Hakushu, Paul Rusch, 120th anniversary, 053/120, Suntory, Bourbon Barrel, 58% abv.

This is a very special and very rare 2017 Hakushu release. It is considered one of three 28th Kiyosato Field Ballet anniversary releases, with the other two being a Hanyu and Kawasaki blend and a Maker's Mark Private Select release. Unlike other Kiyosato Field Ballet releases, I have never seen this bottle outside of bars. But who was Paul Rusch and why is he on this special bottle? Paul Rusch (1897-1979) was a missionary from Kentucky that settled down in Kiyosato and significanlty helped in the post-war development of the area. His impact still resonates with the Kiyosato locals and there is even a festival in his honor every October!

Nose: intense coconuts and vanilla. Beautiful.  Is this Hakushu? No smoke. Seems more like a grain to me.

Palate: very sweet, vanilla, has a sharp back palate that also contains pineapple flavors. With more sips, the pineapple flavors really come out. It's a little bit like eating pineapple-coconut ice cream with some old Cambus grain whisky in there. No smoke.

Finish: long, vanilla, pineapple. No smoke here either.

The nose is one of the most beautiful I've ever smelt. The flavor profile is soooo unlike Hakushu, and exceeds Ichiro's Malt/Hanyu in terms of that sweet vanilla, coconut, pineapple, toast flavor profile. It feels like a super grain. I am wondering if my previous drinks muted the presence of smoke as several tasters have mentioned smoke in several tasting phases. Overall, it's definitely unique and different. So I'm going to associate this delightful peculiarity to being significantly aged in mizunara or mizunara related casks.

Grade: A

Japanwhiskytours, Brian Cullen, 2018 whisky of the year
Whisky bible 2019, Jim Murray, Japanese whisky of the year

Image courtesy of Eric Yee.

Eric Yee

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