The days are long, but the years are short.

That's how the saying goes - that is to mean that what might feel taxing today, will in fact pass quickly in the broader picture. And by extension, even if the day to day may feel small in terms of actions or results, they do in fact quickly add up to tremendous results when you take a step back. After all, we can only live as fast or as slow as one day at a time, not unlike however much faster or slower whisky can age.

Now we've had the privilege to follow South Korea's Craftbros' whisky story quite literally from the beginning - it's not everyday that you get to watch firsthand a distillery emerge, much less one that is in part responsible for pioneering a whole country's rising whisky scene - from having been fans of their hoppy IPA craft beers to their first newborn whisky's and the several interim releases since. Over these past two years, each release has somehow found a way to impress us both in terms of its boldness in pursuing new styles and flavours, as well as its far reaching breadth in collaborating with everyone from local peers to cult Japanese distillers and even going all the way to Sweden, and then of course the incredible quality we've gotten to witness already.

But now, with the third in their collaborative friendship JEGI series (so named after the popular but simple South Korean children's toy that often brings together friends to play with each other), we inch ever closer to Craftbros finally arriving at their long awaited milestone (indicated for Fall 2026) - of having their very own full fledged 3 year old South Korean single malt whisky. Even though Craftbros has successfully established and operated a highly regarded craft brewery for over a decade now, it's clear that they've brought an evergreen enthusiasm to their new whisky venture, and have taken painstaking efforts to not just ensure that they are able to achieve a high quality right out of the gate, but to also lay down the groundwork these three years to allow themselves a wide palette to play with into the future - because making whisky takes years! - as well as making sure that their name gets out there through numerous great collaborations. They've filled a wide variety of casks, seriously stretched and flexed their blending muscles by working with a whole range of whiskies from around the world and even local Korean liquors such as cask aged Soju's, and have even farmed local Korean Gimpo barley and utilised local Korean oak!

Farming local Gimpo barley.

It's tremendously impressive and it's clear that they've used every single day of this three year wait to do everything they can to don the markings of future success - and so any day now, that announcement will hit, and we absolutely can't wait.

But whilst we continue to wait, we have of course something very exciting as well on hand, and that's the third instalment of the JEGI series that features a fresh collaboration with cult Japanese craft whisky distillery Saburomaru and then also a really innovative second collaboration with local Korean cask aged Soju maker Danong Bio (Soorok)!

Let's dig into them!

Craftbros' distiller Eddie (right), with Saburomaru Distillery's distiller Takahiko Inagaki.

"The greatest benefit of the JEGI Collaboration Double Malt Whisky Project with Japan’s Saburomaru Distillery was that we were able to learn a great deal from one another and grow together. Whether it was when the President (Takahiko Inagaki) and staff of Saburomaru Distillery visited our distillery, or when we traveled to Saburomaru to conduct blending work, we were able to learn the deep expertise of a more established distillery through countless questions and conversations. Unlike when we first started the distillery, having operated for nearly three years now, we’ve gained a broader perspective, and as a result, we’ve become better able to identify areas where we can learn."

This collaboration with Saburomaru of course is of great excitement for us, given that we've followed Saburomaru Distillery for some time now and have even put forth that Inagaki-san whilst being relatively young within the ranks of Japanese whisky blenders, is in fact bringing much needed vitality and a pair of fresh eyes to the scene, and in so doing has quietly brought about a revolution within the landscape of Japanese whiskies. In a short span of time, Inagaki-san has revived his family's historic whisky distillery on his own, designed a completely new pot still that features interchangeable components to allow a single still to adopt numerous configurations (as opposed to standard pot stills that are fixed with a single design), and has also created Japan's first local Japanese whisky independent bottler. His tarot card series of single malt releases have been a cult favourite!

Danong Bio's founder Han Gyeong-ja.

And then of course, we've touched before on Danong Bio's pioneering work in taking one of Korea's most storied heritage liquors and modernising it through the use of cask ageing to produce new interpretations with the likes of Bourbon, Sherry and Port casks. With this second collaboration, a completely new type of never before seen spirit has been produced through the blending of three distinct components - a cask aged IPA, cask aged peated whisky and cask aged distilled rice Soju, with the first two from Craftbros and the last from Danong Bio's Soorok. It's worth pointing out that a distilled IPA (or broadly beer) and a whisky is different because of the use of hops during fermentation for the distilled beer, even though both undergo similar processes and are in this case made from barley. This means that three different spirits have been blended into one - which has never been done before, be it in Korea or internationally - it would almost be akin to blending together whisky, rum and Tequila!

So let's get down to tasting it!

PS. Big cheers to Eddie for the years of persistence, hard work, and continuous creativity in pursuing the utmost quality!

Whisky Review: JEGI Craftbros x Saburomaru Collaboration Double Malt Whisky (사부로마루 증류소 x 크래프트브로스 양조장&증류소)

This is a Double Malt Whisky blending in South Korean single malt from Craftbros (Unpeated / Aged in First-Fill Oloroso Sherry Hogshead) with Japanese single malt from Saburomaru Distillery (Peated Malt / Aged in Bourbon Barrel). It's bottled at cask strength of 56.8% ABV.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Deep Amber

Aroma: Opens with mellow, luscious honey and a supple peachiness that expands to a basket of tropical fruit jams of peaches, pink guavas, apricots too, with also a waxy leafiness of eucalyptus and agarwood. Wafts of exotic florals of lilac and irises too. Further at the base is a herbal quality of brown sugar and cough syrup. As it continues to open, more buttery maltiness and nutty nougat comes through, with also a soft and fragrant air of well-worn machinery, delicately wrapped up in robes of incense smoke. It only gets more honeyed and malty with time. 

