Who would say no to a Kanosuke single cask? Like, really.

And so of course we've got a Pacific Ocean collaboration between K&L Wines from the US and Acorn from Japan, for a Kanosuke single cask (Cask #18014) that's aged for 5 years and 5 months, having spent 33 months in ex-Bourbon barrel and 32 months in an ex-Cognac cask.

This is bottled at cask strength of 56% ABV, and has a total outturn of 530 bottles.

It features a very gorgeous Japanese woodcut print from Japanese art master Suzuki Harunobu and is titled Urashima Taro, which is inspired by a collection of Japanese short stories.

The subject matter of the painting focuses on a scene from the fairytale of a young fisherman, Urashima Taro, who's caught a long-tailed turtle, which itself is a symbol of longevity. He nevertheless decides to return it to sea, and the following day, Taro is met with a maiden who appears in a boat to ask for help reaching home. After a long journey, they finally reach the Dragon King's palace under the sea. In her appreciation, the young maiden, who as it turns out is an incarnation of the turtle that was earlier released, asks Taro to marry her and he does.

Their marriage nevertheless lasts only three years after which Taro decides to head back to his village. Upon his parting, the maiden gives Taro a box but tells him he must not open it. When he returns to his village, he finds that he has in fact been gone for 700 years! In his distress he opens the box which releases a violet cloud that transforms him into an old man upon which he is vanquished instantly. His spirit nevertheless becomes a crane, where he then flies off to return to his maiden for all of eternity.

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team