Korea's first single malt whisky is ready to head to the US!

Three Societies Distillery, so named for Korean-American founder Bryan Do and Scottish Master Distiller's tri-cultural heritage, is finally seeing their first single malt core release - Ki One, ready for export.

Leading up to their core release, the distillery brought fans along the journey with three inaugural early releases - the Ki One Tiger, Unicorn and Eagle editions. Each release showcased the intermediate effect of Korea's seasons on the ageing whisky, with each release several months more aged than the previous, allowing fans to taste the difference.

| Read: Korea’s First Single Malt, Three Societies Distillery

Now, the first Ki One core release is finally ready, with Batch 1 aged in Virgin American Oak casks, and bottled at 40% ABV in a standard 700ml bottle for the first time, as early editions came in 200ml bottles.

"We set out to create a world-class single malt whisky with a unique Korean twist, During our research, we were inspired by the dynamic flavors in our whisky. We think we have succeeded as Ki One has rich oak and caramel and vanilla aroma, with notes of banana, peach in the taste, and a long Korean spicy finish. This inaugural batch was matured in virgin American oak at Char 3 and was not chill filtered nor colored."

- Master Distiller and Blender, Andrew Shand

Distilled, matured and bottled by Three Societies Distillery, Gyeonggido, South Korea

(Image Source: Three Societies) 

Our Thoughts

It's incredibly exciting to see Korea's first single malt break ground on their inaugural core release, giving founder Bryan Do's inspiring story overcoming Korea's incredibly tough tax laws on whisky production, as well as having followed along all three early releases from the distillery, which were very promising. 

From the three early releases - the Tiger, Unicorn and Eagle, the common theme was an intensely flavorful whisky full of rich honey, butterscotch and fruitiness with stone and orchard fruits of peach, apricots and plums. They certainly showcased how the large fluctuations and humid climate of South Korea has made its mark on the whisky, giving us a true taste of Korea's terroir and locality.

| Read: [Reviewed] Three Societies, Ki One “Tiger” Edition Korean Single Malt, 56.2% ABV

| Read: [Reviewed] Three Societies, Ki One "Unicorn" Edition Korean Single Malt, 56.6% ABV

| Read: [Reviewed] Three Societies, Ki One "Eagle" Edition Korean Single Malt, 56.6% ABV

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team