Description
Product Description
**Winner Gourmand World Cookbook Award 2019**
"In his new book, journalist Brian Ashcraft digs into the short but colorful history of the Japanese liquor and the process that differentiates Japan's labels from their Western cousins. Plus, whisky authority Yuji Kawasaki shares tasting notes for more than a hundred bottles." —Travel + Leisure
Japanese whisky has been around for less than a century—but is now winning all the major international awards. How did this happen and what are the secrets of the master distillers? This whisky book divulges these secrets for the first time.
Japanese Whisky features never-before-published archival images and interviews chronicling the forgotten stories of Japan's pioneering whisky makers. It reveals the unique materials and methods used by the Japanese distillers including
mizunara wood, Japanese barley, and novel production methods unique to Japan. It also examines the close cultural connections between Japanese scotch and whisky drinkers and their favorite tipples.
For the first time in English, this book presents over a hundred independently scored tastings from leading Japanese whisky blogger, Yuji Kawasaki, shedding new light on Japan's most famous single malts as well as grain whiskies and blends. Japan expert Brian Ashcraft and photographer Idzuhiko Ueda crisscrossed Japan visiting all the major makers to talk about past and present whisky distillers, blenders and coopers.
Japanophiles, whisky lovers, travelers, and history buffs will all find something fascinating within these pages, including:
Tasting notes and scores of every major Japanese whisky brand
A complete account of the unique production methods and ingredients
Information about visiting distilleries in Japan
Hundreds of color photos documenting the history and modern practices of Japanese whisky
Exclusive interviews and previously unpublished personal accounts from leading industry figures
Japanese Whisky not only explains how the country's award-winning whiskies are made, but also the complete whisky history and culture, so readers can truly appreciate the subtle Japanese whiskies they're drinking and buying.
Kanpai!
Review
"Brian Ashcraft's guide to Japanese whisky takes you into the kind of detail you need to make a real buying decision. What does the whisky taste like, who actually makes it, how is it made? It's all here, in an engaging, well-organized guide." —
Lew Bryson, author of Tasting Whiskey
"Recommended reading"
— BBC Radio
"A comprehensive look at Japanese whisky and, through it, key aspects of Japanese culture. Enjoyable reading, whether you're taking your first tipple or are a Japanese whisky aficionado." —
Anna Fifield, Tokyo bureau chief, The Washington Post
"
Japanese Whisky: The Definitive Guide to the World's Most Desirable Spirit gives deep insight into the spirit's history and also thoroughly explains the specialties of the drink."
—Horst Luening, Whisky.com
"Brian Ashcraft has done us drinkers a real service here. Japanese whisky has lived a few lives in just a few decades—a guide to where it came from and who's making it now, with careful guidance on what bottles we might want to seek out, is a reference I've been hoping for. And now, with
Japanese Whisky in hand, I'm off to the liquor store." —
Adam Rogers, Deputy Editor Wired Magazine, author of Proof: The Science of Booze
"…this book unequivocally belongs in any serious whisky drinker's library.
— Tara Nurin, Forbes
"The book looks not just at the history of the five main companies and their products—extensive tasting notes provided by whisky expert Yuji Kawasaki also arm the novice drinker when confronted with shelves of tempting bottles—but also at their cultural context."
—The Japan Times
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Japanese Whisky: The Definitive Guide to the World's Most Desirable Spirit love of the 'water of life' shines through on every page. From the exhaustive account of Japan's long relationship with whisky to the