Togouchi 12 Year Old is a whiskey particularly popular nowadays, especially in Asia and Europe. In the United States, however, it is not particularly easy to find. It is not easy today to come across Japanese products that have a declared age, and this is an exception. This Togouchi is aged for 12 years. Togouchi are matured inside an ex-railway tunnel, where the temperature, to which the barrels are exposed to, is constantly around 15 ° C.
Having said that, this product is a blend, made up of 40% Scotch single malt whisky and 60% Canadian grain whisky. The only thing Japanese is the aging itself, which occurs precisely in the land of the rising sun.
- Type: Blended malt
- Origin: Japan
- ABV: 40%
- Cask: ex-bourbon
- Age: 12 years
- Price: $95 – €85
- Details: –
TASTING NOTES – TOGOUCHI 12 YEAR OLD
Nose
Shades of solvent soon give way to notes of yellow fruit, where pear and banana particularly stand out. Then, nutmeg and lastly, hints of caramel and intense notes of lemon zest.
Palate
It is less broad and interesting than the nose. Wood and smoky notes are perceptible, which are followed by spices and a hint of caramel, the latter almost imperceptible.
Finish
Of medium persistence. The smoky aromas and spices are confirmed. Then, hints of lemon zest.
Overall, the Togouchi 12 Year Old is a simple and contained Japanese whiskey, which is particularly easy to appreciate, also thanks to the contained complexity. Despite the 12 years of this whiskey, the age is not particularly perceptible, due to a flavor profile with a rather limited complexity.
Nowadays it is not easy to come across products made in Japan that exhibit explicit aging, as most of the novelties are NAS (without age indications) and the best known products matured for over 10 years or more, are difficult to find and particularly inflated in price. As mentioned in the introduction, this product cannot be considered a real Japanese whiskey, due to the fact that the blend is made with whiskey not distilled in Japan.
Rating: 82