Dr. Scotchtagon Presents: Yamazaki 18 Year Old

by Dr. Octagon, J.D.

I’m back from vacation and ready to get back into the whisky and combat sports-related blogging that my slave driving editor requires. I got a few nice Whisky bottles from Santa Claus so I’ll probably be reviewing them on fight days because I’m drinking anyway, why not churn out some additional content while I’m at it.

Today I’m reviewing Yamazaki’s 18 Year Old single malt. It’s pretty good timing because Suntory, the owner of the Yamazaki distillery, recently purchased the American bourbon stalwart Beam, Inc. In addition to the namesake Beam brand, Beam owns Laphroaig as well as a strong stable of Bourbons including Knob Creek, Maker’s Mark, Bookers and Basil Hayden’s.

Yamazaki is known for using a variety of different barrels (more on that later), so those used bourbon barrels won’t be going to waste. That’s what those in the M&A field call an efficiency.[[MORE]]

I recently got an email from one of our readers asking why I don’t review Japanese whiskies. The reason is that people often incorrectly assume I only drink Scotch. If you enjoy a fine Scotch, you will enjoy a fine Japanese whisky as well. While it has less cereal flavor than a typical Scotch, the Japanese method of whisky-making is based on the Scottish method, and you will likely see more similarity between a fine Scotch and a Japanese Whisky than an Irish Whiskey.

One thing that I believe is unique to the Japanese whisky industry and adds some special flavor to their products is the use of the Japanese oak (mizunara). Yamazaki is known for using a bunch of differently-shaped stills and many varieties of barrels (including Japanese oak) so  they have a wide variety of components to blend into the final product. I believe they also buy a little bit of Scotch to put into the mix.

This whisky is really good. Fruity with flavors of sherry, vanilla, orange and raisin. Pretty sweet and light. A little bit of smoke to it. Love it. I give it a 157 out of 158.3. 

The UFC is going to have a pretty sweet lead-in for Fox Sports 1 (other than the occasional reference to it as UCF). Pretty excellent game between Villanova and Marquette taking the place of the pre-fight show.  The game went into overtime after a blown charge call.

We’re not covering the sole Fightpass fight. I probably spend in excess of 500 dollars a year on Pay Per View and am personally insulted that UFC boss Dana White is trying to squeeze additional cash out of this ink-stained wretch, while I barely subsist on the meager wages paid by Mr. Nagesh.