A great video Mac, as always incredibly informative. I must admit I completely believed the myth no 1 to be true and I'm surprised and a bit sad to find out that it's busted!
What an excellent video. Really informative and entertaining. You didn't mention if you could pick up these bottles at the distilleries? Do some, many or most distilleries in Japan even have distillery shops or visitors' centres?
I avoided talking about distilleries because the situation varies. Some distilleries do try to keep some bottles in stock, but they can sell out quickly I wouldn't want to encourage people to travel to distilleries in order to specifically buy bottles.
My favourite whisky TH-camr is back! Always look forward to your videos Mac. I remember going to M Whisky in Ginza last year and being blown away not only by the selection but the prices - they are WAY beyond RRP or even what they go for in the secondary market at auction. Great eye candy, but I never thought about reaching for my wallet once. Very true about the scarcity of affordable Japanese whisky in Japan. Anyone who goes to Japan hoping to get an age statement Japanese whisky at a reasonable price is definitely in for a shock (exception of maybe duty free at Narita airport). Every bottle I saw for sale was well in excess of the secondary auction price - so do yourself a favour and get it at auction if you really need a bottle. If nothing else, there are some good opportunities to TRY these unicorn whiskies at reasonable prices at various bars. Really is a shame that the hype train for Japanese whiskies the last decade has pushed prices far beyond what the bottles are actually worth and means many will only ever sit on shelves as a statement piece rather than being opened and enjoyed.
Thank you always for your support for stop and I couldn't agree more with your comments. It really is a shame that something which is intended to be drunk is sitting on so many shelves for reasons which I frankly don't really understand. Anyway, the positive is that we don't need to own all of these bottles when we can drink them at amazing bars like Aloha Whisky. Until next time, Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
For Myth number 2 I noticed this a lot with Total Wine & More. So the tl;dr is the store I work at got bought out by Total Wine and I noticed they had a few of their own Spirit Direct Japanese whisky. This was exciting, but I found that almost all of it was either, like you said, exported from Scotland and bottled in Japan. Or was actually Shochu. A couple of them are actually good, but I wish there was definitely more transparency in regards to what is "japanese whisky"
I've seen a number of these at Total Wine, and I regard them with general skepticism. I have one in my collection that is actually good, but I knew before buying that it was a world blend. There is nothing inherently wrong with a high quality world blend; they just need to be more transparent about it.
Hey Mac. Just watched you live on Vin's round table. You're a good Moderator. Thank you! I'm still looking for my first Japanese Whisky.... Liebe Grüße. Arno
Had to come straight over to check this one out after I heard you talking about it on Vin's Roundtable ... (Costco can be be a source of whisky value here in the US ...). Another great video. Cheers!
Speaking as an American, I think the reason why Japanese Whiskey has such a great reputation is because there isn't a bottom shelf Japanese Whiskey on sale in the U.S. The Cheapest Japanese whiskey you can get is 35 bucks. You can Find Bourbon, Canadian Whiskey and European whiskey for under 10 bucks and it's not a quality product.
Interesting point for sure. I have noticed a lot of 'fake' Japanese whiskies in the US at the $35 (and above) price point. I wonder if people make that distinction (partly what this video is there to help with). Thanks for watching and commenting!
@@terrortower666 Yeah but it creates the illusion of quality, whether that's right or wrong. Most humans, even amongst modern marketing awareness, still have an inherent bias that extremely cheap items can't be good and that expensive products have to have some relative level of quality because it would be bat shit insane to price them as such if they weren't good. So if you don't present a low value offering, it makes people believe that what you're making has to be good. Japanese whisky (generally speaking) is also designed to be more polite and palatable to a wider audience of people, which again sets an expectation that it's "better" than other forms of of whisk(e)y and will add to the narrative that it is better that's already been established by the price point. I also don't like this narrative that's started where people seem to be implying that Macallan make bad whisky, because they don't, it's still very good, just over priced.
I'm no whisky snob. I scratch my head whenever I read that some whisky has a sandal wood tingle and banana crust finish or whatever... And I'm not claiming that I've tried every type or brand of whisky there is... But I've had my fair share of drinks and can safely say that the number of Japanese spirits I enjoy far outweighs Scotch, Bourbon or whatever the UK has to offer.
with the current exchange rate, i was able to find a bar with Hibiki 21yr, they have to sell at retail i think. So $25 shots, which means a bottle would be $550 in shots!