Taste: Medium-bodied, it’s luscious and rich, coming through first with a dash of ashiness and smoke that is accompanied by heaps of exotic tropical pink guavas. Those pink guavas are juicy and candied, coated in maltose candy, and joined by touches of black tea, with light tones of aromatic waxiness of agarwood, and just a slight touch of savouriness.

Finish: It’s candied through the finish, carrying still those pink guavas, although here the earthier tones begin to build up with more on black tea, along with wafts of chrysanthemum, as well as a very gentle core of chocolate coated cooked down plums and prunes. It’s delicately spiced with cardamom, furthering that exotic quality. Lingering smoke, alongside those bouquets of chrysanthemum and lilacs, with then a long and gentle, candied and medicinal bit of eucalyptus and cough syrup.

My Thoughts

Absolutely stunning! You know you've got a winner when already on the open you get a whiff of that intense tropical fruit basket of pink guavas and peaches! It never ceases to make the imagination run wild and the mind expand with quite so much excitement!

Here the aromas are beautifully exotic with tropical fruits galore, in the form of jams and preserves, rich and mellow yet at the same time vibrant and vivid. It's coupled with oriental waxy fragrances of agarwood and eucalyptus, with also purple florals. The base is rather herbal, yet at the same time has this old school feel to it - almost calling back to whiskies of the 70's and 80's with that whiff of well-worked machinery and gristy buttery maltiness. Completely evocative, it settles on this idyllic meadowy quality of the rustic countryside - very beguiling!

The body delivers wholly, bursting with these vibrant tones of pink guava, candied of course, with a supple richness. Where the nose is broad and richly filled with a wide palette, on the palate we find much more focus and emphasis. It's very exotic, very fruit and candy driven, with this oriental quality about it. The finish then widens once again, bringing back into the picture all of that complexity, with now more balance between the fruit, florals and here a touch of medicinal tones. This has the effect of surfacing even more exotic yet delicate notes of cardamom spice, chocolate and these gentle streams of dark fruit preserves.

This has so much character, complexity, intrigue and is at its core just incredibly fun and vibrant, with so much entertainment and engagement to be had! Wondrous!

IPA Newborn Review: Craftbros JEGI IPA Newborn Soorok Peated ( 제기 이파뉴본 수록 피트 크래프트브로스 x 수록)

A first of its kind blend of three distinct and different spirits, with cask aged distilled Soorok Soju from Danong Bio (aged in PX and Tawny Port wine casks), and cask aged distilled IPA and cask aged peated Newborn whisky (aged in Oloroso Sherry casks) from Craftbros. It is bottled at cask strength of 56.8% ABV.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Deep Amber

Aroma: Incredibly intriguing! Immediately really hoppy, with that botanical leafy and floral quality, at once earthy and herbal, as well as green and woody. It’s almost alittle pine-y, with then an accent of vibrant exotic tropical fruits of lychees. More on woody incense, quite musky in fact, yet at the same time with an oriental vibe, of agarwood and beeswax. It’s incredibly evocative, vivid and extends to a great depth. With time, more exotic florals come through, of osmanthus and geraniums, bay leaf too, with also more cinnamon sugar, baking spice, sarsaparilla and liquorice sticks. Really soft and fragrant air of smoke.

Taste: Medium-bodied, it comes through more precise here, then a dispersion towards that woody, herbal hoppiness, and then also a brighter aspect of rose water, lychees and mangosteens. It’s underscored by some medicinal bitterness of cough syrup, backed by brown sugar. The space in between is filled with delicate and fresh bits of apricots, peaches and coconuts, also a dash of pineapples, all coaxed in honey with still that musky quality.

Finish: It takes a definite turn towards more vibrant and brighter notes of tropical fruits of lychees, pineapples and coconuts here, before the leafy hoppiness marks a return. That herbal quality carries through the finish, with lingering perfumed notes of charcoal, rose petals and cologne.

My Thoughts

The word "complex" is tossed around alot, particularly when it comes to blended spirit, with much focus on the artistry of blending and layering the components so that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts - but, this takes the cake! I have to think that Craftbros' JEGI Peated IPA Newborn Soorok is definitely putting its money where its mouth is when it talks about creating a unique blend!

This is quite unlike anything we've ever had before! Certainly the hoppiness of the distilled IPA comes through, with the earthy and herbal hoppiness perhaps most dominant and rendered in an incredibly vivid, musky yet oriental quality that's so unique, precise and detailed! At the same time, there's of course those accompanying rose petals and lychees, as well as tropical fruits, that we love from distilled IPA's, that is here given a base of spices, ranging from baking spices to exotic mediterranean spices, together with lush bouquets of fascinating florals, as well as luscious honey.

It's incredibly complex, taking the palate as far as charcoal and cologne, with also agarwood, and at the same time remarkably harmonious and well composed, with the wide and diverse notes so masterfully curated, with never one flavour fighting for attention or forced behind. It's thoroughly evocative and tickles the brain, yet not nearly getting to the point of weariness - it's still clearly tasty, yet presents such intellectual stimulation if you're looking for it.

Quite possibly the most unique spirit we've ever tried! And impressively tasty and harmonious too! If the goal of blended spirit is to create complexity beyond what a single component can achieve, this surely has to be it.

Kanpai!

@111hotpot