Review #132 - Kaiyo The Sheri
A blended whisky from Japan - this is Kaiyo, specifically a bottling called 'The Sheri.' As you might have guessed, the most notable feature of this whisky is its sherry cask maturation - it spent time in both Oloroso and Pedro Ximenez sherry casks. This bottle we have is the second edition, or second batch, of The Sheri.
In addition to the sherry casks, this whisky gets the obligatory Mizunara maturation that this brand is known for; it spends three months at sea in these casks, which are supposed to impart a salty, seaside flavor to the liquid. We have some good stats here to go along with those exotic casks: 46% ABV, and no chill filtration. There is one trickier data point, though: the price of $155.
Kaiyo The Sheri
Japan - Blend
Current Locally Available Price: USD 155 (2023)
Age Statement: NAS
Strength: 46% ABV
Cask Makeup: Mizunara oak, ex-Oloroso sherry casks, ex-PX sherry casks
Details: Second Edition; not chill filtered
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times over 3 months; bottles at 100%, 80%, and 70% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a Glencairn glass each time, rested 10-15 minutes
Nose: Strong sherry notes on the front: rich raspberry and raisins and prune, lots of peppery barbecue, burnt ends, meat, it's both sweet and dry. Semi-sweet barbecue sauce, almost a maple-bourbon sauce, and orange oil; then, a distinct saltiness - it seems those Mizunara casks are indeed having an influence. With more time, we get more orange fruit, bridging over to blood orange and then apricot; there's cinnamon around the edges, and we end with barbecue flavored potato chips.
Palate: Packed with flavor once again; the sauce and barbecue from the nose are back, becoming more tangy all the time, and the baking spices are building up: white pepper, baked bread, cinnamon, and cardamom all come to mind; there's chai spice and candied nuts as well, before the fruits take over. Orange and lemon give way to chocolate-covered strawberries, and then sweet prunes arrive with a touch of cacao. This is oily, with a medium mouthfeel, and balanced between sweet and dry, despite some tannins from the oak and plenty of savory notes.
Finish: Medium-long, with tons of barbecue and a slight acidic warmth that builds in the throat. Cinnamon and oranges mix with wet oak, and purple fruits of fig and wet prune are also in the mix. Sweetness comes from brown sugar, and later, the salt returns.
Final Note: Very good. Very sherry-forward and savory, with tons of red and orange fruit but also meaty notes. The supposed salt from the Mizunara casks does seem to makes its way through, especially on the nose; the palate dives more into the baking side of things, while still keeping some of that fruit as well. The finish does get slightly acidic or bitter, but it's not necessarily a bad thing. One issue here is the price - despite this being a good whisky, it is quite expensive. We used to see it for about $135, which already seemed high, and it's only increasing from there.
Our Average Rating: 7.7 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 5.88
Check out our other Kaiyo reviews:
