Shizuoka 2018 Blackadder 3 Year Old Raw Single Cask #781 Japanese Single Malt Whisky (2022) 70cl

Shizuoka 2018 Blackadder 3 Year Old Raw Single Cask #781 Japanese Single Malt Whisky (2022) 70cl

1 of 199 bottles!

A rare beast in the west bottled by old time favourite Independent Bottler, Blackadder.

Shizuoka Distillery is part of the first serious crop of craft Japanese distilleries to hit shelves since the 2000's, much of the credit of course goes to Ichiro Akuto, for having led the way and showing how it was possible to successfully raise a craft whisky distillery in Japan in spite of Suntory, Nikka and Mars' dominance. What's interesting is that these distilleries aren't just making whiskies - they are actively looking for ways to meaningfully add to the discourse. At least one of the key themes that have emerged with these craft distilleries are that of making true blue 100% Japanese whiskies, which means completely using locally sourced ingredients. Of course, that's not an unheard of concept - Scotch is pretty much 100% Scotland-sourced, made and produced; and the same can be said of even the nascent Australian whiskies category. But for what it is worth, it is where the Japanese craft whisky scene is at and is thus far still a fairly new practice. Gaiaflow Corporation’s first single cask whisky, celebrating its 10th anniversary on January 17, 2022. Gaia Flow’s first foray into the whisky industry was as an authorized importer and distributor of Black Adder. Black Adder Raw Cask Shizuoka 2018 3 Year Old Cask No. 781 is made from 100% Scottish non-peat barley. It was distilled in a “K” distiller and aged for three years in bourbon barrels. Minimal filtering is used and the “Raw Cask” is bottled directly from the cask, including the lees.

About Shizuoka

Shizuoka Distillery is generating a lot of excitement among Japanese whisky enthusiasts. Founded in 2016 by Taiko Nakamura, the distillery has rebuilt the mill and wash still from the closed Karuizawa Distillery. Situated approximately halfway between Tokyo and Nagoya, it is high in the mountains on the banks of the Nakakouchi River. The distillery is equipped with a 1-ton mash tun and different types of washbacks made from Oregon pine and Japanese cedar—a nod to sake fermentation. It has two wash stills: one 3,500-liter from the former Karuizawa Distillery and a new direct wood-fired 5,000-liter (referred to as pot still K and W respectively). While Glenfarclas Distillery and others retain direct-fired stills, this is reportedly the only whisky distillery in the world solely burning timber to heat a wash still during distillation. Scottish coppersmiths Forsyths fabricated both the wood-fired wash still and the spirit still, while there is also a hybrid Holstein still on-site. With this setup, Shizuoka is making distillate from 100% Japanese-grown barley, an unusual step, as the majority of whisky distilled in Japan is made from imported barley.

About Blackadder 

Blackadder International were founded in 1995 by whisky writers, Robin Tucek and John Lamond, authors of the 1987 publication, The Malt Whisky File: The Essential Guide for the Malt Whisky Connoisseur. The company has gained great affection from whisky enthusiasts for its Raw Cask series, which is deliberately drawn un-filtered from the cask so as to retain all cask sediment along with any natural oils and fats. The company is credited with a key role in the popularisation of cask strength whiskies since its inception.

64.9% ABV

70cl