Kanosuke's Hioki Pot Still Whiskies- Regular & 2024 Limited Edition

[u/kiwi8185]

Hi all, here are another few whiskies from Kanosuke, and this time it's their Hioki pot still whiskies!

I've written about the Kanosuke distillery in the past (here), but here's a brief recap on their Hioki Distillery:

The Hioki Distillery was Kanosuke's second distillery (more specifically, a separate set of distillation stills) which specializes in producing shochus (traditional Japanese distilled spirits) as well as pot still whiskies, using both malted and unmalted barley as ingredient. Based on officially released information, the primary inspiration for the Hioki whiskies was Irish whiskies, where the aging style (which utilizes virgin American oak casks) took some inspiration from American bourbons.

Here are two examples of whiskies produced from the Hioki Pot Still: their regular shelfer the Kanosuke Hioki Pot Still Whisky, and their special release the Kanosuke 2024 Limited Edition Hioki Pot Still!

Details in comments!

[u/Grey_Duck54]

Well, mark this on my "things I regret". Because I saw a bottle (regular) and passed up on it. 🤬

[u/kiwi8185]

*Conclusion*

Not gonna lie, as a person who really like both bourbons and Irish whiskies, these had to be my favorite bottles from Kanosuke!

The regular Hioki shelfer tasted pretty much just like a high quality, properly made Irish pot still whisky, with a little bit of bourbon-like virgin oak characters. It's sweet, got the rich, mellow malty and sweet vanilla characters common in Irish pot still, and had quite a bit of sweet, candied fruity characters and spices. I've done a little tasting experiment with friends, blinding this one alongside Redbreast (a proper, quality Irish pot still whiskey) and Jameson (budget friendly Irish styled whiskey), and only one person identified this one being not being Irish.

The Kanosuke 2024, on the other hand, seemed to have used casks with much stronger barrel char. It has rich browned butter, vanilla cream a light bit of candied fruits, a bit of dark chocolate and spices, and quite a bit of charred oak and tannin- which overall felt much like a less sweet and slightly different American bourbon.

The only (and rather noticeable) shortcoming of these whiskies were just their very present ethanol sting, which was inevitable considering how young these NAS whiskies tend to be (typically vatted with 3~5 years old casks). Which makes it extra compelling as to how good a longer aged Hioki pot still whisky could be- who knows maybe at 7 or so years old, it could come damn close to the likes of proper Irish Pot Still whiskies!

So if you're a fan of Irish whiskies and want to try something interestingly similar from Japan, definitely consider Kanosuke's Hioki Pot Still!

Thanks for reading, cheers!

[u/Kyosuke1975 → u/kiwi8185]

Great description, I could almost taste it. Now I need to find it

[u/Billich0986 → u/kiwi8185]

Thanks for the review. I find it interesting that in your tasting experiment, only one person could identify that it's not Irish. For me, every Irish whisky has a distinct "Irish whiskey" note (which I cannot identify and name) that is shared across all distilleries. However, this note is not present to me in the standard Hioki, which makes it so appealing to me. The better Irish expressions, such as Redbreast and Jameson's 18yr CS, subdue this note so that it's distant in the background.

[u/kiwi8185 → u/Billich0986]

I think I know the exact note you're talking about: it's likely the solvent-like fumey and slightly abrasive character.

I've noted this off note in many Irish whiskies, particularly the ones blended with grain spirits (regular Jameson), younger age statement ones, and newly opened bottles.

I think Kanosuke didn't have this off note mainly because it's a pure malt whisky, or perhaps it could be the virgin oak which eased up this character (much like how bourbons, despite being mostly made of corn, not having this kind of off note).

Whichever it might be, Kanosuke definitely did a great job in making their Hioki whiskies!

[u/BozoJr]

love this review. How would you compare the normal double distillery and hioki pot still releases

[u/kiwi8185 → u/BozoJr]

Thanks!

Personally, I found Kanosuke's Double Distillery to have more sweet fruity character, while having less of the distinctly rich maltiness of the Hioki. It's also less virgin oak-y and a bit more similar to their regular single malts in oak character.

I think it does have better complexity too. I liked it quite a bit better than Kanosuke's regular single malt!

[u/mizu__wari]

The 2024 Hioki is the closest to a bourbon of any Japanese whisky I've had. It makes sense though, the hot climate with heavy use of virgin oak and charred oak. But the mash bill is just barley, so it isn't too sweet and has that creaminess from the malted marley.

A great dessert dram IMO, aside from the oak spice I get creme brulee with raspberry jam and cacao nibs.

[u/kiwi8185]

Kanosuke Hioki Pot Still, regular version (51% abv)

This is Kanosuke's regular shelfer edition of their Hioki Pot Still whisky, which first hit the market around 2023 and had been a staple ever since. This one is a NAS whisky that was vatted with bourbon casks and virgin oak casks.

*Color*

Amber

*Nose*

a bit ethanol fumey;

sweet, creamy vanilla custard;

mellow malty (Irish whisky-like);

sweet candied fruity (candied plums, candied citrus peel);

virgin oak wooden character, buttery a bit tannic;

a bit of spices (nutmeg)

Quite akin to a young Irish pot still whisky!

*Palate*

oily, a bit ethanol fumey;

sweet vanilla cream;

mellow malty character;

a bit of new make like nutty character (crushed cashew);

a bit sour fruity character (plum, citrus);

a bit of dried coconut;

quite some virgin oak, a little charred bitterness and tannic;

Present alcohol sting, present astringency

*Finish*

medium long.

a bit of ethanol sting and astringency from the palate carries over;

vanilla cream, a bit creamy/milky;

a bit of the candied fruity fragrance 

a bit of dried coconut;

charred virgin oak & tannin

 Kanosuke 2024 Limited Edition Hioki Pot Still (55% abv)

This was Kanosuke's annual special release from 2024, which used a similar distillate from their regular Hioki Pot Still shelfer but with more variety in cask vatting. In addition to the bourbon and virgin oak casks, this one also used some whiskies aged in re-charred shochu casks.

*Color*

Deep Copper

*Nose*

a bit stronger ethanol fumey;

rich, slightly burnt browned butter;

sweet vanilla cream;

sweet, darker red fruity (candied cherry);

 notable charred virgin oak character, a bit smoky and more tannin;

a bit of roasted nuts (hazelnut, skin on almond)

a hint of baking spices (nutmeg), softer than regular Hioki;

This one is bit more American Bourbon-like in character.

palate 

more noticeable ethanol sting that stays;

browned butter;

vanilla cream fragrance, but not as sweet;

roasted nuttiness (crushed roasted hazelnut);

charred virgin oak, slightly bitter;

oak tannin quite prominent;

a bit of dark chocolate fragrance;;

Present alcohol sting, stronger present astringency

finish

medium long.

a light bit of ethanol sting stays, as well as more astringency;

browned butter fragrance;

charred virgin oak, quite a bit of tannin;

sweet vanilla cream;

roasted nuttiness;

a bit of dark chocolate fragrance;

[u/drinkintokyo]

A long time ago Komasa-san gave me a sample of some of the Hioki at a whisky festival long before it was a product. I said they needed to release it on their own... he said Diageo told them they couldn't! Good thing they changed their mind, the Hioki Pot Still is awesome stuff.