Chichibu 2014 Sample Chibidaru Cask Exclusive to The Whisky Exchange

Billy Abbott, The Whisky Exchange

• Nose

  Freshly cooked rice, milled barley and Portuguese custard tarts, although light on the sugar. Rich and savoury at first, with hints of sweet grain developing. Fresh baguettes, slathered in very good butter, are join by crisp and buttery croissants, and hints of salty preserved lemon and candied violet. Grilled ears of sweet corn – complete with husks – and soft charcoal smokiness drifts around the edges.

• Palate

  Soft smoke leads: burning mint leaves, charred oak and dusty charcoal. Anise follows the mint along with dark chocolate, bright green spring leaves and a touch of gravel. Sweetness builds, much more noticeable than on the nose, and grilled apples and pears sit alongside mint fondant and sweet dark chocolate.

• Finish

  Singed wood and charcoal ash linger with charred apples and mint slowly fading.