You may already be aware that the Japanese are constantly striving to gain perfection; they have the habit of taking whatever they like or need from abroad (be it croissants, cars, or curry), and making it as good or even better than the original. Scotch is no exception.

The Japanese whisky industry dates back to the 1920s, where a man, named Masataka Taketsuru, was sent to Scotland and returned with the knowhow to make Scotch. Fast-forward to the 21^st century, where we have some of the best ‘Scotch’ in the world, made in no other place than Japan itself. It can even be difficult to distinguish between quality Japanese whisky and quality Scotch. As most readers may already know, Nikka and Suntory dominate the market. Nikka is most famous for the Yoichi, the Miyagikyo, and the Taketsuru, while Suntory dominates with the Yamazaki, the Hibiki, and the Hakushu. And this time, we are going to talk about the Hakushu.

Of all of Suntory´s offerings, the Hakushu is the driest and oakiest; it is also smoky, with a delicate aroma of tropical fruits and light peat. The secret to Hakushu’s complex flavors is threefold: the distillery’s many sets of copper pot stills, the different oaks used to age the whisky (American and Spanish oaks), as well as the wonderful water found near the distillery, which also happens to be the most popular mineral water in Japan. We at dekanta love it, and evidently, so do judges at international competitions. The Hakushu has been awarded as the best Japanese single malt whisky numerous times at the International World Whisky Awards. Let’s take a quick look at our selection:

Hakushu 12 Year Old
Another excellent option is the Hakushu 12 Year Old, and we at dekanta are well stocked on it! We currently have a no-box edition and a boxed edition. And for those who’d like their whisky a little more grand, why not get two Suntory-made Hakushu glasses with your bottle?

Or if you’d prefer a tipple, then we have miniature bottles, too!  Or perhaps you’d like a whole set to give to your friends?

Hakushu 18 Year Old
If you want to move on to the award winners, then the Hakushu 18 might just be your thing! Named the best Japanese Single Malt on several occasions, the 18 Year Old is, in one word, stunning! And we at dekanta are also well stocked on it. We have a non-boxed version, two boxed versions here and here, and a non-boxed version, which comes with Suntory-made Hakushu glasses. This makes sure that everyone has something they like!

Hakushu 25 Year Old
The cream of the crop is the Hakushu 25 Year Old, which truly is as good as whisky gets! If you want only the best, then you must settle for nothing less than this. The Hakushu is extremely rare and a truly fabulous, peated Japanese whisky from the Hakushu distillery. This 25 Year Old was awarded a silver medal at the Malt Maniac Awards in 2009, and whisky critic Jim Murray rated it 93 points out of a possible 100, saying he was “blown away” by it. This is definitely one of the better whiskies from Japan.

But that’s not all, as we at dekanta have plenty of other Hakushu bottles; some are extra peated, some are specially made for various occasions. For whatever you want, we´ve got you covered!