The Whisky Show 2015, which will be held in October this year, announced one of the world’s most expensive whisky tastings ever. Each of the 45 tickets costs nearly € 8500 and allows you to try four Karuizawa expressions which are no longer available by retail:
- Karuizawa 1981 (sherry cask #6056)
- Karuizawa 29 Year Old (bourbon cask #8897)
- Karuizawa 30 Year Old (sherry cask #5347)
- Karuizawa 1970 (sherry cask #6177)
On top of this, all participants will receive their own bottle of the Karuizawa 1983 cask #3557 ‘Nepal Appeal’, a special release of only 50 bottles. Two of the remaining bottles will be auctioned on Whisky.auction and Bonhams Hong Kong.
Before you start ranting about excessive prices and the general Karuizawa hype: all proceedings will be shared with five charities that support the victims of the recent Nepal earthquake. This way, The Whisky Exchange is hoping to raise more than € 380.000 if all tickets are sold. I think this is a noteworthy and very generous idea.
I just checked my savings account and I’m afraid I won’t be attending the tasting… However The Whisky Exchange was kind enough to share a small sample, so here are my impressions of the upcoming charity bottling.
Karuizawa 1983 ‘Nepal Appeal’ (59%, OB for The Whisky Exchange 2014, sherry cask #3557, 50 btl.)
Nose: delicious. It has this combination of juicy cherries, tobacco leaves and a lightly ethereal touch of exotic wood – three things that pretty much define a great Karuizawa in my opinion. Moelleux au chocolat. Prunes, mocha and hazelnuts, a little incense. Eucalyptus and After Eight. Some meaty and flinty notes, dry cinnamon and a little balsamic after a while. Quite excellent.
Mouth: thick, leathery and very spicy without water. Lots of cinnamon, cumin and pepper. Coffee powder and huge tobacco notes. Strong fruit tea and lightly medicinal hints of liquorice and mint. Still some prunes, figs, black cherries and fudge in the background. It takes quite a bit of water, which releases more fruits (even some pink grapefruit and bergamot) and highlights the aromatic cedar / sandalwood.
Finish: very long, rather dry, on cocoa powder, pepper and blackberries.
There aren’t many 1983 expressions available, but most of them have been great. I can only confirm this is an excellent, very heavy Karuizawa. If you have the money to spare, this would be a unique way to support Nepal and get a rare Karuizawa in return. You can register online – the 45 tickets will be selected at random in three weeks.
Score: 93/100