I discovered Japanese whisky before it became popular. Many years ago, I saw a bottle of 18-year-old single malt whisky sitting on the shelf at a BevMo in southern California. It was about $60, and big brand 18-year single malt Scotch was usually around $120 at the time, so I figured that I might as well try it. It was a very good whisky, and I found it to be comparable in quality to big brand 18-year Scotch, or possibly a little better. This whisky was Yamazaki 18-year. It was a bargain at $60. Had I known that Japanese whisky was about to blow up in popularity, I would have bought this stuff by the case, kept a few bottles for myself, and flipped the rest after the secondary market price rose to $1000. Now that the price has shot through the roof and it has become hard to get, it is no longer worth it. If I want a smooth, inoffensive, low strength 18-year single malt, Scotland provides plenty of options that are comparable in quality, and many are still available for under $200. My taste has since moved on to the more difficult, hard core styles of whisky. I now look for at least 46% ABV, preferably non-chill filtered, single malts that pack a punch. It's even better if it is cask strength, with the intense concentration of flavor that comes with that. Japan produces some whiskies that meet these standards, both in real Japanese distillate and world blends, but the big ones that drive everybody crazy are too smooth and easy going for my taste. It would be nice if Yamazaki 18 was still a bargain, and I would even take Yamazaki 12 if it weren't also overpriced. Though Yamazaki is not the style that I seek out for serious whisky guzzling, I like to have a few bottles of high quality, smooth, lower strength whisky around for use as warm-up pours before I get into the cask strength firewater and for visitors who aren't used to the difficult stuff. Yamazaki would be perfect for this if not for the exorbitant cost. Green Spot is perfect for this too, and it doesn't cost a bloody fortune, so I bought a bottle. If I could somehow get my hands on a cask strength, non-chill filtered Yamazaki, then I would get excited, but I don't even know if such a thing exists. If it does, I hate to imagine what it costs.
Thank you very much for sharing your story. I think many people feel like that. Even many of my friends who live in Japan end up drinking Scotch most of the time because it delivers more bang for buck. Thank you for watching and commenting. Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Our Japanese are not necessarily known well about the context of Japanese Whisky. In that sense, this episode is very clear and useful to understand what's going on. Thank you for your big effort every time!🥳
@@KanpaiPlanet thanks! Just watched the entire video first. Sounds like that one is pretty mediocre to you On the other hand, it seems the 18 year is pretty good! Hope my buddy enjoys the 12 year sample I got him.
So true that my trips to Japan get more fulfilling when i am able to find Japanese whiskies at RRP! One of my favourite memories was finding a bottle of Miyagikyo NAS in a 7-11 for 4800 yen. Lol.
Hello new viewer, I have interest in getting into the spirit business from a quality assurance perspective working with the farmers who produce commodities used to produce whiskeys and other alcohols. Would you have any advice on where to start as a means to get into the business for someone with , an agriculture production background
Did you say you were at a Costco in San Leandro? I live in Half Moon Bay, 23 miles away. If you’re ever in the San Francisco Bay Area again let me know!
Hi Mac, a good honest video, enjoyed watching it. Shame but I think Japanese whisky is pricing itself out of the market. A lot of competition out there. Slàinte Mac😁
I think you are correct. I hinted at this in the last myth with so much competition from around the world producers in Japan have to be careful not to buy into their own myths list it ends up backfiring on them. Thanks for watching and commenting. Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
For myth number 1, I was so happy last week that I found the Chichibu Travel exclusive 2024 at MSRP in Narita Airport while flying back to US, so alway look for whiskey in airport duty free store 😊
Well in 2024 japanese whiskey is way more expensive then just 2-3 years ago! Here in Norway hibiki harmony was 900nok ( 85 euroes ish) now it's more like 1400 nok!!! ( 130 euroes)
A shame at how hard it is to find Japanese whisky in Japan. I was looking forward to trying some proper Japanese whisky (not the stuff I've had here in Canada), but maybe bars are my best bet when I visit the country. Also, I've never heard someone in person say Japanese whisky is the best. In fact I've heard the opposite saying that it's the worst. My guess is that they had bad brands (I've had one myself) or because the whiskies weren't actually Japanese.
That's my point: it is neither the best nor the worst. Bars truly are a fantastic resource in Japan and I highly recommend checking some out. Thank you for watching and commenting. Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Japanese whisky has that "mystique" to whisky outsiders or novices. But once you drink an odd blend with some strange notes & a label with google translate english you realise maybe not all Japanese whisky is quite the mystical liquid you once thought it was 😂
Clear, logical, unbiased, entertaining.
Excellent as usual.
Glad you enjoyed it Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Thanks Mac. As always informative and entertaining. Cheers!
Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
A great video Mac, as always incredibly informative. I must admit I completely believed the myth no 1 to be true and I'm surprised and a bit sad to find out that it's busted!
Much appreciated. Sadly it is true but if you do find at RRP at least it will be cheaper than overseas!
What an excellent video. Really informative and entertaining.
You didn't mention if you could pick up these bottles at the distilleries?
Do some, many or most distilleries in Japan even have distillery shops or visitors' centres?
I avoided talking about distilleries because the situation varies. Some distilleries do try to keep some bottles in stock, but they can sell out quickly I wouldn't want to encourage people to travel to distilleries in order to specifically buy bottles.
Another excellent video, Mac. Even if I'm not sure pedestalisation is in anyone else's dictionary. Kanpai/ Sainte!
Pedestalification! It's on the tip of everyone's tongue! Kanpai 🥃🥃🥃
Great video Mac. I knew some of this from my own research but I still learn loads from your channel. Thanks 🥃
Glad to hear it! Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
My favourite whisky TH-camr is back!
Always look forward to your videos Mac. I remember going to M Whisky in Ginza last year and being blown away not only by the selection but the prices - they are WAY beyond RRP or even what they go for in the secondary market at auction. Great eye candy, but I never thought about reaching for my wallet once.
Very true about the scarcity of affordable Japanese whisky in Japan. Anyone who goes to Japan hoping to get an age statement Japanese whisky at a reasonable price is definitely in for a shock (exception of maybe duty free at Narita airport). Every bottle I saw for sale was well in excess of the secondary auction price - so do yourself a favour and get it at auction if you really need a bottle. If nothing else, there are some good opportunities to TRY these unicorn whiskies at reasonable prices at various bars.
Really is a shame that the hype train for Japanese whiskies the last decade has pushed prices far beyond what the bottles are actually worth and means many will only ever sit on shelves as a statement piece rather than being opened and enjoyed.
Thank you always for your support for stop and I couldn't agree more with your comments. It really is a shame that something which is intended to be drunk is sitting on so many shelves for reasons which I frankly don't really understand.
Anyway, the positive is that we don't need to own all of these bottles when we can drink them at amazing bars like Aloha Whisky.
Until next time, Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
For Myth number 2 I noticed this a lot with Total Wine & More. So the tl;dr is the store I work at got bought out by Total Wine and I noticed they had a few of their own Spirit Direct Japanese whisky. This was exciting, but I found that almost all of it was either, like you said, exported from Scotland and bottled in Japan. Or was actually Shochu. A couple of them are actually good, but I wish there was definitely more transparency in regards to what is "japanese whisky"
I hear a lot of these stories. Things are improving, but not fast enough. Thanks for watching and commenting!
I've seen a number of these at Total Wine, and I regard them with general skepticism. I have one in my collection that is actually good, but I knew before buying that it was a world blend. There is nothing inherently wrong with a high quality world blend; they just need to be more transparent about it.
Thanks for the viewer-friendly and entertaining video, Max!
Thank YOU for watching and commenting! Kanpai 🥃🥃🥃
@@KanpaiPlanet We always learn a lot from your videos.
Brilliant busting Mac! Aint afraid of no malt.
The busting does indeed make one feel good!
a quintessential Japanese whisky 101 in 10 minutes or less: look no further! Great summary Mac, and much appreciated!
This is praise from a whisky icon like you makes all the effort worth it! Kanpai Menno!
Hey Mac. Just watched you live on Vin's round table. You're a good Moderator. Thank you! I'm still looking for my first Japanese Whisky.... Liebe Grüße. Arno
Thank you. I really enjoyed that livestream. Thank you for watching both that and this video! Kanpai 🥃🥃🥃
Seems that puncy prices are all over the world. Nice video as always.
Indeed Gert. The world is now dealing with what we've had to deal with regarding Japanese Whisky pricing!
Great video Mac!
Thank you for watching and commenting! Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Had to come straight over to check this one out after I heard you talking about it on Vin's Roundtable ... (Costco can be be a source of whisky value here in the US ...). Another great video. Cheers!
Thank you for watching and commenting! Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Speaking as an American, I think the reason why Japanese Whiskey has such a great reputation is because there isn't a bottom shelf Japanese Whiskey on sale in the U.S. The Cheapest Japanese whiskey you can get is 35 bucks. You can Find Bourbon, Canadian Whiskey and European whiskey for under 10 bucks and it's not a quality product.
