This Nine Leaves Angel's, distilled twice from unrefined brown sugar and aged in American oak barrels, comes from the tiny traditional Japanese distillery located in the town of Otsu, near Lake Biwa, east of Kyoto.
Yoshiharu Takeuchi, the master distiller trained at the Chichibu whisky distillery, supervised the production of this rum from A to Z. He personally numbered each bottle. He personally numbers each bottle.
Nico's tasting notes
The nose is simple and balanced, with cane, caramelized sugar and a few twirling flowers. The woodiness is light and unobtrusive, but surely frames the rum with a hint of sulfur and straw. Aeration develops a profile that comes very close to whisky. Nuts, malted cereals, slightly bitter fruits, the parallel is striking.
The palate attacks with this very whisky profile, with fairly dry oak and lightly roasted cereals. The fruit has been gathering momentum up to now, and finally takes off, with banana leading the way. The spices are embodied by a peppery vanilla of very good tone, which brings a nice hold.
The finish is light, despite a rum that concentrates on the tongue, taking on hints of butterscotch and even chocolate.
"The resemblance to a whisky is truly striking..."
