46% ABV. It’s rare, expensive and hard to work with, but for Ichiro Akuto the positives of using this Japanese oak—Mizunara—outweigh the negatives. Mizunara is primarily prized for its “remarkable aromatic qualities” and, according to Dave Broom, it is said to impart scents of sandalwood, cedar and aloeswood with coconut and leafy notes. Chichibu’s washbacks are built from this wood, and now there’s this unique Mizunara-wood bottling.
From the initial fermentation, through to maturation and vatting, the MWR has spent its entire upbringing in Mizunara Oak. As with the Wine Wood Reserve, Akuto uses a partial solera method whereby the older material is constantly refreshed by younger single malts, developing complexity as well as allowing for a certain level of consistency. Non-chill filtered and non-coloured.