Interesting point for sure. I have noticed a lot of 'fake' Japanese whiskies in the US at the $35 (and above) price point. I wonder if people make that distinction (partly what this video is there to help with). Thanks for watching and commenting!
Just because it’s pricier doesn’t not indicate the quality is of higher standard. Macallan is the prime example of that
@@terrortower666 Yeah but it creates the illusion of quality, whether that's right or wrong. Most humans, even amongst modern marketing awareness, still have an inherent bias that extremely cheap items can't be good and that expensive products have to have some relative level of quality because it would be bat shit insane to price them as such if they weren't good. So if you don't present a low value offering, it makes people believe that what you're making has to be good.
Japanese whisky (generally speaking) is also designed to be more polite and palatable to a wider audience of people, which again sets an expectation that it's "better" than other forms of of whisk(e)y and will add to the narrative that it is better that's already been established by the price point.
I also don't like this narrative that's started where people seem to be implying that Macallan make bad whisky, because they don't, it's still very good, just over priced.
I'm no whisky snob. I scratch my head whenever I read that some whisky has a sandal wood tingle and banana crust finish or whatever... And I'm not claiming that I've tried every type or brand of whisky there is... But I've had my fair share of drinks and can safely say that the number of Japanese spirits I enjoy far outweighs Scotch, Bourbon or whatever the UK has to offer.
Really glad to hear that because you will definitely enjoy the rest of the content on this channel. Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
with the current exchange rate, i was able to find a bar with Hibiki 21yr, they have to sell at retail i think. So $25 shots, which means a bottle would be $550 in shots!
Good work! That's a great price for a dram of Japan's most awarded ever whisky!
Spread the truth to the world! Keep it going Mac! Yu
If you keep supporting, I'll keep doing it!
Great information about Japanese whiskey!
Thank you for watching and commenting. Please consider supporting Kanpai Planet at buymeacoffee.com/kanpaiplanet. Kanpai!
Thank you for watching and commenting. P,lease consider supporting Kanpai Planet at buymeacoffee.com/kanpaiplanet. Kanpai!
I discovered Japanese whisky before it became popular. Many years ago, I saw a bottle of 18-year-old single malt whisky sitting on the shelf at a BevMo in southern California. It was about $60, and big brand 18-year single malt Scotch was usually around $120 at the time, so I figured that I might as well try it. It was a very good whisky, and I found it to be comparable in quality to big brand 18-year Scotch, or possibly a little better. This whisky was Yamazaki 18-year. It was a bargain at $60. Had I known that Japanese whisky was about to blow up in popularity, I would have bought this stuff by the case, kept a few bottles for myself, and flipped the rest after the secondary market price rose to $1000. Now that the price has shot through the roof and it has become hard to get, it is no longer worth it. If I want a smooth, inoffensive, low strength 18-year single malt, Scotland provides plenty of options that are comparable in quality, and many are still available for under $200.
My taste has since moved on to the more difficult, hard core styles of whisky. I now look for at least 46% ABV, preferably non-chill filtered, single malts that pack a punch. It's even better if it is cask strength, with the intense concentration of flavor that comes with that. Japan produces some whiskies that meet these standards, both in real Japanese distillate and world blends, but the big ones that drive everybody crazy are too smooth and easy going for my taste. It would be nice if Yamazaki 18 was still a bargain, and I would even take Yamazaki 12 if it weren't also overpriced. Though Yamazaki is not the style that I seek out for serious whisky guzzling, I like to have a few bottles of high quality, smooth, lower strength whisky around for use as warm-up pours before I get into the cask strength firewater and for visitors who aren't used to the difficult stuff. Yamazaki would be perfect for this if not for the exorbitant cost. Green Spot is perfect for this too, and it doesn't cost a bloody fortune, so I bought a bottle. If I could somehow get my hands on a cask strength, non-chill filtered Yamazaki, then I would get excited, but I don't even know if such a thing exists. If it does, I hate to imagine what it costs.
Thank you very much for sharing your story. I think many people feel like that. Even many of my friends who live in Japan end up drinking Scotch most of the time because it delivers more bang for buck. Thank you for watching and commenting. Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Great one, Mac!
I wonder when Indian whisky will join "the world's top 6?"
Excellent question! Depending no how you look at it, it is pretty much almost there! Thanks for watching and commenting. Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Our Japanese are not necessarily known well about the context of Japanese Whisky. In that sense, this episode is very clear and useful to understand what's going on. Thank you for your big effort every time!🥳
Thank you Kentaro for your motivating comment. We continue... and Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Brilliant !
