INAZUMA SYNERGY BLEND, a blended malt made from the Nagahama Distillery and the High Coast distillery in Sweden, is now available. At the same time [Saturday 28 September] INAZUMA SYNERGY BLEND special seminar will be held at Kyoto ANNIE HALL BAR.
The INAZUMA series uses only malt, and in the past, in addition to World Blended, they have also collaborated with Eigashima Distillery and Saburomaru Distillery by exchanging raw materials and releasing blended malts.
The latest in such a series is a blended malt whisky with the High Coast distillery in Northern Europe. Like Nagahama, it is characterised by its fruity original spirit, but what will the batting of the two taste like?
1. Scandinavian distillery High Coast and Nagahama distillery “INAZUMA Synergy Blend”.
1-1. Distillery comments & tasting notes
The product name INAZUMA is derived from the prefectural name Shigeru, and the label depicts the nature of Lake Biwa and the Swedish national bird, the Black-necked Stork, and Lake Biwa’s water bird, the Whooper Swan, which fly there. If you look into the centre of the label, you can see Lake Biwa and the exterior of the High Coast Distillery behind it. The name “INAZUMA” has a deep connection with agriculture since ancient times and is said to bring a bountiful harvest.
Colour : Sparkling amber.
Aroma: The top notes are malty and cereal, reminiscent of freshly baked cookies.
Vanilla-like sweetness and orange freshness follow, with gorgeous, well-structured tannins and peat smoke.
Taste: Smoky mouthfeel reminiscent of leather and white smoke. The palate is fruity with hints of berries and strawberries. The aftertaste is long with a malty aftertaste.
1-2. Product specifications
| Product name | INAZUMA Synergy Blend |
|---|---|
| Liquor type | Blended malt whisky |
| Ingredients | Malt |
| Cask type | High Coast Distillery: Bourbon cask stock Nagahama distillery: peated bourbon casks, sherry quarter casks |
| Number of bottles | 700 bottles |
| Degree of alcohol content | 50%. |
| Price | 11,000 yen (incl. tax) |
2. 28 September INAZUMA SYNERGY BLEND Special Seminar
A seminar will be held in Kyoto to celebrate the product launch.
First collaboration with High Coast Distillery to celebrate the release of blended malt
Lars Carlsson, distiller from High Coast Distillery in Sweden, will be invited to Kyoto Annie Hall Bar on 28 September (Sat) for a special seminar. The seminar will include a tasting of INAZUMA Synergy Blend, a blend of High Coast and Nagahama distillates, as well as a special tasting of the component spirits used in the blend. This is an opportunity to taste the Nordic malt, which was established in 2010 in Sweden, one of Europe’s leading whisky countries, and is overwhelmingly popular in the country and has been described by whisky magazines as the craft whisky world’s superlookee! Why not experience the charm of High Coast whisky?
Reference: Nagahama Distillery official online shop
| Venue. | ANNIE HALL BAR |
| Address. | 600-8234 1F Kyoyumoto Hatoya Zuihokaku, 802 Minami Fudocho, Shiokoji-gori, Nishinotoin-dori, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto |
| Hours. | Part 1 12:00-13:30 Part 2 14:30-16:00 |
| Capacity | 20 persons per part |
| Price | 1,000 yen (incl. tax) For tickets, click here. |
3. Distillery introduction
3-1. Nagahama Distillery
Nagahama Distillery
| Location. | 14-1 Asahi-cho, Nagahama, Shiga 526-0056 |
| Start of operation | 1 November 2016 (2016) |
Japan’s smallest class Nagahama distillery, located in the northern part of Lake Biwa in Shiga Prefecture, is a craft beer brewery and restaurant. Few distilleries, including major whisky producers, have a restaurant attached to them, and it is very rare when it comes to craft whisky distilleries.
The unique shape of the pot stills installed here gives the impression of the very origins of whisky making.
Nagahama Distillery was originally a rice warehouse from the Edo period, which was renovated and started making beer in 1996. It was then equipped for whisky production in 2016. The building has an atrium, with a saccharification tank and distillery on the ground floor, and a crusher and fermentation tank on the second floor.
There are two first distillation and one redistillation pot stills, and the heating system is an alambic-type pot still shaped like an indirect steam gourd, a pot still often used for distilling brandy. This alambic type pot still is a rare type of distiller in Japan. Its features include the advantage of producing a clear, soft and less cloying liquor quality.
Trial and error was repeated between the founding of the company and the present day. Major changes include a change in the malt mash ratio and a change in fermentation time, which was initially 60 hours but has now been increased to 72 hours. After that, the fermentation time was adjusted for the distillation of the different types of original spirit. The number of distillation vessels was increased from two to three. When the distillery was founded, the first distillation vessel was 1000 litres and the redistillation vessel was 500 litres, but the redistillation vessel was also replaced and all three distillation vessels were unified to 1000 litres. The rest of the redistillation vessels are almost never cleaned, following the example of Scottish distilleries. We have made many changes since the establishment until now.
Nevertheless, the spirit of the concept “one brew, one barrel” has remained unchanged and we continue to produce whisky.
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Reference: Whisky｜Nagahama Roman Beer
3-2. High Coast Distillery
Image source: High Coast Distillery Instagram
The High Coast distillery is located approximately 500 km north of the Swedish capital Stockholm, close to the High Coast (Höga Kusten) World Heritage Site, with the cool, well-watered Ongermann River running right in front of the distillery.
The distillery is located at 63°N (the northernmost distillery in Scotland, Highland Park Distillery, is at 59°N), and the temperature drops to -40°C in winter, but the difference in temperature between winter and winter can be as high as 70°C. The climate is dynamic in terms of maturation, which is a major feature of the distillery.
John McDougall, formerly manager of Laphroaig and Springbank, assisted the distillery as a consultant when it was established in 2010. The clear wort is modelled on Japanese whisky, the fermentation time is long, averaging 82.5 hours to bring out the gorgeous aroma, and the cut point is narrow and elegant new pot.
