Yamazaki Archives - More Drams, Less Drama

Yamazaki Distillery Exclusive and Peated Malt Spanish Oak Kogei Edition

Yamazaki Distillery Exclusive & Kogei Edition

14th August 202613th August 2026Coldorak

It has been a while since I last reviewed Yamazaki, so today I’m adding two more expressions to More Drams. First is a Yamazaki Distillery Exclusive single malt that I bought at the distillery in 2018, followed by Yamazaki Peated Malt Spanish Oak from the Kogei Collection. The latter was initially launched for global travel retail.

Not long ago, obtaining both would have required a trip to Japan: a visit to Yamazaki Distillery for the Distillery Exclusive, assuming you were lucky enough to find one, as they were flying off the shelves because of their low price, then a stop at the airport for the Kogei release in a duty-free shop. Things have changed since then. This Distillery Exclusive is no longer available, while the Kogei Collection has become far easier to find through travel-retail and specialist channels, meaning there is at least one less reason to make a whisky-focused flight.

Hakushu and Yamazaki 25-year-old (2024)

31st December 20245th November 2025Coldorak

Back in September, I attended the Dugas Club Expert show, primarily to catch up with Graham and Fay Coull, who were making an appearance since leaving Dingle. The event featured a stunning Suntory booth, as Dugas distributes their products in France. One side of the booth showcased Laphroaig and Bowmore, while the other side highlighted Suntory’s Japanese brands: Chita, Yamazaki, Hakushu, and Hibiki.

Thanks to the generous pours from Christophe Davoine, House of Suntory’s brand ambassador, I was able to bring home samples of Yamazaki 25-Year-Old and Hakushu 25-Year-Old for a proper review with a fresh palate. We’ve already reviewed the younger Yamazaki expressions – Distiller’s Reserve, 12-Year-Old, and 18-Year-Old – which happens to be one of the most read articles on this humble blog. Before I dive into Hakushu’s lineup, including the Distiller’s Reserve, 12-Year-Old, and 18-Year-Old (coming soon…ish), let’s focus on these 25-Year-Old expressions.

Yamazaki Distiller’s Reserve, 12yo and 18yo

29th March 20225th November 2025Coldorak

Yamazaki Distillery is where it all began for whisky in Japan. I’ve written before about Masataka Taketsuru, who went to Scotland to study how whisky was made, then would help Shinjiro Torii create in 1923 the first whisky distillery in Japan: Yamazaki. Located near Kyoto, the distillery sits in a quiet place, surrounded by nature and greenery, and with excellent quality water, required to make whisky. Whilst it was founded in 1923, Yamazaki was released as a single malt only in 1984. Though I couldn’t book a tour (already full) when I went there, back in 2018, I could, however, visit the museum, which is free, and features more than 7.000 bottles in its whisky library. I’ll show you around, and then we’ll review the Yamazaki Distiller’s Reserve, the 12-year-old and the 18-year-old.