🥃🥃🥃
Is The Yamazaki a good whiskey? I got the 12 year 50ml sample for a buddy back in the states
Yep it’s great I have the bottle nearly finished 😢
Yamazaki Distiller's Reserve review: th-cam.com/video/5-q2PArrSdY/w-d-xo.htmlsi=nGSEtovrkhKCJkrh
Yamazaki 18 Review: th-cam.com/video/uTRFRfNx52A/w-d-xo.htmlsi=CVvq_Rehn4V6e3-o
@@KanpaiPlanet thanks! Just watched the entire video first. Sounds like that one is pretty mediocre to you
On the other hand, it seems the 18 year is pretty good! Hope my buddy enjoys the 12 year sample I got him.
Great content as always.
Thanks for sharing Mac.
Slàinte mhath / Kanpai
I always appreciate your support. Thanks for watching and commenting. Kanpai!
Yeh Mac I can’t wait to hear all the B S get cleared up a bit more! 😕
🥃👍🏻
You and me both! Kanpai 🥃🥃🥃
So true that my trips to Japan get more fulfilling when i am able to find Japanese whiskies at RRP! One of my favourite memories was finding a bottle of Miyagikyo NAS in a 7-11 for 4800 yen. Lol.
Nice work! There was this wonderful period where you could relatively easily get Miyagikyo NAS at convenience stores! A simpler time... Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Well done
Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Mythbusting of the highest magnitude
Busting makes me feel good!
Oh, and congrats on 8 years of WhiskyTube!
Hello new viewer, I have interest in getting into the spirit business from a quality assurance perspective working with the farmers who produce commodities used to produce whiskeys and other alcohols. Would you have any advice on where to start as a means to get into the business for someone with , an agriculture production background
I do not. Best of luck with achieving your goals!
Did you say you were at a Costco in San Leandro? I live in Half Moon Bay, 23 miles away. If you’re ever in the San Francisco Bay Area again let me know!
Next time! Would absolutely love to meet up sir! Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
Stayed in Shinjuku for a week back in 2019. The liquor store close to the hotel had a lot more Scotch options than Japanese whisky.
Exactly! It's often easier and cheaper to buy a great range of Scotch than it is in the UK!
K&L Wine in California recently has Hakushu 18 for $700usd, which I guess these days is reasonable? 😅 Cheers Mac
'Reasonable' indeed! 🥃🥃🥃
@KanpaiPlanet It sold out quick and not long after the Yamazaki 18 arrived for $1000. So I guess the Hakushu was a good price indeed.
I recently bought Masahiro 12 Year and it clearly states that it is made in Japan with malts from around the world. Does not say Japanese Whisky.
Thats great! That means the new standards are working!
Hi Mac, a good honest video, enjoyed watching it. Shame but I think Japanese whisky is pricing itself out of the market. A lot of competition out there. Slàinte Mac😁
I think you are correct. I hinted at this in the last myth with so much competition from around the world producers in Japan have to be careful not to buy into their own myths list it ends up backfiring on them. Thanks for watching and commenting. Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
For myth number 1, I was so happy last week that I found the Chichibu Travel exclusive 2024 at MSRP in Narita Airport while flying back to US, so alway look for whiskey in airport duty free store 😊
Great advice from the video reiterated here! Congrats Titus 🥃🥃🥃
Can someone recommend to me the best Japanese whisky festivals ?
Watch this: th-cam.com/video/7embcl6LQDo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=mR-L6RwdWlR1Auau
Well in 2024 japanese whiskey is way more expensive then just 2-3 years ago! Here in Norway hibiki harmony was 900nok ( 85 euroes ish) now it's more like 1400 nok!!! ( 130 euroes)
Indeed! Whisky all around the world in every category is getting more expensive!
A shame at how hard it is to find Japanese whisky in Japan. I was looking forward to trying some proper Japanese whisky (not the stuff I've had here in Canada), but maybe bars are my best bet when I visit the country. Also, I've never heard someone in person say Japanese whisky is the best. In fact I've heard the opposite saying that it's the worst. My guess is that they had bad brands (I've had one myself) or because the whiskies weren't actually Japanese.
That's my point: it is neither the best nor the worst.
Bars truly are a fantastic resource in Japan and I highly recommend checking some out.
Thank you for watching and commenting. Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃
So true. Armandrinksss
Thank you my friend 🥃 🥃 🥃
Japanese whisky has that "mystique" to whisky outsiders or novices. But once you drink an odd blend with some strange notes & a label with google translate english you realise maybe not all Japanese whisky is quite the mystical liquid you once thought it was 😂
Kanpai! 🥃🥃🥃