[Eight Carefully Selected Bottles!!] My Favorite Whiskies of April 2024

This time, I would like to introduce some delicious whiskeys that I bought in April 2024 or drank at bars or at whiskey events.

1st bottle: Pulteney 19 Years 2003 Refill Bourbon Barrel OMC For SHINANOYA & KOROSUE

Pultney is a PB from the famous Kobe stores Korosue Shoten and Shinanoya.

This bottle was distilled in 2003 and aged for 19 years in refill bourbon barrels.

I drank this at Whiskey Harbor Kobe.I can feel the apple, barley, and saltiness, and the nutty element in the second half makes it delicious.

It was delicious, but the price was nearly 40,000 yen, and I had something else to buy, so I decided not to buy it. .

If you see it at a bar, I recommend giving it a try.

2nd bottle: Williamson 2006 17 year barrel for ASAYA & SHINANOYA

Williamson is the PB of Chichibu's famous stores Asaya Shoten and Shinanoya.

Williamson means Laphroaig.

It's distilled in 2006 and listed in barrel, so I'm guessing it's a bourbon barrel, but it's a 17-year-old bottle.

It is aged for 17 years, which is not short-ripening, but it cannot be called long-ripening, but it is expensive at about 55,000 yen.

As for the taste, it has the strong peat and iodine of short-ripened rough, and in addition to this, the yellow fruit of long-ripened rough, so it's a combination of the best.

If you just look at the price, it might seem expensive, but once you taste it, you'll see that the taste is well worth the price.

I also drank this when I was at Whiskey Harbor Kobe, and I liked it better than the Pulteney, so I decided to buy it.

I don't think it's okay to just buy it right away, but since the price is so high, I recommend trying it out at a bar before purchasing.

3rd bottle: Glen Keith 1998 22 Years Bourbon Cask for THE BRITISH FAIR in KOBE 2024

This bottle was aged for 22 years in bourbon casks distilled in 1998 at Glen Keith for Kobe Hankyu's UK exhibition.

I also tried this at Whiskey Harbor Kobe,It tasted quite like green apple and was delicious.

If you see it at a bar, I recommend giving it a try.

4th: Secret Roland 2013 9 2nd Phil Oloroso Hogshead

This is a new product from Rudder's Trickster series (image left).

Although it is labeled as Secret Roland, the contents are actually Glenkinchie.

Although it will be released in May, I had the opportunity to sample it in advance at Whiskey Harbor Kobe.

Although it has been aged for only 9 years, it is a very sweet cup that tastes like drinking honey.

We recommend buying it if you can because it's cost-effective, but even if you don't buy it, we recommend trying it out at a bar.

5th: Glendowan

I sampled it straight and in a highball at Whiskey Harbor Kobe.

When served straight, it gave the impression of a strong sherry sweetness, and when made into a highball, the smokiness was noticeable in addition to the sweetness, and it was delicious.

Many sherry whiskeys have a bitter or sour taste when made into a highball, and are not very tasty, but this was a delicious highball with a sweet and smoky feel, so I think it is a valuable bottle.

It's about 2,300 yen per bottle, so it's not that hard to get, so I don't want to pay shipping and buy it online, so I was thinking of buying it when I went to a liquor store, but it wasn't available yet. .

I'm thinking of buying one soon.

6th bottle: Balmignac 1990 31 Year Bourbon Barrel for SHINANOYA

This is an old & rare Balmeignac released by Shinanoya.

This bottle was distilled in 1990, bottled in 2021, and aged for 31 years in bourbon barrels.

Although I only drank a few bottles, I was able to feel the tropical elements of 1970's whisky, and it was delicious.

However, the alcohol content has dropped to 43.4%.

If the alcohol content is this low, there is a high possibility that the taste will go away quickly.

If it were to be owned by an individual, it would cost around 70,000 yen per bottle, so I think it would be a high hurdle, so I think it would be best to drink it at a bar.

7th: Bowmore 9 Years Old 2014 Douglas Rain Old Particular for JIS

This is an old particulate Bowmore for JIS, distilled in 2014, and probably aged for 9 years in bourbon barrels.

Bowmore had quite a punching power.

Bowmore, with its salty and iodine feel! I was able to feel the youthful Bowmore-likeness so much that it had an exclamation mark on it.

8th: GM Tormore 1998

This is the much-talked-about GM Tormore, which is handled by Komaspi.

This bottle was distilled in 1998 and aged for 25 years in first-fill bourbon barrels.

It's quite fruity and has no unpleasant taste.

It has a fruity flavor that would make you think of 96 Ben Nevis if it wasn't called Tormore.

I drank it in April, but it went on sale and purchased in May.

I'm grateful that Komaspi sells their products after there's a drinking period or a period when you can try them out at a bar.

Closing Thoughts

There were quite a few releases in April 2024, or rather, I was able to meet some delicious whisky.

Since the turnover rate is high in Tokyo, the bottles introduced this time may no longer be available, but if you come across them, we recommend giving them a try.

I drank a lot of things in May, so I'd like to introduce them to you again.