.
Finishing whisky in mizunara casks has not been without some controversy. Many Japanese distillers argue that it takes at least 15 years of maturation in mizunara casks for the influence of the wood to truly manifest itself. Using mizunara casks to finish a whisky is dismissed as little more than a marketing gimmick.
Without question the full impact of mizunara cask maturation is far more evident in say the Suntory Yamasaki 18 Mizunara Cask, with its pronounced coconut and tropical fruit notes, than it is in whiskies that have just been finished in mizunara casks. Still, mizunara cask finishes do appear to impart some of the woods characteristic aromas and flavors.
Chivas Regal, Mizunara Scotch Whisky, 40% ABV, 750 ml, $45
The color is a rich gold. On the nose, there are notes of pear and peach, along with some cotton candy, followed by some caramel and vanilla. There are some dried fruit notes of raisin and fig, along with a bit of digestives. On the palate, the whisky is smooth and creamy, with a distinctive honey sweet note. There are flavors of stone and tropical fruit, a hint of creamy vanilla, along with some cinnamon and toasted wood. There is some sherry influence that becomes more pronounced as the whisky opens up. The finish is medium length, sweet and features peach, tropical fruit and a hint of licorice and lingering spice notes of pepper, cinnamon and a bit of clove.
This is an excellent whisky. Its Chivas DNA, however, is unmistakable. It shares the sweetness, fruitiness and creamy character typical of its Chivas relations. It does seem a bit spicier, although it is hard to tell whether that is the influence of the mizunara finish. On the whole, the mizunara influence is pretty subtle. The pronounced coconut notes typical of mizunara matured whisky are lacking. Still, it’s worth a taste, especially when tasted blind against the regular 12 YO.
