In the firmament of great signature spirits, barrel maturation is not a simple technical process: it's a subtle and profound conversation between the work of man, the alchemy of wood, and the inexorable passage of time. It's precisely this perfect synesthetic balance that brings the new collection to life. The Artist – Nikka Whisky, an extraordinary release presented in Italian preview in Genoa at Velier in Banchi and distributed in our country by Velier.
Born in 2011 from the vision of The Whisky House to celebrate the excellence of Single Malts (historically Scottish) through the union with contemporary works of art, for the first time in its sixteen-year history the famous line Artist crosses the borders of Scotland and lands in Japan. An edition that celebrates a double, prestigious anniversary: the 70 years of La Maison du Whisky he 25 years of fruitful collaboration with the historic Japanese brand founded by the father of Japanese whisky, Masataka Taketsuru.
Eight Single Casks from two cult distilleries: Yoichi and Miyagikyo
To shape this memorable chapter, the selection team at La Maison du Whisky conducted a rigorous blind tasting of nearly thirty cask samples along with Hiromi Ozaki (Nikka's Chief Blender at the time) and his successor Junji Iseki. The result is an opera in eight acts: eight single casks bottled at full cask strength, equally divided between the two diametrically opposed and complementary souls of the Japanese fashion house.
Four expressions are born in Yoichi, on the northern island of Hokkaido, where the coastal climate lashed by salty winds and the historic stills still heated over an open flame with charcoal produce complex, structured Single Malts, rich in peaty, medicinal and nautical notes.
The other four bottlings come from Miyagikyo, the distillery founded in 1969 in Miyagi Prefecture. Nestled in a lush valley where the Nikkawa and Hirose rivers meet, Miyagikyo uses indirectly steam-heated swan-neck stills to craft highly refined spirits, focusing on floral, fruity, and extremely elegant profiles.
Starting from 10-year agings up to epic chronological milestones, the series culminates with two Single Casks distilled in 1986 and bottled after 40 years of maturation (a Yoichi and a Miyagikyo): these are the oldest whiskies ever released in the history of both distilleries, true milestones for global collecting.
The selection in detail: between noble woods and unmistakable profiles
The technical details of the range reveal the extraordinary diversity of the woods chosen and the rarity of each edition:
Miyagikyo's expressions
- Miyagikyo 2015 (Over 10 Years) – Cask #11621 (55,3% Vol. | 507 bottles): matured in a broad puncheon recharted, offers a mineral, sunny and concentrated profile, embellished with notes of acacia honey, exotic fruits and noble spices.
- Miyagikyo 2010 (Aged 15 Years) – Cask #125992 (58,8% Vol. | 204 bottles): Aged in an ex-Port barrel, it offers a taste of refined contemplation with hints of rancio, cocoa, gingerbread and an exotic freshness from times gone by.
- Miyagikyo 2000 (Aged 25 Years) – Cask #117935 (60,0% Vol. | 425 bottles): aged in a Sherry Butt, displays an unusual, structured and empyreumatic appearance, where peaty, earthy and medicinal notes blend with lively fruity hints.
- Miyagikyo 1986 (Aged 40 Years) – Cask #78858 (59.9% Vol. | 174 bottles): kept for forty years in a virgin American oak puncheon (New American Oak), is a legendary masterpiece. On the nose and palate, it intertwines medicinal, toasted, oxidative, pastry, and cocoa notes in absolute expressive purity.
Yoichi's expressions
- Yoichi 2015 (Aged 10 Years) – Cask #148028 (63,1% Vol. | 471 bottles): Aged in virgin American oak, it embodies Yoichi's true and ancestral spirit with an imperious, salty, iodized and incandescent peat.
- Yoichi 2005 (Aged 20 Years) – Cask #407529 (59,1% Vol. | 297 bottles): matured in the highly sought-after native oak Mizunara, traces a profile of profound harmony between peat, citrus fruits, dark cocoa, floral nuances and ash.
- Yoichi 1991 (Aged 35 Years) – Cask #129880 (65,4% Vol. | 144 bottles): Aged in an ex-Pedro Ximénez Sherry cask, it presents a deep, dark mahogany color. Its exuberant, baroque, and tarry profile is balanced by a surprising vivacity.
- Yoichi 1986 (Aged 40 Years) – Cask #252819 (59,1% Vol. | only 40 bottles): aged in a barrel hogshead, is the absolute pinnacle of the collection in terms of rarity and value. A complex and nostalgic palette that evokes the scents of earth bathed in a summer storm, figs, nutmeg, and iodine.
The Aesthetics of Nature: The Poetic Photography of Yoshiki Hase
The contribution of the famous Japanese photographer gives a visual and tangible artistic value to the labels of the collection Yoshiki Hase, with works from his series The Dessin.
Hase creates ephemeral and temporary geometric structures immersed in the most pristine natural environments, then immortalizes them through long-exposure photography. The interaction between the human hand and the primordial forces of nature explores what time reveals, alters, or preserves. This conceptual and poetic approach draws a perfect parallel to the aging of whisky in a barrel, where the silent passing of the years slowly shapes the spirit within.
A liquid opulence distributed by Velier
Distributed in Italy exclusively by Velier, the collection The Artist – Nikka Whisky It represents a pivotal moment for spirits culture in our country. Not only because of the exceptional quality of the bottles involved, but also because it reaffirms Japanese whisky in its most authentic and collectible form: one capable of combining rigor, mastery of distillation, and pure visual poetry.
Photo credit: Nikka Whisky
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